Matt Whiley, the bartender behind Scout London and Scout Sydney, is joining forces with hospo heavyweight Maurice Terzini from Icebergs Dining Room & Bar on a new no-waste bar, slated to open in South Eveleigh in February next year.

Called Re, the new venue will be dedicated to reducing, reusing and recycling.  “Never has this subject been more important,” Whiley said. “Food waste costs our economy $20 billion a year – more than five million tonnes of food ends up in landfill; one in five bags of groceries winds up in the bin. We have a responsibility to look hard at what we’re not using and find ways to make it desirable.”

Every facet of the venue, from the furniture and fittings to the food and drinks will be carefully and consciously considered to minimise waste and limit their carbon footprint.

This extends to the look and feel of the venue, which will take over a raw brick heritage site in Sydney’s new South Eveleigh precinct. The bar and tables will be made from a terrazzo-like product made from Re-Plas recycled bottles and plastic containers, while the stairs will be constructed from recycled plastic bags. Sustainable timber banquettes will be padded out with pineapple-leaf fibre, while the stools and chairs are built from reclaimed materials.

And that’s just the start. Forget about paper straws, Whiley is re-mixing the entire cocktail experience from the glassware through to the garnish. The menu will be made up of 8-10 cocktails including various styles such as highballs and spritzes, made using innovation and game-changing techniques.

“Re is a cocktail bar, first and foremost – a place for people to hang out, have fun, and leave knowing they’ve enjoyed excellent service, good food and great drinks with their mates,” says Whiley. “But if you strip back the layers, you realise there is so much more at play here. We care about our environment, we care about people and we care about our future.”

The food menu will specialise in toasties, flatbread and bar snacks, which will be made from sustainable ingredients and reclaimed produce. “Just because it’s made from offcuts or seconds doesn’t mean it needs to be virtuous,” Maurice Terzini adds.

More details to come.