It’s Wednesday morning, and Dan James opens an old glass-panelled window of his restaurant opposite Newcastle Harbour. The large, original window opens up into the kitchen of The Signal Box, now a premium dining venue, but once Newcastle railway’s vital signal box.
This old meets new experience is indicative of the city’s revival in recent years. Newcastle’s growing food scene is built on the foundations of the steel city.
“Back in 1936, it was a Type O signal box for the train corridor, but it sat stagnant for years. It was an eyesore, really,” said Dan, Head Chef and co-owner.
“We saw the opportunity to create a restaurant here, to bring people to the area and help re-energise this part of the city.”
It’s not the building’s old-world mystique that makes the restaurant’s phone ring hot; it’s Dan’s approach to food and hospitality.
“When people walk in the door, I want them to feel like they’re at home.”
“And our food ethos here is very much a local extension of the restaurant. If we can find as much produce locally as we can, we will serve it. We serve fish from Nelson Bay and meat from Muswellbrook. We even go down to Newcastle Beach to pick local sampling or lettuce.”
Dan’s also experimenting with gin from local distillery Earp Distilling Co.. He’s hosting a dinner this April, subtly harnessing gin throughout his menu and pairing it with Earp’s range. It’s one of more than 70 events for Newcastle Food Month this April.
“I love the fact that we have something like this promoting the Newcastle food scene. It brings such a great vibrance to the city every April.”
“I personally can’t wait to go to some different places I don’t often get to go, or find new venues that I wouldn’t have thought were here.”
Newcastle Food Month is now in its fifth year. From small beginnings as an initiative to get Novocastians back dining post-COVID, it now has the ambition to be the most significant regional food festival in the country.
“Whilst Newcastle has been blessed in recent years with a number of hatted restaurants, it has almost been an evolution from the bottom up,” says Louise Maher, owner of the festival.
“Cafes are now creating exciting and flavoursome food, pubs are all lifting their own bar, and then our better restaurants. All of this combines to make Newcastle a very desirable food destination.”
“This April we’re turning the city into one long dining table with 50 restaurants serving up Plate Dates. These are meals specially designed for Newcastle Food Month, and paired with a beverage (wine, beer, or non-alc options) for just $30.”
“It’s a great way to eat yourself around the city. You can quite literally have breakfast, lunch, and dinner at some of Newcastle’s best cafes and restaurants for under $100,” said Louise.
This is on top of the 70 food-focused events being held around the city: long lunches, opera at pubs, wine makers pairing up with chefs.
“I love Newcastle,” says Dan as he dollops a spoonful of herb butter on a tray of scallops about to go into the oven.
“From the beaches to the city, to the friendliness of the people. But above all, the food scene is, I think, next level.”
“We’ve always been that little brother to Sydney, and we’re well punching above our weight for a small town like this.”
“I’m proud of that. I’m proud of Newcastle.”
Visit Dan James at The Signal Box’s Newcastle Food Month dinner on 17th April here. Or view the full event program here.
Hit play to take a quick foodie tour of Newcastle with Dan and Charlotte James…
Author: Georgia Maher