Frenchies Bistro and Brewery

It’s nice to meet someone who’s completely and unreservedly engaged in what they’re doing. For Vincent de Soyres, it’s about beer; Thomas Cauquil it’s about charcuterie. The two friends spent the better part of a decade thinking, talking about and planning what would become their Rosebery restaurant and brewery.

As the name suggests, this place is all about traditional French beer styles: saison, Biere de Garde, plus lagers and ales made with French ingredients and influences. Modern, hop-driven styles also grace the bar’s eight taps – but you’ll also find barrel-aged sours, Australian and French wines from organic and biodynamic labels, premium spirits and tapped cocktails.

Cauquil plates up a seasonal, ever-changing menu in the dining room, including share plates, French classics and a couple of desserts. It's French bistro style here: so there's a heavy focus on well-executed sauces. An keenly priced bottomless option is available for long weekend lunches.

Downstairs is about cheese (a rotating list of varieties mostly from Australia or France) and charcuterie. Cauquil worked under Arnaud Nicolas, one of France’s leading charcuterie chefs. Imagine textural French terrines, mousses, rillettes and pâté en croûte (a puff pastry loaf stuffed with terrine).

On the ground floor you can sit at the long bar, which looks into Cauquil’s surprisingly small kitchen, or at one of the booths, which look onto de Soyres’ brews in progress. Take a moment to look at the carpentry, too – it’s all by de Soyres’ dad.