It was on a typical Spring morning in Alexandria on the 7th of November 2000 when Sohani and I crossed our fingers and opened the front door to our tiny 20 seat café. We dragged out the milk crates for those wishing to dine al fresco on Copeland Street, turned on the coffee machine and lit the stove waiting for our first customer to come through the doors and be introduced to the Bitton charm. It was a terrifying moment – we had left our high paid corporate careers to take this plunge. People thought we were crazy ...
But you did come, and many of you still come.
Fast forward to 2019 and you cannot imagine the pride and gratitude I feel in planning 2020 when Bitton will turn 20! Who would have thought that crazy decision we made all those years ago would grow into 3 cafes (that’s right, Bitton Rose Bay opens in a few weeks), a product range, a functions venue, and most importantly to me, a community that has brought multiple friendships, opportunities and partnerships.
Here’s where you come in. We are not just reserving the celebrations for us, after all we would not be here without YOU. We want YOU to be part of our year long party when we will be hosting 12 events over 12 months. Each event has a significance in Bitton’s history and in our future and is wrapped up with a pledge of $20,000 to be donated to 3 charities very close to us – Ronald MacDonald House, Beyond Blue and The Chris O’Brien Life House Centre for Cancer Research.
Here’s what you can look forward to:
BITTON TURNS 20 YEARS IN 2020
12 EVENTS IN 12 MONTHS
January
… and then there were three! We are so proud to be opening Bitton Rose Bay on beautiful Plumer Road in January. The Plumer Road heritage retail precinct is a delightful community nestled in beautiful Rose Bay and we have prime position and big shoes to fill when we take over the old Bernasconi’s site. What can you expect? Breakfast and Lunch to start with shortly followed by dinner. Once we are up and running Rose Bay will enjoy all the Bitton events we bring to the other cafes – pop ups, specialty night such as Crepe Thursdays, specialty wine dinners and regional French degustations.
Make sure you join the Bitton family to be the first to know!
February – Friday 14th February
Valentine’s Day Dinner and Opera of course! An event we have been hosting for more than 10 years! We are doing it all again this year, in Alexandria and Oatley, but with a twist – we are bringing in a male voice for some duets! You can look forward to another delicious menu by candlelight with the sounds of live arias drifting through the restaurant.
March – Tuesday 17th March
A dinner in Alexandria celebrating our long-standing supplier partnerships. One dinner, 10 suppliers with dishes created in collaboration with our chefs to highlight their products. You can look forward to dishes by Brasserie Bread, Pepe Saya, Grinders Coffee, Choco Canelle, OVVIO Organics, just to name a few. Our wine suppliers will also be on board of course!
April – Tuesday 21stApril
Mr Bitton will return to the kitchen in Alexandria during the week it all began. As many of you know, David arrived in Australia on Anzac day - 25th April 1991 and on this night in 2020 he will cook an exclusive dinner built around his career dishes matched with all his favourite wines. This is a night to remember as David puts his chef’s jacket on again for the first time in 20 years!
May – Sunday 10th May
Is it so strange that almost 75% of our customers are women?! May is always about Mother’s Day and 2020 is no different. Bring the family and enjoy an la carte breakfast or a set lunch and we will spoil Mum with a special 20 year anniversary gift as well as some spectacular lucky door prizes! Bonne fête des mères.
June – Tuesday 16th June
Bringing together 2 of our favourite things – cheese and whiskey! This has been one of our most popular events in previous years. Hosted by David and bringing in experts from Australia on a Plate and a whiskey expert to talk about the menu pairing. This is the ultimate Winter foodie evening when you will learn and taste until your palate is dancing!
July – Tuesday 14th July
The most important day in the French calendar and also in ours! Bastille Day! At this special dinner we will put on the red berets, fly the French flag and bring you not one, but FIVE French Chefs! David and friends will create a dish each for this one-off dinner showcasing 5 French chefs in one degustation. Ooh lah lah!
August – Tuesday 11th August in Alexandria and Tuesday 18th August in Oatley
Every year our truffle dinners sell out within hours of opening for bookings. The truffle is perhaps the most decadent ingredient of the French cuisine and has a short season that we will celebrate in style in both Alexandria and Oatley. Expect every course to be created around this rich, earthy ingredient.
September – Sunday 6th September
Celebrate Fathers’ Day in all 3 cafes this year with our usual a la carte breakfast specials and a set lunch. We will spoil Dad with a special gift celebrating 20 years of Fathers’ Day at Bitton!
October – Sunday 18th October
What has Bitton Alexandria been most famous for since we opened? Breakfast of course! To say THANK YOU to all of you who have been enjoying breakfast at Bitton for 20 years we are holding a Big Bitton Breakfast. We will bring the milk crates back out the front, serve all your favourite Bitton breakfast items and kids will eat for free! See you there!
November – Saturday 7th November
Our actual 20th Big Birthday Bash! This is our main event for 2020 when we will host a huge fundraiser for all our VIPs. This cocktail party will be by invitation only (so make sure you are on our database). Silent and live auctions will be held during the night, we will have a very special MC on board and in addition to the auctions, with every ticket sold $20 will be pledged to our 3 charities. This is the THE big ticket event of the year so don’t miss out.
December – Wrap up and a personal thank you to our staff
To be announced at our big event in November, we will offer our staff a gift with deep gratitude as we wrap up our 20th year. We have been so lucky to have had many incredible employees over the years and Bitton would not be here without them.
Please note that all our events are restricted in numbers but don’t worry, we are offering you exclusive PRE-SALE! Please contact camilla@bittongourmet.com.au who will be taking care of pre-reservations for these special events until they are open to the public for booking. For those true Bitton VIPs we will of course be seeing you at all the above and for those of you who do attend all events, you will go into the draw to win a dinner cooked by David at his home!
2020 will be a year of gratitude and we look forward to celebrating with you all. None of the success we have enjoyed over the past 20 years has been possible without you. We wish you a very happy and safe Christmas and Summer break.
David, Sohani and the Bitton Team
Please note that event menus and pricing will be confirmed closer to the date of the actual events.