New habitat for Byron foodies

BYRON Bay foodies have a new dining precinct in which to gather, with Nourishing Habitat set to be home to a trio of restaurants when complete.

Located in the space previously occupied by acclaimed restaurant Barrio at Habitat Byron Bay, it includes Mediterranean-inspired eatery Commune Canteen and Spanish wine bar Gitana.

Middle Eastern restaurant Sefa Kitchen is set to open later this month.

Turkish-Australian restaurateur Utku Ayhan, who also owns Sefa Kitchen in Bondi and previously ran Asian street food noshery Foxy Luu’s in Byron Bay, paired up with French-born Nicolas Degryse, who co-founded social enterprise hospitality group the Pure Foundation in Sydney, for the project.

With a focus on local produce and sustainability, Commune Canteen is open from 7.30am to 3pm Monday to Saturday, offering a canteen-style dining experience, where customers fill up a tray with three or five compartments. Options include hot slow-cooked meats, salads and house-made pickles. It is helmed by Byron-raised executive chef Thomas Ahern, who began his career as a kitchenhand at Raes on Wategos when he was 14 and has worked alongside Marco Pierre White and Jamie Oliver during a series of farm-to-plate long lunches in the UK.

He also set up the Green Garage concept in Byron Bay (now Bay Grocer).

Gitana, which is open from 3.30pm from Wednesday to Saturday, offers a deli menu with rotating pintxos (small Spanish snacks), platters featuring artisan cheese and freshly carved cured meats, pickles, olives and bread as well as rillette baguettes, Spanish crisps and Ortiz fish tins with pickles.

Ayhan said he wanted to bring the community together, with block parties in the courtyard on the last Friday night of every month with live music and Latin performances.

“In old towns in Europe there’s always a town centre where people hang out and socialise,” he said.

“It’s a great way to get to know your neighbours and co-workers.”