In mid-June, Richmond’s outstanding, modern Vietnamese-Australian diner Anchovy – as we know it – is closing.

“Anchovy and I will take a long due break to reassess, revamp and work on its next incarnation,” Thi Le, who owns the Bridge Road restaurant with Jia-Yen Lee, wrote on Instagram today.

“The last two-and-a-bit years have been a rollercoaster of a ride, both mentally and emotionally,” she continued. “I have given everything to this little restaurant to ensure its survival and its place within the community.”

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In a statement, also released today, Lee added: “Our intention has always been to move Anchovy … into a more intimate space to better explore the foundations of Vietnamese cuisine. Currently, we are hindered materially by liquor licencing (almost a year in the making and still going) and hindered emotionally by the stresses of the last two-and-a half years.”

Lee also said the venue isn’t fit for the “Back to Our Roots” set menu Anchovy has served since reopening post-lockdown. “The physical configuration of the space does not lend itself naturally to how Thi wants to narrate her take on Vietnamese cuisine.”

But it’s not the end of the pair’s tenure at 338 Bridge Road. In late June, a yet-to-be-named a la carte restaurant centred on Laotian cuisine will open in the space.

“Laotian flavours have been part of the foundation of dishes at Anchovy since 2015,” Lee said in the statement. “We served Laotian cuisine for takeaway over the first lockdown. We want to reintroduce this menu as a more permanent fixture back to the Melbourne dining scene.”

“The food will be loud, punchy, bright and fresh,” she continued. “Fermented seafood pastes will be used in abundance. Chilli in its various forms will be present. Guests with no dietary restrictions will rejoice; guests who do are advised to reconsider.”

Since opening seven years ago, Anchovy has cemented itself as one of the city’s foremost innovators in Southeast Asian cuisine, with Li and Lee taking many traditions from their Southeast Asian roots and adapting them expertly – and respectfully – for the contemporary context. Last year, they opened a dedicated banh mi bar, Ca Com, in the space next door, where it’ll be business as usual despite the changes at Anchovy.

Anchovy will close in mid-June; the new Laotian restaurant will open in late June.

anchovy.net.au