Bar Monte

Bar Monte has opened on the Gold Coast, bringing elevated neighbourhood Italian to the up-and-coming suburb of Miami. From the people behind Light Years, James Sutherland and Kim Stephen, and Pixie Byron Bay’s Lorenzo Toscani, Bar Monte merges the laid-back Gold Coast lifestyle with Italian hospitality and cuisine, creating a space that brings people together over modern Italian dishes.

Head chef Nico Meani has curated a menu that is familiar in the flavours of traditional Italian cuisine, yet inspires interest with contemporary twists. Highlight dishes include half shell scallops with charred corn puree and potato match sticks; mortadella bun with pickled green chilli and limoncello aioli; beef carpaccio with truffle mayo, fried capers, shallots and Parmigiano Reggiano; and bistecca with porcini rub, onion and marrow butter.

Co-owners Sutherland and Stephen said: “Bringing Bar Monte to Miami has been super exciting for us - the area is so lively and has such a great sense of community, not unlike the neighbourhoods of our other venues in Burleigh, Byron Bay, Noosa and Newcastle. We feel that Bar Monte is the perfect Italian expression of the Gold Coast; laid-back and comfortable, but a beautiful place to sit with friends and a bottle of wine, soaking in the ambience.”

The cocktail list sees unique flavour combinations with a focus on cold-pressed vegetables, such as the Beet Street with mezcal, cold-pressed beetroot, pomegranate, lime, extra virgin olive oil, and mountain pepper; and the Celerita with tequila, cold-pressed celery, lime, agave and jalapeno. There is also a limoncello spritz on the menu, a trend the Bar Monte team has made their own with Melbourne brand Tommy’s Limoncello, dry vermouth and Mediterranean tonic. 

Images and text provided by Bar Monte