Following six sold-out lunches, the Gin Palace’s ‘Scents of Place’ series will wrap up this Saturday when it hosts local distillery Anther for the final event.
The final lunch of 2018 will also see the closing of a different kind of loop. Sebastian Reaburn – an employee of Gin Palace in the ‘90s, who went to open his own bar 1806 – has now come full circle, and is one half of the team producing Anther.
The food will be handled by Charcoal Lane. The hatted social enterprise restaurant, which creates award-winning food connecting land, culture, identity and heritage, will bring a true sense of place to the last lunch for 2018.
Benjamin Luzz, Gin Palace’s managing director, told BARS&clubs that he is extremely satisfied with the very first Scents of Place series.
“I’m very appreciative of the time of all the distillers, they’ve thrown their heart, soul and bank account into something they truly love and that came across in spades when they hosted our lunches,” he said. “Also, considering one of our lunches kicked off the third busiest day Gin Palace has had in 20 years, [I’m] very, very pleased.”
Feedback from lunch guests has been very positive too; Luzz estimated that “99.9%” have left “extremely happy”.
“We based the model on giving a one off experience at an accessible price for punters. But, as is always the case we can’t make everyone happy. Every menu is a set one with no alterations so we did get some intolerances we couldn’t alter for last minute. Next year we will look at doing a vegan lunch to appease the many needs of gin fans.”
The small-format, educational lunch approach – with only 38 pre-booked seats available each time – has also proven to be a popular one. “The core point behind the lunch is allowing these small businesses a platform to have an intimate conversation with an eager audience,” Luzz explained.
“I believe that’s where we are at these days – the masterclass is dead in the water. People want a tangible experience in an intimate setting with engaging and passionate people. That’s what I want anyway!”
Anther follows Melbourne Gin Company, Patient Wolf, Archie Rose, Animus, Alchemy and Dasher + Fisher in hosting a Scents of Place lunch.
