Michael Hatzifotis is no stranger to fishing – or to New Farm.

“My grandfather was a fisherman, and my father worked as a fishmonger when he moved over from Greece,” Hatzifotis, who previously ran ingredient-led Greek venue Cantinho, tells Broadsheet.

Although he’s since sold his James Street venue, Hatzifotis didn’t slow down for long. “We sold Cantinho on January 2 and opened this on January 9. It was tight,” he laughs.

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Hatzifotis’s new venue is both a seafood market and a restaurant. Hatzifotis is aiming to source all his seafood sustainably and locally where possible, but the focus is on quality above all. “We use line-caught and ethically caught fish – it’s the best of what you can get,” he says, just as his father arrives with a box of mud crabs he caught that morning near Manly – really driving home the point.

“When we were kids, we wouldn’t go on holidays, we go out on the boat. Fishing is that happy place for me – it’s something I know and understand.” It’s also something he’s researched thoroughly, which is clear from the selection of specialty products and pantry staples lining the shelves, fridges and freezer.

Beyond selling high-end ingredients and everything you need to create restaurant-quality dishes at home, New Farm Seafood also offers dine-in options. “Where else can you get fish’n’chips [and know] the fish has been filleted by hand that morning?”

Although Hatzifotis has kitchen experience himself, he has enlisted Josh Scheps (who spent the last 13 years at Moda) as head chef. Scheps’s experience and technical ability shines in a menu that draws inspiration from Hatzifotis’s Greek heritage.

The menu walks the tightrope between highbrow and lowbrow, ranging from fish’n’chips to house-baked focaccia with taramasalata; caviar blinis; and grilled calamari with kipfler potatoes and olive tapenade. The drinks list performs the same balance, with everything from a bottle of Cristal to XXXX Gold.

New Farm Seafood
85 Merthyr Road, New Farm
(07) 3358 1676

Hours:
Tue to Sun 8am–9pm

newfarmseafood.com.au/
@newfarmseafoodmarket