First Look 11e Cave, Canberra’s newest hidden Bar À Vin

Posted on 24 May, 2022

When Louis Couttoupes opened his 11th arrondissement inspired restaurant in Kingston, Onzieme, he had more up his sleeve.

The corner block on Kennedy and Eyre Streets not only has lots of sunny glass frontage onto the street, but a subterranean added extra.

And that is a concrete basement previously used for storage (the site used to be a bank when interest rates were 14 per cent, according to some of the pamphlets Louis and his team swept up off the floor which are, for the record, from the ’80s).

With some considered paint choices—cherry red for the door and bar—Louis and his team converted it to a warm and cosy wine bar, 11e Cave.

But while Onzieme has done a roaring trade, licensing issues kept 11e Cave in its own little lockdown. The night after the paperwork finally came through, Louis opened the bright red door around 6 pm, only to find a queue of 15 people outside waiting to get in (we were two of them).

Clyde River oysters and Under Sourdough

Describing the space as warm, cheeky, intimate and playful, you can expect moody, Melbournesque vibes, a cracking wine and cocktail list, and moreish snacks from the upstairs kitchen.

Accessed from Eyre Street, an unassuming staircase leads you down to a cosy space with room for 30 people at a pinch. Dim lighting, exposed ceiling pipes, concrete floor and rendered walls create a sense of stripped-back intimacy.

Mirrors, murals and music warm the concrete space which is lit only by candlight and vintage lanterns. And keep an eye out for the super quirky works from Art Tui Bussenschutt (he’s just 12!) and the little magic marker doodles on the wall courtesy of Louis’ girlfriend. Honestly, anything goes.

 

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But things are more serious when it gets to the wine and snacks menu.

Louis has expanded the cheese and charcuterie offerings and has his own cheese expert on hand to help with choosing.

There are Clyde River oysters, Under Bakery sourdough, duck liver pâté and some of Onzieme’s now-famous potato galette. Louis estimates he churns through 50 kilos of potatoes a week providing this crowd-pleaser upstairs at the restaurant proper.

Onzieme’s famed potato galette.

His sommelier and manager Tom Blakely has drawn together a sizeable wine list which places a big focus on natural and minimal intervention wine and features favourites as well as niche drops with about 10 available by the glass. There’s also a “Unicorns” list of lone bottles and one-offs cellared over the years and available for the more experimental drinker.

Meanwhile, Bartender Brett Nebauer, fresh from Europe where he worked in global top-20 bar Care/of in Sweden, is into pared-back classics and adheres to Louis’ low-waste mantra.

“We’re all about using waste from the kitchen anywhere we can, so when we juice lemons and limes, we keep the husks and make bitter lemon syrup. We get our figs from Gollion Farm, and when Vincent gives us seconds, Brett infuses figs and fig leaves into into gins vodkas and then makes a fig leaf martini.

“I used to save the cherry stones and plumb stones to make ice cream because it gives that marzipan flavour – but now I can’t get them because Brett has already used them to make plumb stone Amaretto. It’s been heaps of fun to trial all his creations!”

And once you get through that cherry red door and down the stairs, you can try them too.