In 2016, Will Cowper moved from Sydney to lead the launch of Fink Group’s Otto Brisbane. After a decade as head chef there, he has stepped away to open his own Italian restaurant, Pici, named after the hand-rolled Tuscan pasta.
“When I first moved up to Brisbane, I didn’t know any suppliers or anyone. It was literally starting from the ground up,” he says. “Now, I feel like I have those connections, and I’ve established myself. I feel like [opening this restaurant] should be a lot easier.”
He won’t be doing it alone. Cowper’s wife Gianna Cowper – whom he met in the Otto kitchen, where she worked as the pastry chef – will also be involved in the new venture, alongside Andrew and Andrea Solomon, the operators behind Morningside seafood retailer The Fish Factory.
“Andrew had been a really close friend over the years,” Cowper says. “He said to me, ‘Look, I’ve bought this place – what do you think?’ It evolved from there.”
In September, Pici will take over the former Gerties site on the corner of Brunswick and Barker streets, which closed earlier this year after 32 years of operation. Interior design duties have been handed to Alkot Studio, the team behind stunning venues like Pilloni, Bar Rocco and Emme.
“[Gerties was] an institution, but the place was almost falling apart,” Cowper says. “It was tired, [so] what’s going to happen is an incredible change.”
Due to the building’s heritage status, the exterior will receive only a minor refresh, but inside it will be entirely reshaped. The upstairs space will remain as a bar, while the wall between the venue’s lower level and Hellbound will be knocked down to create a larger dining room centred around an open kitchen.
“[The menu will have] snacks, a few entrees, and about five pastas,” Cowper says. “There’ll definitely be a pici dish, and that will probably change with the seasons. Then a few simple main courses, which will be cooked on the wood‑fire grill.”
Cowper wants locals to feel like they can visit numerous times throughout the week, so the food and drink offering will be priced accordingly. He’s tapping close friend Chris Fullerton, of Cork & Co, to help write the wine list, while classic cocktails will feature heavily.
“The exciting part for me is doing something different,” Cowper says. “I’m still going to use the same produce and [remain] heavily focused on local ingredients, but it’s going to be more pared back. At Otto, you’re guided by fine dining and a certain price point. Now I’m able to do whatever I want.”
Pici will open at 699 Brunswick Street, New Farm in September.
@pici.brisbane
www.picirestaurantbar.com.au/
Dining and Cooking