A much-loved Melbourne fine dining restaurant will soon close its doors for good.
After nearly a decade in operation, Atlas Dining in South Yarra will serve its final diners on Friday November 28.
The closure of the one-hatted restaurant was announced by chef and owner Charlie Carrington.
His decision to shutter his globetrotting venue came as a surprise, with the chef explaining he wanted to end Atlas Dining’s journey while it was still ‘at the top of the game’.
For its final month of service, Atlas will offer a ‘Best of Atlas’ menu, featuring some of its most popular and beloved dishes from the past nine years.
The restaurant’s ambitious concept set it apart from other venues. Every four months, the menu would change completely to showcase a brand new international cuisine, inspired by Charlie’s own travels.
Atlas’ past menus have celebrated flavours from Vietnam, Colombia and America. In total, the restaurant has featured 27 different international cuisines.
The final month of Atlas’ operation will feature dishes from the past nine years’ menus, with Charlie describing it as ‘a celebration’.
Atlas Dining in Melbourne’s South Yarra will close its doors for good on Friday November 28
Chef and owner Charlie Carrington announced the restaurant closure, explaining that he wanted to end Atlas Dining’s journey while it was still ‘at the top of the game’
The chef recently told Broadsheet that he had wanted ‘to go out with a bang and close the restaurant on [his] own terms… as opposed to some of the sadder stories out there.’
The chef also welcomed his first daughter a year ago, and as he considered what the coming years would look like for him and his family, he ultimately made the call to close the restaurant.
But Charlie had already begun sowing the seeds of his next food venture before announcing the closure of Atlas.
He had started creating home delivery meal kits, originally known as Atlas Weekly – now called Atlas Market.
The chef said he was excited for ‘the next chapter’ in his new business adventure.
A lengthy message announcing the closure was penned by Charlie and posted to the Atlas Dining Instagram account.
‘After 9 amazing years I have decided it’s time to take the leap of faith and begin my new journey,’ the message began.
‘During this nine years we have served over 100,000 unique guests, cooked 27 cuisines and travelled the world (literally),’ he continued.
Atlas’ ambitious concept saw the menu change quarterly to showcase a brand new international cuisine, inspired by Charlie’s own travels
For its final month of service, Atlas Dining will serve a ‘Best of Atlas’ menu featuring its past most popular dishes
‘I would love to thank every single person who has been a part of this journey. Atlas Dining has been my life’s work and I’m so grateful for everyone who experienced it and for the incredible loyalty.’
Charlie went on to thank both his staff and his patrons in the message, before offering an insight into the development of his Atlas Market meal kits, revealing they will ‘launch officially over December’.
‘For the last five years I have been laying the foundations for this next chapter and to close one chapter on my own terms and move into the next one is scary and exciting,’ he added.
