Hi, we’re Emily and Isaac.
Ooze & Tang is brought to you by the waitress and the chef. The venue name is explained below by the way. I’m Emily, I set the tables. Chef Isaac handles the cooking. We also do the other million jobs a restaurant requires, alongside a very small crew of absolutely delightful team members.
Between us all, we've clocked tonnes of service hours in restaurants over the years. We genuinely care about what we do, and we think it’s really special when we get to share it with our guests.
Isaac and I met at Yarri in Dunsborough in 2018. Our plans to open a venue of our own really took shape in 2020 — thanks, Covid. Isaac had hoped to chef overseas, but when borders closed, we started planning for something else. In 2021, we ran a small lunch bar in Dunsborough Lakes called Side Street Project. Ooze & Tang was the next evolution in 2022. Something much closer to our bigger vision, but still a work in progress due to serious budget restraints.
Honestly, since the doors opened in November 2022, the place has done nothing but get better and better. We built the kind of place we’d love to dine in. Walking through that unassuming front door on a bustling night, it feels a bit like magic. Like you've stumbled upon something very special.
We love top-quality ingredients, nerdy drinks, great table service, and dining rooms full of laughter, romance, and friendship. We love this region because the locals love great food and wine, and so do the visitors.
Scroll down to find out where the name Ooze & Tang came from…
What’s up with the name?
It’s a common question around here. It looks like it could be an old British pub, a modernist fine dining establishment, or a metal band. We’re none of those things. And before you ask, it’s not about our personalities. If it were, the venue might be called Delightful & Clever.
It’s Ooze & Tang. It’s a flavour philosophy. We love a dish or a wine pairing with both richness and acidity. Ooze is fat, cream etc. Tang is citrus, vinegar etc. A bit of ooze with your tang creates an elevated and balanced flavour experience. Deliciousness.
It stemmed from an off hand comment one day, maybe in late 2018, or somewhere in 2019. Isaac and I hadn’t been dating too long (work place romance, I know, yuck). I don’t remember who said it, and I don’t remember what we were eating. Anyway, one of us said “this is delicious! It’s got ooze and tang” and the other replied “we should call a restaurant that.” We were joking. The idea of owning a restaurant was ridiculous. We laughed.
In 2020, the age of hard borders, the idea of opening a restaurant started to feel less ridiculous. businesses were selling for not-so-impossible prices. Maybe we could learn more about that aspect of our industry? I bought the Ooze and Tang domain and squirreled away the Instagram handle. Just in case.
Our first Business in 2021 didn’t feel exactly like our vision for Ooze & Tang. It was a lunch bar/café, more like a casual practice run, we called it called Side Street Project. We learnt how to run a business ourselves. It was a big step. We wanted a liquor license but it was never going to happen in that location. After a year we moved on from our little shop in Dunsborough Lakes and started looking for a licensed venue elsewhere. We ended up finding one in Abbey.
For this new location we toyed with other names. Mostly because whenever we said “Ooze and Tang” to someone they’d say “what?” “yuck”, or “huh?” and never “oh, that sounds lovely.” But nothing else stuck. This name felt the most genuine. It happened organically, and it means something to us. We know that it’s about elevated deliciousness. Pairings, dishes, combinations, recipes. Something we talk and think about all the time.
The logo happened organically too. I was doodling on my laptop, “I want it to look something like this.” I showed Isaac. He nodded, “it’s cool.” I then tried to replicate it a thousand times and decided I liked one of the very first ones. It’s full of fresh energy, not at all forced. It felt real.
Anyway, if you have any unanswered questions about the name, or suggestions as to who is Ooze and who is Tang. They can be directed to Chef Isaac on 0406… No, I’m joking. He’d very much hate that.
Love from Emily xx