A Prayer for the Wild at Heart

Founded by Emily Raven (who also runs My Kingdom for a Horse), A Prayer for the Wild at Heart is an unpretentious brasserie that seeks to marry French cuisine with Australian flavours.

Its globe-trotting menu, by Brittany-born chef Stéphane Brizard (ex-Crafers and Cremorne Hotel), might feature brasserie classics like flat-iron steak with cafe de Paris butter and a beef-cheek-and-wild-mushroom pithivier alongside wider ranging fare such as ricotta and truffle gnudi, heirloom beetroot carpaccio, and chermoula lamb shoulder (to share between two or three) with spiced yoghurt. The dishes are available over lunch and dinner, and there’s a smaller snack menu in the afternoons to pair with a classic cocktail or wine. Its also open for breakfast, with a pared-back menu of My Kingdom for a Horse coffee, pastries and eggs. (Kingdom is a 15-minute walk away, for those after a larger morning meal.)

Dessert might offer a light espresso panna cotta (using coffee roasted in-house at Kingdom), with a golden toffee corona, as well as a raspberry mille-feuille with white chocolate ganache and freeze-dried berries, and an almond and dark chocolate tart with tofu and passionfruit. A carefully curated selection of local and international wines, cocktails and spirits are also available to pair well with dishes.

As for the fit-out, a combination of booth and table seating makes economic use of the interior, while large collapsible doors open onto the square. There’s even alfresco seating which serves to heighten its neighbourhood bistro feel.