QT Sydney Launches Parlour As An Intimate Neo-French Bistro Led By Chef & Creative Director Sean Connolly

This is a new kind of French revolution. Award-winning dining destination and boutique hotel QT Sydney, have launched Parlour, an all-day and premium late-night neo-French bistro. Led by Creative Director Food and Beverage, Chef Sean Connolly (Gowings at QT Sydney, Esther at QT Auckland) the bistro is a sultry pocket of Paris in the heart of the city, with an eclectic wine program and the welcoming charm QT is renowned for. 

Located on Market Street, Parlour is rich in history and serves as a hidden gem. Low-lit and intimate, Connolly shares his culinary journey with approachable, seasonal, classic French fare which meet a renaissance of retro wonders. The menu is inspired by Connolly’s classical training early on in his career and a celebration of what he describes as “French avant-garde”.  

Head Chef, Kenny Radegonde (previously Felix, La Paris brasserie) works alongside Connolly, bringing over 17 years’ experience in the industry and his own flair to Parlour. Highlight dishes include Escargot, with smoked ham, pea puree and garlic Pernod butter, Steak Hache à Cheval made with wagyu brisket and served with frites, fried egg, and pepper sauce, and Coffee Crème Brûlée, caramelised à la minute. 

The supper menu is available for late-night rendezvous including Raclette Cheese or Confit Duck Jaffle, served with garlic butter jus and Comté crisps or Fromage with a preferred pour. For dessert there is Crepe Suzette Flambé and Profiterole Dame Blanche.  

On QT Sydney’s announcement with Chef, Sean Connolly, he says “I get shivers talking about the technicality of French cooking, its thoughtful food that takes three days to get to the plate. If I was a film director, Parlour is what a French restaurant would feel like. The venue feels like an evening in Paris.” 

Kenny Radegonde further adds, “When you step in, you’re at home. At ease. Parlour is like going to someone’s house and having dinner. All day and night.”  

The Parlour wine experience celebrates Old World French wine regions and the New World order of contemporary Australian wine making they inspire. The wine list showcases over 350 wines of French and Australian icons, emerging stars and avant-garde producers, under the guidance of Chris Morrison, Director of Beverage for QT, who led the group to be awarded 18 glasses at the 2022 Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards. 

Featuring Vintage Champagne and the hero sparkling wines of Tasmania, the steely Chardonnay inspired wines of Chablis face off against the hedonistic Chardonnays of Margaret River. The elegant and savoury Syrah from the Northern Rhone wrestle with the muscular Shiraz of the Barossa Valley. With 25 wines by the glass, Coravin pours of rare and aged wines going back 30 years, Parlour brings the best of food and wine as we have come to expect from QT. 

The wine cellar, or The Bureau, is a room Hemingway, Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald would be inspired to visit. Originally a ticket booth for the movie theatre built in 1929, Parlour’s all female sommelier team and Head Sommelier Samantha Belt, will guide guests through the menu and expansive selection housed within the cellar walls. 

The beverage menu is a collection of classic cocktails with a contemporary twist, paying homage to the world’s most renowned cocktails throughout history. Highlights include French 75, Green Fairy with Absinthe, Champagne Framboise, Martini Francois, Kir Royale and Crème Brûlée Martini. 

The vibe of Parlour is cosy and carefree, but never cliché: just Parisian. A collaboration between Chef Sean and QT Music Collaborator, the playlist blends French retro 60’s rock, funk and boogie with Caribbean vintage rocksteady reggae, influenced by calypso, American jazz and rhythm and blues. 

Among renaissance-inspired architecture, Parlour lives and breathes within two of Sydney’s most distinguished buildings, The State Theatre and the iconic Gowings department store. A mirror to the facade of the building, the interior has retained its spirit and art deco accents, while adding a modern touch.  

Welcoming to all – roaring to life for the early risers and burning the midnight oil for late-night revellers – open for lunch, dinner and late-night supper and drinks. Parlour is Sydney’s new way to soirée.   

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