Meet Tiger Lane, Canberra Centre’s new 12-venue Asian dining precinct

Posted on 23 August, 2022

In a city where there’s a new restaurant opening weekly, Canberra Centre is going big—unveiling a delicious new dining precinct inspired by the hawker centres of Asia. Meet Tiger Lane.

If you’ve been patiently waiting to see what’s behind the hoarding in Canberra Centre’s North Quarter, allow us to sate your curiosity. In the space once occupied by Cream, then Alter Ego, lies the Tiger Lane Test Kitchen—the first step in an ambitious multi-venue dining precinct helmed by acclaimed Australian chef Shaun Presland.

Opening later this year, Tiger Lane is set to be an all-new dining destination inspired by the hawker centres of Asia. Spanning 2000sqm, it will feature 12 dining outlets and bars split into different sections reflective of their cuisine and country of origin, including Japan, South Korea, Southern China, Northern China and South East Asia.

Chef Shaun Presland is leading food direction for Tiger Lane. Photography: Zachary Griffith.

You might recognise the name (and face) of the former culinary director of the wildly successful Sake restaurant in Sydney from his stints on MasterChef, but after a few years working in the UK, Presland is set to become a familiar face about town as he guides the Tiger Lane precinct from concept to reality.

“Tiger Lane is such an incredible concept to be bringing to life and to be able to have someone of Shaun’s calibre leading the food direction is a dream. The Canberra Centre is the perfect location and we look forward to opening stage one later this year,” says the centre’s general manager Gary Stewart.

Photography: Zachary Griffith.

Presland is also keen for the big reveal, saying “Tiger Lane is and will be one of the most exciting food experiences in Australia. When I first heard about it, I knew I needed to be involved. We’re currently working on the menus and can’t wait to get the first venue at Tiger Lane open soon.”

When Tiger Lane opens, diners can expect a mix of individual restaurants, bars and authentic hawker-like stalls.

Tomas Scerbo, director of Interior Life, the agency behind the precinct’s architecture and interior design, says “We envisioned Tiger Lane to be an urban strip, a piece of town, a public thoroughfare for all and a journey of discovery for the people of Canberra. It is our vision that the space should feel the way the food tastes, which translates in a vibrant, bold and varied precinct.”

Photography: Zachary Griffith.

To whet our collective appetite, while we await the opening of stage one of the precinct, Presland has established the Tiger Lane Test Kitchen, a space where he will be running cooking classes, serving exclusive set course meals, hosting private events and testing new dishes. The Tiger Lane Test Kitchen will open this Friday, offering a set menu for $85 per person with a $59 beverage matching from 6-9 pm Thursday to Saturday night.