Broadsheet chats with Caitlin Koether

New Hire: Molli’s Caitlin Koether Is a Master of Fermentation

Fresh from stints at the world-renowned Bar Tartine in San Francisco and Relae in Copenhagen, the new head chef tells us what to expect at the recently relaunched Abbotsford restaurant.

Published on 15 April 2025
by Nick Connellan

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With 24 openings to his name since 2006, Nathan Toleman is one of Melbourne’s most prolific and successful restaurateurs. But even the founder of juggernauts like Top Paddock and Higher Ground sometimes gets it wrong. So it was at Molli, the 10-month-old restaurant he’s just relaunched in Abbotsford with a new team and a more approachable, everyday concept.

Kayla Saito (ex-Aru) has stuck around to continue her excellent fermentation-led drinks program, and she’s gained a kindred spirit in new head chef Caitlin Koether. Koether arrives following two years as sous-chef at San Francisco’s renowned Bar Tartine, and a year running the preservation and fermentation program at Relae, the second-most feted restaurant in Copenhagen, after Noma. She’s a master of fermentation.

Still, Toleman says experience alone didn’t get her the gig. “It was how she talked about flavour, her approach to working with food, her philosophy around food waste, working with flavours, about hospitality, about building culture. She brings both a scientific mind and real emotional intelligence to her cooking.” We wanted to know more, so we put a few questions to Koether directly.

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