Aløft – the prequel | Hobart

A sneak peek at Aloft, Hobart’s newest restaurant


The most exciting development in Tasmania’s food scene in 2015 has been the emergence of Aloft, brain child of local chef Christian Ryan and his good friend Glenn Byrnes (recently of Garagistes fame), and supported by Heiki Stanley (ex-Pilgrim) and Madeleine Paske of MONA’s The Source.

Opening night is still a couple of weeks away, but Christian and the team were kind enough to indulge me in a tour and a quick chat regarding his vision for Aloft, and the mark they are determined to leave on Australia’s dining landscape.

Considering how manic the last few weeks have been for the team, such a willingness to engage the local foodie community is a sure sign of their generous spirit and genuine desire to offer the discerning folk of Hobart, and what I’m sure will become a cavalcade of both national and international visitors, an experience to remember!

Glenn was still putting the finishing touches on their menu, but I can assure you that it is everything a great menu should be. It is innovative, it focuses on the best seasonal Tasmanian produce (including many indigenous ingredients), and it is diverse, providing options for all types of diner. Considering their natural abundance and high quality, fruits of the sea are likely to be prominent, yet at the same time I suspect we’ll also see hints of our south east Asian neighbours, both near and far, permeating throughout the menu. In short, it sounds sensational!

Trust me, a full review will be coming very soon, [edit: here is our review of Aloft] but in the meantime you’ll have to be satisfied with this sneak peek…

I’m excited, as is famous food critic John Lethlean who visited this morning!!

You can keep up to date with their movements as they approach opening night here (full website to come shortly) – Aløft