Before our city was shut down, it’s likely you were aware of the line of people that consistently queued outside Rice Paper Scissors. The line, which snaked outside the small venue on Liverpool Street in the city, was packed with people eager to try the Southeast Asian-inspired menu that shot co-owners Rahmie Clowes and Shane Stafford into the Melbourne dining stratosphere.
The venue was so popular in fact, they expanded to Fitzroy in 2017. Then came the sister restaurant, Rice Paper Sister, which brought a Filipino-forward focus to Hardware Lane.
Now, facing the fallout from a pandemic-sized blow to the hospo industry, the venue has made some changed. Rice Paper Scissors will be moving out of its Liverpool Street digs and into the home of Rice Paper Sister at 15 Hardware Lane. Rice Paper Sister, for now, is temporarily closed.
Rice Paper Scissors will be opening initially for takeaway and then for eat-in, when restrictions are eased. “We didn’t come this far without evolving along the way,” says Stafford. “And that’s what we will do again.”
“We also plan to incorporate the more Filipino-inspired flavours that we had become known for at Rice Paper Sister, into the new Rice Paper Scissors menu.”
The Hardware Lane location is being renovated right now and will be open for takeaway from Wednesday June 3. Keep up to date on Rice Paper Scissors' Facebook page.