MOD. Dining by Clayton Wells to open at Art Gallery of NSW - Eat Out

Oct 18, 2022

Expect modern masterpieces like fried prawn sandwiches with Old Bay mayo and sorbet with freeze-dried plums.

A team of top chefs, including Clayton Wells, Matt Moran, Palisa Anderson and Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo, will head up the food and beverage program at the soon-to-open Sydney Modern Project.

Sydney Modern Project is an extension of the Art Gallery of NSW. The development includes an impressive new building and public art garden, as well as a restaurant, cafe and kiosk.

Leading the dining options in the Art Gallery’s new building will be MOD. Dining by Clayton Wells, a new all-day restaurant with al fresco seating on a harbour terrace. Wells is known for his Chippendale restaurant Automata, which was ranked 28 in this year’s delicious. 100.

Clayton Wells supplied

His menu at MOD. Dining will reflect multicultural Sydney, offering creative, edgy and diverse dishes using Australia’s best produce and an all-Australian wine list. Diners can expect mod-oz bites like a fried prawn sandwich with old bay mayo; lamb shoulder with za’atar and beetroot hummus, and coconut sorbet with black sesame and freeze dried plum.

For a quick bite, visitors can also stop by the Kiosk. The menu has been developed by Gamilaroi elder Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo and will highlight Indigenous Australian ingredients with casual takeaway snacks including chicken and lemon myrtle pies and Kensington Pride mango ice-cream sandwiches. Aunty Beryl is a Gamilaroi woman and a sought-after expert on Indigenous ingredients and how they are used in cooking. She currently works with the National Centre for Indigenous Excellence in Redfern providing hospitality training and mentoring to young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Visitors will also have the option of dining at Art Gallery Restaurant, Crafted by Matt Moran which opened in March 2021.

Australian food identities including Palisa Anderson and Mindy Woods will also be involved in putting together special menus and pop-up activations in The Gallery Cafe.

The Art Gallery Restaurant, Crafted by Matt Moran, and The Gallery Cafe are currently open for guests in the existing building. MOD. Dining and Kiosk will welcome guests in the Art Gallery’s new building when it opens to the public on 3 December.