PUB NEWS: MERIVALE EXPANSION CONTINUES, PUB NAMED WORLD’S BEST RESTAURANT & TWO AUSSIE BARS IN WORLD’S BEST
Following on from last month’s acquisition of Collaroy’s beachfront hotel for over $20m, the Justin Hemmes led Merivale Group, has now snapped up Marrickville’s Vic on the Park for an undisclosed price. The large format, 1,247 sqm hotel site is situated on the corner of Addison Road and Enmore Rd in Sydney’s Inner West and has 25 EGM’s and a hugely popular food and beverage business generating over $7.46m in annual sales.
“Vic on the Park has long been at the heart of Marrickville, a vibrant community hub where people of all ages and walks of life can come together”. “We have loved being part of the Inner West since opening Queens last year and can’t wait to take on what is undoubtedly an important and cherished venue in the area” said Hemmes.
The Vic on the Park hotel was sold by the Australian Pub Fund (APF), the 7th such sale of an A-grade freehold hotel by the Carnegie, Singleton and Dixon private equity joint venture vehicle over the past 12 months.
“The sale of the Vic on the Park continues our fund’s divestment strategy and means we will maintain the operation of the Unity Hall Hotel in Balmain, and both The Elephant and Exchange hotels in Brisbane. The sale also provides the opportunity for our fund to further consider acquisition opportunities already in front of it” commented APF CEO Andrew Gibbs.
The sale was handled by Asia Pacific Director of Ray White Hotels Andrew Jolliffe.
YORKSHIRE PUB NAMED WORLD’S BEST RESTAURANT
A country pub in North Yorkshire has been named the best restaurant in the world based on a poll of customer reviews.
The Black Swan in Oldstead shot straight to No 1 in a list of fine dining restaurants compiled by TripAdvisor. It had never previously been listed in the rankings.
The rankings are based on millions of customer reviews over a 12-month period. TripAdvisor first started publishing its list in 2012, but this is the first time a British restaurant has taken the travel website’s global top spot.
The Black Swan fended off rival restaurants owned by celebrity TV chefs like Heston Blumenthal and Raymond Blanc. Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck in Berkshire, came in at 12th spot.
The Black Swan, which has a Michelin star, is run by the Banks family, who bought it as a struggling village pub in 2006. The head chef, Tommy Banks, became the UK’s youngest ever Michelin-starred chef at the age of 24 and runs the kitchen with his brother James.
TripAdvisor’s top 10 restaurants:
- The Black Swan, Oldstead, North Yorkshire, U.K.
- Belmond le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Great Milton, Oxfordshire, U.K.
- Maison Lameloise, Chagny, France
- L’Auberge de l’Ill, Illhaeusern, France
- Martin Berasategui, Lasarte, Spain
- Daniel, New York City, U.S.
- La Colombe, Constantia, South Africa
- David’s Kitchen, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Maido, Lima, Peru
- El Celler de Can Roca, Girona, Spain
Sources: The Guardian / CNBC
TWO AUSSIE BARS NAMED IN WORLDS BEST
Melbourne’s Black Pearl, has taken out 22nd spot in the World’s 50 Best Bar Awards. The Fitzroy favourite has been on the list since the awards began nine years ago.
Sydney’s Baxter Inn also earned a place but slipped from its 2016 number 12 spot to number 45 this year.
For the first time, American Bar at The Savoy was crowned The World’s Best Bar and Best Bar in Europe, taking the title from the 2016 No.1, The Dead Rabbit in New York.
The awards were announced last week in London with the rankings created by an academy of more than 500 members from 55 countries.
Sources: Broadsheet / Concrete Playground / The Shout
