Deus Bar and Kitchen, previously known as Deus ex Machina, is now open, and it has undergone a bit of a makeover. The café-cum-motorcycle shop has been transformed into a fully-fledged restaurant (still with motorcycle shop attached, don’t worry bikers) after being taken over by Bondi’s the Bucket List owners Andy Ruwald and Tom Walton.
It’s open all day most of the week, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. At lunch there are eggplant fritters with spiced-mayo, and hummus that comes ‘fully loaded’, topped with pomegranate arils, crumbled feta and mint, with a side of toasty sourdough for dipping. A burrata special comes with a blood orange and fennel salad, and there’s a lamb pie the size of your head for hungries.
For dessert, the chocolate mousse is served spread out on a plate, decorated with fresh passionfruit and chunks of honeycomb.
Thanks to manager George Armstrong who is ex-Eau de Vie, there is an extensive cocktail list as well. They are all named after motorcycles – naturally. There are new-fangled numbers like the Bulleit bourbon-spiked Rhubarb Red Bonneville, or you could go a classic like a Mint Julip (hello Gatsby) or Midnight Rambler – which is an Old Fashioned by another mother.
The interior is all concrete and wood with long share tables. And you can even book in advance. Just don’t have too many cocktails and walk out with a motorcycle; because they start to look way more appealing after a few Negronis, let us tell you.
This is not a review; Time Out dined as a guest of Deus Bar and Kitchen.