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Bringing a refreshing take on Mediterranean dining to Melbourne’s inner north, head to Oko on Greeves Street in Fitzroy for a meal to remember. Nestled off Smith Street in a gorgeous heritage-listed blue stone building, Oko exudes a brooding, romantic ambience of exposed stone, wooden panelling and trailing greenery.
Why should you drop in for a meal at Oko? Here are three good reasons:
What’s your most popular dish/drink:
Our most popular dishes are the Roaring Forties lamb cutlets, Mediterranean fried chicken and our scallops with a grape, shallot and balsamic vinaigrette. Favourite drinks include Limoncello Margarita, Fig and Thyme Spritz, or our Grapefruit Sour.
What's your point of difference:
After witnessing the unsustainable demands the hospitality industry can have on employees, employers and the working culture, my mother Lucy and I decided to structure the new restaurant to ensure staff receive the mental health support they need, as well as to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
By implementing and prioritising a mental health policy across the company outlining the steps, Oko tries to ensure the well-being of its team, Lucy and I hope to destigmatise the conversations around mental health within the workplace and create a space that changes the working culture of the hospitality industry.
Being one of the only queer, female and BIPOC-led hospitality teams in Australia, we have focused our attention on curating a space that not only dismantles the patriarchal foundations the industry is inherently built on, but also creates a safe space for our team to feel heard, accepted and motivated creatively.
What is a fun fact that not many people know about the restaurant?
The name Oko comes from West African culture. When boy/girl twins are born from Ghana heritage, we are given identical middle names depending on the region we are from. After living in Europe for the past 3 years, having an African father and Italian mother I really wanted the opportunity to explore the Mediterranean to be able to merge my heritage and find a culinary common ground.
