The team at MEET on Newcastle's Darby Street are pretty chuffed at being named best regional restaurant (NSW) by TimeOut Sydney this month.
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And so they should be.
They were nominated by members of the public, which always makes a victory just that little bit sweeter.
"We were very honoured to win the Critic's Choice award which is judged by six of the top food publications in the country," chef and director Luciano Cruz said.
"As an award you don't nominate yourself for, it felt very special to win. The fellow nominees are all of our favourite local restaurants and we were very proud to be in their company, let alone take out the win."
Honorable mentions were given to Bistro Molines, EXP. restaurant, Flotilla and Humbug. Esteemed company indeed.
MEET opened in 2015 and quickly outgrew its 70-seat restaurant at Honeysuckle. It moved to Darby Street in 2019.
"MEET was always designed to be a food experience," Cruz explained.
"We had a very limited budget to build MEET, but our humble restaurant in Honeysuckle very quickly outgrew the space - and our expectations. We were overwhelmed with the support we received from Newcastle, and when the opportunity to expand into a new location presented itself, it felt like the timing was right.
"It was a blank canvas that allowed us to design a venue that we really feel complements the food and the whole experience, and we're constantly adding and tweaking small changes to the venue to ensure it always feels fresh."
The crowd favourite remains MEET's churrasco offering. Cruz says the rump cap, barbecued pineapple and cheese bread are the most requested menu items. The house-made barbecue sauce is also in demand.
"Our latest edition to the menu is our dry-aged steaks (these are all done in-house) - these sit on our share menu which is an alternative to the churrasco offering. It's made up of predominately local produce and fresh seafood," Cruz said.
"Our main philosophy is to cook as much of our menu over fire as possible as it's the way we did it growing up. We use mainly ironbark timber and charcoal.
"We also strive to run a kitchen with minimal to zero waste. While MEET's heritage will always be traditional Brazilian food, our current team in the kitchen is made up of people from all different countries from all over the world. We encourage them to be creative and express their heritages within our food."
Don't be fooled by the restaurant's name and reputation. The chefs are just as happy to cook with vegetables as they are meat.
"We love cooking vegetarian and vegan food. It gives the team a chance to be really creative and to surprise our customers," Cruz said.
"Customers are always blown away by the quality of the dishes and the variety that we can offer through our menus."
On November 20 MEET is collaborating with Mayfield's Pork Ewe Deli for a five-course Spring Seasonal Lunch. Tickets to the event are on sale now.
"We have been working closely with Pork Ewe Deli for a while now, using their cured meats and cheeses at our weddings and events," Cruz explained.
"The experience starts with Brazilian street finger food and a caipirinha appetiser. Then you get a selection of our favourites from the current share menu matched with local Hunter Valley wines. This is then followed by a selection of cheeses from Pork Ewe and finished off with our house favourite, barbecued pineapple and banana fritter."
Added a spokesperson for Pork Ewe Deli: "We host several seasonal luncheons throughout the year because we love collaborating with some of Newcastle and the Hunter Valley's best restaurants and chefs. Spring is no exception and we'll be working with Luciano and the fabulous team at MEET for this seasonal lunch.
"Here is a little sneak peek to whet your appetite: freshly barbecued Yamba prawns with MEET's signature malagueta chilli oil, fresh lemon and coriander, a smoky barbecue selection of dry-aged sirloin and fresh local whole fish ... and what Pork Ewe seasonal lunch would be complete without a matched cheese selection with all the accompaniments?
"And if that is not enough you can indulge in a bottomless selection of premium Hunter Valley wines, beer and cider while enjoying some live music."
MEET x Pork Ewe Deli Spring Lunch
Date: Sunday, November 20
Time: 12.30pm to 4pm
Location: MEET, 9 Darby Street, Newcastle
Cost: $199 per person (save $10 per person when you book a table of 10)
Tickets: Go online to meet.restaurant or porkewe.com.au
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