Björn Frantzén is the only chef on earth holding three Michelin stars across three restaurants in three different countries: Frantzén in Stockholm, Zen in Singapore, and FZN in Dubai. Now he's confirmed two Australian restaurants at once, and if you build trips around three-star openings, this belongs on your radar for next year. Én by Björn Frantzén will take over the former Oncore by Clare Smyth site at Crown Sydney, while Brasserie Astoria opens in a new space under construction at Crown Perth.
Neither restaurant has an exact opening date beyond "next year," and a Crown Sydney spokesperson could not confirm whether Én will run tasting menu only, a la carte, or a mix of both. That's an unusual amount of uncertainty for a project this closely watched, but it's also normal for an announcement this early. What's not uncertain is the credential: no other chef alive is running three restaurants at three-Michelin-star level simultaneously, and he's chosen Sydney and Perth as his next stage.
Björn Frantzén Australia: The Chef Behind Three Countries, Three Stars
Frantzén's résumé is the reason this story matters beyond a standard opening announcement. His namesake restaurant in Stockholm, Zen in Singapore, and FZN in Dubai all hold three Michelin stars, and he's the only chef in the world running all three at once. Pricing gives a sense of what that level of cooking costs: the tasting menu in Stockholm runs $815 per person before drinks, Zen in Singapore is $640, and FZN in Dubai is $780.
Frantzén described Sydney as "impossible to ignore" for a chef, saying the city "sits at the crossroads of amazing ingredients, international influences, and a dining public that cares about food." He also said opening in Sydney gives him "the opportunity to start with a blank canvas and ask ourselves what the next chapter of hospitality should look like." Paired with his existing three-country footprint, that's worth taking at face value: this isn't a satellite outpost, it's a chef choosing Australia as a genuine fourth base.
Diners shouldn't expect Én to replicate Frantzén, Zen, or FZN dish for dish. Frantzén himself has framed his approach as building new experiences rather than repeating old ones, saying his motivation now is "creating new experiences that people talk about years later." Expect his signature mix of Nordic technique, Japanese influence, and French method translated for a Sydney audience and a new site, not a copy-paste of an existing menu.
I have a Swedish wife and two half-Swedish children, so it’s my second home. The [Stockholm] restaurant is an institution, not just for the country but Europe.1
Brian Geraghty, Owner-chef of Berowra Waters Inn
Én by Björn Frantzén Takes Over Crown Sydney's Former Oncore Site
The location carries its own weight. Oncore by Clare Smyth occupied that dining room until it closed in February, charging $395 per person before drinks. Smyth's flagship in London, Core, currently charges $510 for its tasting menu, so the Sydney outpost ran noticeably below her home-market pricing. Frantzén's other venues sit meaningfully higher, at $640 to $815 depending on city, which gives a rough sense of where Én could land if Sydney pricing tracks his international model rather than Oncore's.
Good Food reported that Frantzén was "hotly tipped" to take over the space back in November, when Smyth first announced Oncore's closure. The deal has been in motion for months, which suggests Crown Sydney was specifically targeting a chef of this caliber to refill one of its most scrutinized dining rooms rather than opening the space to a general pitch process.
Crown Resorts is calling the concept a "multi-sensory dining journey" built around Frantzén's "hallmark techniques and storytelling." That's Crown's language, not an independent description of the menu, and it's worth treating as marketing copy until the format is confirmed. What we do know: the room previously supported a $395 tasting-menu format under Smyth, it's positioned as "sky-high fine dining," and it will now carry Frantzén's name and reputation instead.
For anyone deciding whether to track this one, the calculus is simple. If you've eaten at Frantzén, Zen, or FZN and want to compare Frantzén's cooking on Australian soil, Én is the obvious one to watch first. If you were an Oncore regular mourning its February closure, this is the most credentialed replacement Crown Sydney could have found for that room, though the format (and therefore the experience) may look nothing like what Smyth served there.
Brasserie Astoria Brings a Different Frantzén Experience to Crown Perth
Perth gets the more accessible half of Frantzén's Australian debut. Brasserie Astoria is described by Frantzén Group's own website as an "international power brasserie," with existing locations in Singapore, Stockholm, and Marbella, Spain. The Perth outpost will sit in a new dining space currently under construction at Crown Towers, and based on the format at its sister locations, expect a la carte dining, a cocktail-forward bar program, and tableside service rather than a tasting-menu structure.
That's a different proposition from Én, and worth separating clearly. Én is positioned as fine dining in the Michelin-star mold Frantzén is known for. Brasserie Astoria is a brasserie concept designed for repeat, a la carte visits, closer in spirit to a well-run European brasserie than to a three-star tasting counter. If you want the full Frantzén showcase, Sydney is the booking to chase. If you want something you can walk into on a Tuesday night for cocktails and a la carte plates, Perth is the more realistic option once it opens.
Running both concepts simultaneously in two Australian cities is a meaningfully bigger commitment than a single flagship opening. It suggests Crown Resorts negotiated a broader partnership with Frantzén Group rather than a single-restaurant licensing deal, and it puts Perth on the map for a chef of this level in a way the city rarely sees.
What This Means for Sydney and Perth Dining
Australia's track record with imported star chefs has been mixed. Jamie Oliver and Jason Atherton both closed Sydney venues, and Gordon Ramsay and Heston Blumenthal did the same in Melbourne. That history is worth keeping in mind before assuming Frantzén's arrival is a guaranteed hit. But the current wave of openings looks better matched to its market than those earlier attempts. Waldorf Astoria Sydney has separately announced that expat Australian chef Curtis Stone will bring a California-style restaurant to the hotel next year, and Frantzén's mix of Nordic, Japanese, and French technique is arriving alongside it.
Brian Geraghty, owner-chef of Sydney's Berowra Waters Inn, said he was excited for Frantzén's addition to the city's dining scene. That's a notable reaction from an established local chef rather than a hospitality group with a stake in the outcome, and it's a reasonable signal that the local fine-dining community sees this as additive rather than threatening.
How to Approach Booking Once Reservations Open
Neither restaurant has released a booking window yet, and pricing for Én hasn't been confirmed. Given the site's prior $395 tasting-menu pricing under Oncore and Frantzén's existing international range of $640 to $815, expect Én to land somewhere in that band once details firm up, though Crown Sydney has not confirmed a number. The format question, tasting menu versus a la carte versus a hybrid, remains open too, so hold off on assuming this will mirror Frantzén's Stockholm flagship until Crown Sydney confirms specifics.
Brasserie Astoria is the easier one to plan around: expect a la carte pricing and a cocktail program similar to its Singapore, Stockholm, and Marbella locations, with a more casual booking rhythm than a marquee tasting-menu counter.
Both openings are still months out, with no confirmed date beyond "next year" for either city. Worth tracking now, worth booking the moment reservations open for Én specifically, and worth keeping an eye on Perth's construction timeline at Crown Towers for a firmer sense of when Brasserie Astoria actually seats its first table.
