Bar and bottle shop Galah left a void on High Street when it closed last year – particularly for Nic Coulter, who co-owns Neptune Food & Wine a few doors up. He’s revived the airy warehouse, transforming it into a bar and multidisciplinary arts space called Young Hearts.
Galah’s skylight-lined high ceilings and exposed brick have been retained. Coulter didn’t want to change things up too much. He admired the original concept and hopes Young Hearts will keep working a similar way, while also acting as a blank canvas for emerging chefs and creatives.
“We’ve tried to keep it as neutral as possible so we can bend it whichever way we want and not be tied to any particular theme,” he says. “I just want it to be a space that’s open for everyone and doesn’t really belong to any certain person or demographic or clique.”
The venue will evolve constantly, through rotating chef residencies, a dynamic music and arts program, and a seasonal drinks list. But this being a bar first and foremost, the food will always be designed to complement the drinking.
“The brief for the kitchen guys is basically stuff you can eat with your hands,” Coulter says. “We don’t want people whipping out knives and forks and having main courses.”
First up in the kitchen is local outfit Freddy’s Pizza, which has taken the opportunity to flex its non-pizza muscles. Instead, there are Italian-influenced snacks like salumi, fried crumbed olives, cacio e pepe croquettes and $9 chicken cotoletta sandos (or crispy eggplant for vegans).
“It gives the guys a chance to experiment and separate themselves from the restaurant,” says Coulter.
Owners Daniel Leuzzi and Thomas Giurioli have also brought their spin-off limoncello brand, Tommy’s, to the venue’s taps. It’s available neat or in a creamy limoncello slushie dessert, reminiscent of a melted Splice ice-cream served in a wine glass. The bar’s always-on menu includes independent wines, local beers and a short selection of signature cocktails.
Three large booths and a long banquette are reserved for table service, while the rest of the space operates like a regular bar. There’s a lounge-style mezzanine above the main bar and a DJ booth to the left of it, setting the scene for a five-day music roster curated by James Ware of Waving at Trains.
Coulter says that Wednesday will have “a very chilled, date night kind of vibe”. Thursdays will centre around live music, with an emphasis on jazz and instrumentalists, and Friday through Sunday will feature DJ sets. The bar is licensed until 1am but Sundays will kick off early for daytime sessions.
And downstairs, what used to be the bottle shop is now a gallery space for emerging artists.
“We’re not interested in making money off that or taking commission,” says Coulter. “It’s just a space for them to get their artwork seen.”
Young Hearts
216 High Street, Windsor
(03) 9510 4045
Hours
Wed to Fri 5pm–1am
Sat & Sun 2pm–1am
younghearts.melbourne
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