From chef de partie to head chef: Ben Richards returns to the Old Fitz

Seven years after working under Nik Hill at Sydney's Old Fitzroy Hotel, Ben Richards is returning to lead the new Fitzroy Dining Room, with a separate upstairs kitchen and a menu drawing on British pub food and French bistro cooking

Ben Richards is returning to the Old Fitzroy Hotel in Woolloomooloo, where he worked as a chef de partie under Nik Hill in 2019. This time, he will lead the upstairs restaurant as head chef.

The Fitzroy Dining Room opens on Thursday 15 October, replacing Bistro Fitz with a seasonal menu influenced by British pub cooking and French bistros.

The appointment also comes with a change behind the scenes: the upstairs restaurant will have its own kitchen, rather than relying on the pub kitchen downstairs.

Working with Nik Hill at the Old Fitz

Ben joined the Old Fitz after time at Ester. At the time, Nik was leading a kitchen known for its British-inspired pub food, including Scotch eggs, hot-chip butties and pies.

Nik had previously worked at Sepia in Sydney and The Ledbury in London. At the Old Fitz, he focused on familiar British dishes, often using nose-to-tail ingredients and techniques more commonly associated with restaurant cooking. His Scotch egg became one of the best-known dishes from that period.

Ben worked as part of that kitchen team in 2019. He has since cooked at Ante, Cafe Paci and Marrickville wine bar Where's Nick, with Bills also among his previous employers. Nik, meanwhile, is now at Porcine in Paddington.

"What I learned with Nik really shaped the way I cook today," Ben told Broadsheet in September.

Ben has also said he wants the new menu to acknowledge his earlier time at the Old Fitz by bringing back elements of the cooking from that period.

British pub cooking with French influences

Among the dishes returning to the menu is a country pork terrine, now served with pear mostarda, frisée and hot English mustard.

"I'm really keen to bring back a few bits and pieces from that time," Ben said in comments published by Hospitality Magazine.

Other starters move in a different direction. Zucchini flowers are filled with sweet prawn and tarragon, and served with salsa rosa. Bluefin tuna is paired with seasonal citrus, basil and Aleppo pepper, while beef carpaccio comes with kohlrabi remoulade, freshly grated horseradish and rocket.

For mains, spring lamb rump is served with fennel, peas and green goddess dressing. Market fish comes with mussels, capers and preserved lemon.

Dessert includes an English trifle with strawberry, rhubarb, lemon butter and cardamom cake.

The menu is intended to change with the seasons. Ben told Broadsheet the kitchen would use the British and French ideas as a starting point, adapting dishes to the produce available at different times of year.

The upstairs offering also provides an alternative to the regular pub food downstairs. Ben has described the aim as creating a more relaxed and intimate setting for diners, without changing the character of the pub itself.

A separate kitchen upstairs

One of the more significant changes is the conversion of a former upstairs preparation room into a dedicated working kitchen for the Fitzroy Dining Room.

Previously, the downstairs pub kitchen prepared food for both levels. Ben's team will now have its own space for the upstairs menu, while the pub continues its separate food service below.

The change affects how the venue operates, but the dining room itself has undergone only a modest refresh, with an updated colour palette rather than a complete redesign.

The Old Fitz remains a neighbourhood pub with a theatre, and the upstairs dining room will continue offering weekend lunches, group dining and a pre-theatre menu. Sunday roasts will also remain, with live jazz in the pub.

Operated by Odd Culture Group, the Fitzroy Dining Room opens on Thursday 15 October. Dinner will be served Wednesday to Sunday, with lunch on weekends.