Where there’s smoke
Fire has always been central to the comings and goings of 22 Agnes Street in Brisbane. As a former brick warehouse, fire forged the clay blocks stored inside. Now, it fuels the kitchen run by chef Ben Williamson, who cooks wholly with fire in the buzzing Fortitude Valley restaurant.
Williamson and his business partners were drawn to the old world charm of the industrial site, transforming it into a dark and sultry dining room, with an accompanying rooftop terrace and subterranean wine bar.
“We wanted to do justice to [the building’s] natural beauty. And lean into that old, natural way of cooking,” says Williamson, who became adept at playing with fire during his six years at Gerard’s Bistro.
Williamson left the wood-fired bistro in 2018 to partner with Frank Li and Tyron Simon on the fire-fuelled project. Along the way, he became the executive chef across the group’s other restaurants, including Same Same, Hôntô and newly opened Biànca (reviewed, p35).
But Agnes remains Williamson’s baby and it’s there you’ll find him most nights; smoking, grilling and charring all manner of delectable morsels.
“If it makes sense to cook it over fire, we put it on the menu,” he explains. “If it doesn’t make sense to cook it over fire, we won’t do it.”
Though much of the menu is Western European in its execution, Williamson says he draws influence from a range of cultures and cuisines. “They make Agnes contemporary, modern Australian, but also a grill restaurant, or a camp fire restaurant.”
For this issue, we asked Williamson to share some of Agnes’ fire-kissed recipes that can be recreated at home on a charcoal barbecue or wood-fired grill.
“Just go to a hardware store and buy a cheap brazier or barbecue, and start
