Five Minutes With ... Michael Fegent
Michael, you have a new restaurant in Balmain. Can you tell us about it?
It’s called Casa Esquina (which means corner house in Spanish, which we named it because it sits on three corners) and it’s an Argentinian restaurant, definitely not traditional, but our take on Argentinian food based on our travels. It has 230 seats including a huge al fresco dining area, plus a large bar and balcony for bar food, street snacks and cocktails and that’s for walk-ins or locals who don’t want to make reservations. Then we have a 100-seat courtyard and first-floor dining area where you can have a three or four-course meal with meats cooked on a parrilla. The menu is a large menu with a mix of Italian, Spanish, Indigenous and a bit of German food, which is what Argentinian food is.
As a long-time Paddington businessperson, what differences do you find between Paddington and Balmain people?
Close to none, to be honest. I always say the difference between Paddington people and Balmain people is that the Paddington people drive Porsche four-wheel drives and in Balmain they drive Range Rovers (laughs). But the spend is actually higher in Balmain because I think we are one of the few places over there that are high end. People keep telling us over there that they have been looking for a place to spend their money.
We hear you employed Journals’ Andrew Packham at the new restaurant. What’s he doing and how is he going?
Yeah, when Journals (the paper shop beside Tequila Mockingbird) shut down I offered Andrew the job as maître d' at Casa Esquina. He’s still dressed in his three-piece suit. I joke that he sleeps in that. But seriously, he really suits the door there. He has that old-school touch that’s soon to be lost in hospitality in Australia. So many people have commented about him being at the door — he’s been a great addition to the restaurant.
Tequila Mockingbird is almost nine years old now. How do you keep it fresh?
Well, on that, we’re going to refurbish it in about a year. We keep updating the menu all the time to keep it fresh and to keep locals interested. But we’re at a point where we feel that Tequila Mockingbird needs a bit of love and we want to freshen it up. So we’re planning that now. We haven’t decided whether to just refresh Tequila Mockingbird or offer something new. We’ll keep thinking about it.
What’s on the horizon for your business on a wider front?
I’m always working on something new and in the second half of this year we’re going to launch a fast-food venture that we’re going to try to roll out over NSW and possibly Australia. It will be Australia’s first artisanal bespoke Mexican fast food. We’ve got an industrial-sized tortilla press and we’re going to do the food you would eat in Mexico rather than the Tex-Mex we've unfortunately been offered here to date. It will be something that has never been done before in Australia. It’s exciting.
Tequila Mockingbird
6 Heeley St
Casa Esquina
79 Elliot St, Balmain