WHEN Kay Roberts scored a table for two with her husband at highly anticipated Newcastle West restaurant Subo when it opened in 2011, she was just the standard, food-obsessed customer.
Within four years, however, the passionate home chef's love for cuisine and the fine dining experience at Subo - presently the only hatted restaurant in Newcastle - led her to put up her hand for a job there. She was trained by its founders, restaurant manager Suzie Vincent and her award-winning chef-husband, Beau.
When the Vincents decided to put Subo up for sale in December, it was no surprise that many of Mrs Roberts friends gave her a nudge.
"I was their longest-serving employee so when the opportunity came up to purchase it, well, I didn't leap but jumped," Mrs Roberts says. "I want to maintain their legacy and keep Subo alive because Newcastle deserves a place like Subo and I didn't want it to go away."
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Subo 2.0 had been trading just days under Singleton-raised Mrs Roberts, who worked for a coal company in administration before "retiring" to raise a family, when the second lockdown hit.
"We will just sit and see how far it goes, if the lockdown extends we'll investigate perhaps a simplified version of [takeaway option] Subo At Home," she said. "Right now, we are trying to make things out of the stock that we have so it doesn't go to waste and brainstorming."
After close to seven years at the 40-seat diner, Mrs Roberts knows Subo's heartbeat and will not change its name.
"I think it's important because I want to acknowledge Beau and Suzie's legacy, they have contributed enormously to Newcastle's dining scene and keeping the name acknowledges that," she says.
The new Subo kitchen team is chef de cuisine Cooper Hague, who did part of his apprenticeship at Subo and recently worked at decorated Canadian restaurant Araxi; Lauren Lovic, a pastry chef who earnt her stripes in Melbourne and Brisbane; and Kurtis Fawcett, most recently at Anchor in Coffs Harbour.
"They are young and enthusiastic with lots of great ideas and good experience at hatted restaurants, they will all contribute to the menu," Mrs Roberts says.
The Vincents say that Mrs Roberts has "a strong understanding" of Subo's clientele and they felt "very positive" handing over the reins to someone so committed to it.
"Her love of food and the restaurant experience will mean that over time, I believe the restaurant will continue to evolve to meet the always-changing landscape of hospitality for the better," Mrs Vincent said. "Beau and I were ready to bring our focus to our personal lives - hospitality hours are treacherous for a young family. But I do miss services, our guests and being around good food. And good wine!"
Conscious of Subo's reputation, Mrs Roberts is at ease with the path ahead: "The focus is maintaining and improving the standard, [chef] hats are a bonus but not what we are striving to achieve," she says. "We want to put the best we can on a plate and give the very best service we can and we feel that if we do the hats will follow."
A self-taught cook whose interest in food was nurtured as a child by her grandmother, Mrs Roberts said Subo would continue to offer two seasonal menus, changed every six weeks. Its commitment to celebrate Australian wine with a focus on biodynamic and organic drops will continue alongside its support of local producers and vineyards "doing the right thing by the environment".
Mrs Roberts said she had been overwhelmed by the support of customers who, upon learning of the lockdown, had happily rescheduled their bookings. Others had joined the wait list.
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