Momento Hospitality has confirmed the sale of The Duke in Dural to John Azar’s Good Beer Company, for $25 million.
The Duke was a brownfield site developed into a pub by Momento in 2020, during the time of COVID lockdowns, while the group’s Bella Vista Hotel drive-through bottleshop and warehouse were pivoted to help bridge the supply gap being seen at supermarkets, providing everything from in-demand toilet paper to ready-made meals and canned cocktails.
The Duke began life as a pub in November 2020, occupying a significant 2,700sqm site in Dural town centre, in The Hills district – one of Sydney’s fastest-growing LGAs.
Since its understated opening the pub has found its place in the community, generating masses of favourable reviews by locals and growing to see weekly sales north of $150K through food and beverage, wagering, and a gaming room with 30 machines.
It quickly adopted plans for live music, which group principal Marcello Colosimo suggests was “to create ambience”. In 2022 the pub took home Metro Hotel of Year, at the AHA NSW Awards for Excellence.
Equipped with 2am trading approval, a DA was recently granted to fit out the first floor bar with alfresco dining.
The decision by Momento to divest the operation was “strategic” and part of the group‘s focus on expanding and operating large-format, community-driven venues across western Sydney.
“We remain committed advocates of The Duke and are confident that it will continue to go from strength to strength under new ownership,” offers CEO David Clifton, who was appointed in 2024.
“We thank everyone who has supported The Duke over the years — the journey has been nothing short of extraordinary.”
Exiting the Colosimo family’s Momento portfolio, The Duke was one of nine hotels, the most recent being the newly-opened Oran Park Hotel ‘super pub’, which lays claim to the title of Australia’s largest hotel.
Taking over in Dural is Azar’s Good Beer Company, looking to capitalise on the strong underlying demand in the Hills area.
GBC holds a suite of pub assets, predominantly in and around Sydney’s CBD, including Hotel Coronation, Keg & Brew Hotel in Surry Hills, and Edinburgh Castle Hotel, picked up late 2024. Azar continues to actively manage the portfolio, recently selling the Union Hotel in North Sydney to Ashton Waugh, and offering up a refreshed The Harold at Forest Lodge.
Sale of The Duke was through JLL Hotels’ Ben McDonald and John Musca, who say they are “bullish” on the market outlook for H2 of 2025, armed with knowledge of underbidder capital and bolstered by asset supply constraints and real potential for further easing of interest rates.
“The sale of The Duke and engagement through the campaign highlights the ongoing market demand fixated on pubs as an asset class,” says McDonald.
