Get ready for ‘wow factor’ and meet the man set to take over The Lagoon, North Wollongong
Wollongong’s famous Lagoon seafood restaurant will soon be under new management. Jeremy Lasek tells us about the flamboyant operator who is set to shake up the local food scene
His name is Ramzey Choker, a man not known for doing things by halves.
On Monday evening, Wollongong City Council put its trust in Ramzey to breathe new life into the multi-award-winning Lagoon at North Wollongong, which has been under the management of the Harrison family for 40 years. Council voted unanimously to award the Sydney entrepreneur a five year plus five year lease.
Ramzey operates two impressive properties in Sydney. Best known is The Grounds of Alexandria, which opened its doors in 2012. It’s described as a garden oasis in an otherwise industrial (but hip) part of inner Sydney. Ramzey transformed a former pie factory into a popular destination: so popular that it now employs 250 people – a huge jump from the 15 people they opened with.
The venue now includes multiple restaurants, a petting zoo, a florist and event spaces. Described as “a visionary”, Ramzey and his creative team have turned The Grounds of Alexandria into one of the most Instagrammed places in Australia.
Co-founder and director of The Grounds Ramzey Choker and recent photos from the venue's social media pages. Photos: @RamzeyChokerAU, @thegrounds
“Ambitious” is another word to describe Ramzey. He told another publication his goal for The Grounds was to get revenue to $50 million a year. His other Sydney venue, Grounds in the CBD, is more intimate and was visited by the author on Saturday night.
It’s a hugely popular venue, dimly lit with a speakeasy feel, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. There are often queues outside formed by those chancing getting a walk in table. We played it safe and booked.
The menu was diverse and divine. The three of us did some sharing to savour the variety on offer. The oysters of the day were freshly shucked with a champagne mignonette. The grilled scallops were plump and juicy and complemented with garlic, lemon, herb butter, pangrattato. We will save the lobster tartare crumpets with butter, crème fraiche, crab aioli for next time.
Our mains were the roasted half chicken with buttered cabbage, mushrooms, onion puree and dijon pan jus and spiced Kinross lamb backstrap with eggplant, zucchini, onions, chilli labneh, pine nuts and salsa verde. We couldn’t resist as sides, the super tasty shoestring fries with tarragon aioli and parmesan and a serve of the pan roasted beans with raw celery, crème fraiche and pine nuts. The service was very attentive and efficient and the overall mood, fun and relaxed.
Saturday night at the Grounds of the City. Photos: Jeremy Lasek
While Ramzey is yet to unveil what he has planned for the Lagoon restaurant, including whether he will retain that name, his reputation for bringing a ‘WOW factor’ to everything he does has got local foodies buzzing.
Ramzey and his wife, cafe queen and stylist Therese Moussa, make a formidable duo.
The power couple married in style on New Year’s Eve two years ago. As reported by The Daily Mail, the glitzy event started at Sydney’s historic State Theatre where the 180 guests were entertained by musicians and performers surrounded by hundreds of roses. And that was just the warm-up act.
The guests were then whisked across town to Moore Park where a pop-up Spiegeltent (circus tent), decorated with more flowers, crystal chandeliers and candles – with French champagne flowing and decadent food tables, it was a night never to forget. The newlyweds said “I do” on the stroke of midnight as 2023 rolled into 2024, followed by a spectacular fireworks show to round off a night of sheer indulgence.
Celebrating their first year of marriage, in 2024, Ramzey and Therese bought a seven-bedroom 1886 mansion in the ritzy eastern suburb of Coogee. The reported sale price was $10.4 million.
Last year's Christmas photo from the Grounds family and the historic Coogee home. Photos: @RamzeyChokerAU, PPD Real Estate
One of their goals in 2025 has been to secure a prized dining and events venue outside of Sydney and their tender impressed Council so much that theirs was the standout against their only rival, from a Mittagong hotelier.
Exactly what’s planned for the Lagoon restaurant is being kept under wraps for now, but have no doubt, the new operators will be looking to make a statement when they take over mid next year.
Making a statement – and a very big statement – is just what they do.
Footnote: Jeremy Lasek, a self-confessed foodie, happily paid for his weekend meal at The Grounds in the CBD.
