The Restaurant
Bert's sits on the first floor of The Newport, Merivale's beach pub at 2 Kalinya Street, and it holds the best seat on the Northern Beaches: a bow window over Pittwater. It opened in 2018 and has been the reason people drive forty minutes north for dinner ever since. The cooking is brasserie and French-leaning, and unembarrassed about it. Steak tartare mixed at the table. Whole fish off the local boats. A lobster tagliolini that runs about $175 for half a lobster and the pasta. Nothing here chases novelty, and nothing needs to.
The Kitchen
Executive chef Jordan Toft built his name across Merivale's beach venues, and Bert's is the most composed of them. Sam Kane, who came through Guillaume at Bennelong and Bistro Moncur, runs the day-to-day pass. The steak tartare is the correct way to begin — assembled tableside and properly seasoned. The moules marinières arrive in a copper pot and reward a carafe of white. The whole roasted fish changes with what Pittwater's boats land, and the kitchen knows enough not to overcook it. The lobster tagliolini is the dish people come back for, and the Brooklyn Valley grass-fed steaks come off the grill at the temperature you asked for, which is rarer than it should be. Whole fish is priced by weight; John Dory has been listed around $99 a kilo.
The Room
The room does 1930s grand-hotel without winking at you: rattan, olive-green walls, and that bow window framing the water at the flattering angle. Sound sits at a hum, not a roar, and the lighting is low and warm. Long tables run along the glass and seat eight to ten without stranding anyone at the bad end. Dress is smart-casual — this is the beaches, not the CBD. The crowd skews media, architects, and the lawyers who moved north in the last decade, and everyone looks slightly better than they did at their last work dinner. Whether that is the Pittwater light or the wine list is hard to settle.
Best for a Team Dinner
Book Bert's for a team dinner that should feel like an outing. The drive north does the work a city restaurant cannot: people arrive already out of office mode. The long window tables take a group of eight to ten cleanly, the sharing menu suits a table that wants to talk more than study a card, and Merivale's service runs at a reliable standard. Order oysters and the tartare the moment you sit, send the lobster tagliolini to the middle of the table, and aim to arrive before the light goes off the water. For more options, see the guide to team dinner restaurants in Sydney.
Not For
Not for a quick weeknight or anyone unwilling to drive — it is forty minutes from the CBD with no train, the bill runs to Merivale prices, and a spontaneous walk-in on a summer Saturday is wishful thinking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Bert's?
Bert's is on Level 1 of The Newport, Merivale's beach pub at 2 Kalinya Street, Newport NSW 2106, on Sydney's Northern Beaches. The dining room looks out over Pittwater. It is about a 40-minute drive north of the CBD with no train line, so plan the trip and book the window side of the room for the view.
What should I order at Bert's?
Start with the steak tartare, mixed at the table, and the oysters. The lobster tagliolini is the dish people come back for — roughly $175 for half a lobster and the pasta. The whole roasted fish changes with the catch, and the Brooklyn Valley grass-fed steaks are cooked properly. The wine list leans French and Australian white.
How much does dinner at Bert's cost?
Plan on a generous brasserie bill: most mains sit in the $40s, the lobster tagliolini runs about $175, and whole fish is priced by weight (John Dory has been listed around $99 a kilo). It is a Merivale venue, so it is not cheap — the room and the Pittwater outlook are part of what you pay for.
Is Bert's good for a team dinner?
Yes — it is one of the better team-dinner rooms on the Northern Beaches. The long window tables seat eight to ten without anyone stuck at the bad end, the sharing-led brasserie menu suits a group, and Merivale's service runs to a consistent standard. The drive from the city makes it feel like an outing rather than another work dinner.
Also Consider
For a team dinner closer to the city, Catalina at Rose Bay delivers comparable waterfront atmosphere in the eastern suburbs. For a neighbourhood-institution feel, Otto Ristorante at Woolloomooloo Wharf handles long tables and a celebration menu with equal confidence. The Sydney restaurant guide covers all occasions.