The former Vue de Monde gun will be the first chef-in-residence at the new Potter Museum of Art venue.
The freshly minted Potter Museum of Art is about to get a serious culinary glow-up with the announcement of Bradford-born chef Robbie Noble as the inaugural Head Chef at Residence, the venue’s ambitious new restaurant concept dropping this winter.
Noble, whose impressive resume spans continents and Michelin kitchens, will launch Cherrywood – a seasonal dining experience that promises to inject some serious northern English soul into Melbourne’s food landscape.
Cherrywood
- Opening winter 2025
- Located at Potter Museum of Art, 815 Swanston Street, Parkville
- Trading 8am-4pm Monday-Tuesday, 8am-10pm Wednesday-Saturday
- Closed Sundays
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Having cut his teeth at Northcote in Lancashire before bouncing between Vue de Monde’s kitchen under both Shannon Bennett and Hugh Allen, Noble’s approach channels that rare balance of technical precision without any wanky pretension.
“Robbie’s proposal for Cherrywood stood out immediately,” says co-founder Nathen Doyle, who’s teamed up with fellow hospo veteran Cameron Earl to create Residence’s innovative Chef in Residence model.
The concept is deliciously simple – hand over the keys to a new chef each year, giving them creative control and a financial stake in the business. It’s the kind of industry shake-up Melbourne’s restaurant scene has been gagging for.
The menu itself draws heavily on Noble’s time in Paris, where he headed up the kitchen at cult seafood haunt Clamato, part of the revered Septime group. Expect shared plates built around seasonal produce that champions simplicity while delivering knockout flavour – think smoked bone marrow with oxtail marmalade on toast or grilled John Dory swimming in tomato butter and tarragon.
“Cherrywood is cooking that makes room for people,” says Noble, whose leadership style is reportedly as refreshing as his food philosophy. “It’s thoughtful but unfussy, shaped by memory and always adapting.”
The 60-seat venue will include a main dining room alongside an espresso wine bar, nestled within the reimagined Potter Museum at Melbourne Uni’s Parkville campus. It’s a cultural-meets-culinary crossover that feels perfectly timed for a city hungry for fresh ideas.
For Doyle and Earl, who between them have helped launch venues like Heartattack and Vine, Sunhands and collaborated with ST. ALi, this marks another bold step in reshaping Melbourne’s dining future. With Noble at the helm, Residence is shaping up as the winter opening you’ll want to book yesterday.
To find out more about Residence and Cherrywood, head here.
