Grantz Dining Room: Live entertainment and tableside cooking come to Southport

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Gold CoastSouthportfine dining

Serving up a show

Grantz Dining Room pairs live entertainment with tableside cookery.

Dinner is about to get a whole lot more dramatic in Southport, with award-winning chef Grant Madgwick and hospitality heavyweight Antz Do Rozario swinging open the doors of Grantz Dining Room.

After turning River House into a waterfront fine-dining institution, the duo stepped away from the venue to take on their biggest challenge yet: running the food and beverage operations across the multimillion-dollar Imperial Square precinct in Southport.

Grant brings close to five decades of culinary experience to the table, having spent 49 years in the industry working everywhere from luxury hotels and superyachts to some of the Gold Coast's most iconic venues, including the award-winning Artichoke at Ephraim Island and Sanctuary Cove.

His business partner Antz has 26 years of hospitality experience under his belt and has owned six venues spanning restaurants, cafes, bars and nightclubs.

Between them, the pair have plenty of runs on the board, and now they have a very big precinct to fill — the wider Imperial Square is set to feature multiple function and private dining spaces, including a rooftop function space dubbed The Imperial Room. If their first opening is anything to go by, they're not playing it safe.

First to open is Grantz Dining Room, a sprawling 1,000sqm restaurant that seats up to 400 guests.

Designed by Lauren Joy, the finished space exudes a warm, luxe feel, with lush greenery, musical instruments adorning the walls and a red carpet setting the scene.

Then there's the stage, quite literally the centre of the action. From Thursday to Sunday, live entertainment turns a night out into a night to remember.

In the kitchen, Grant is plating up modern Australian fusion, with familiar favourites from his River House days appearing alongside new creations.

Start with natural oysters dressed with Aperol, Campari, limoncello sorbet and cucumber vinaigrette; Sir Harry Wagyu tartare with wasabi, grenache and Shiraz port jus; and Bangalow Forest pork belly with a Suzette glaze, vodka cauliflower purée and Asian salad.

Seafood lovers can dive into XL BBQ Moreton Bay bugs with snow pea tendrils and lemon beurre blanc, while the Junee lamb cutlets come with Pedro Ximénez mushroom duxelle, mushroom parfait, cauliflower purée and a pistachio and macadamia crumble.

For something green, there's char-grilled broccolini with pistachio crumble, chervil-tarragon vinegar and goat's cheese.

Here, dinner isn't just part of the night — it is the night. Take the plunge with the Trust the Chef menu, a five-course degustation where Grant cooks tableside, walking diners through the flavours and stories behind each dish.

The drinks menu keeps the fun flowing, including Grantz's take on a Long Island Iced Tea, built on gin, vodka, tequila, Bacardi and Cointreau, then finished with limoncello sorbet, star anise, cinnamon, pomegranate juice and cola.

If Grantz is the opening act, you can bet there's plenty more theatrics still to come.

Where: 59 Meron Street, Southport When: Thurs–Sat, lunch 12pm–3pm and dinner 5pm–9pm