The elegant Bull & Barley Inn has come to market, boasting a strong operation with upside within a tastefully restored historic local hotel.
Established in 1902, the Cambooya pub was originally named the Railway Hotel and one of only three public houses in town. In 1978 it changed moniker to the Bull & Barley (B&B), and has survived to become the only remaining pub in the precinct.
Cambooya is found around 20 kilometres south-west Toowoomba, or 151 west of Brisbane, and counts a local population of nearly 7,000 people.
Bruce Dell bought the well-loved pub in 2007, which had undergone some creative renovations over the years. He set about restoring the B&B to its former grandeur, instilling authentic 1900s old-world atmosphere, through the likes of historic photographs and even retrofitting the original cedar chiller box from the 1930s.
The pub trades seven days a week, from 10am, providing a main bar and separate room with pool table and jukebox, modern kitchen and restaurant open every day for lunch and dinner, served to two separate dining areas seating a total of 70 people, plus outside area with capacity of another 50 people.
Upstairs there are seven pub-style accommodation rooms, with a kitchen, guest lounge and two bathrooms, and a two-bedroom manager’s residence. The business does over the counter takeaway liquor and at the rear of the property is a storage shed and generator.
Dell also acquired an adjoining four-bedroom, air-conditioned heritage home, as well as the block of land on the eastern side of the property, for which he has produced concept plans outlining significant expansion.
Currently the foodservice is said to be operating “at full capacity” doing around 900 meals per week, and would benefit from new arrangements, and the B&B does not hold any gaming machines, suggesting further potential to improve revenue.
There is also the possibility of installing a drive-through bottleshop on the site.
“Great care has been taken to retain the character and charm of this beautiful old girl,” notes Geoff Percy of Ray White Toowoomba, who Dell has commissioned to market the asset.
“For those who are looking for a business and a lifestyle, this is the one.”
The freehold going concern of the Bull & Barley is for sale for $1.9 million plus SAV, which does not include the vacant land or house, but options will be considered.
