The historic Kin Kin Hotel near Noosa has announced its imminent reopening after being closed for a year for attentive renovation.
David Ezrine and Matthew Flynn bought the pub, long known as the Country Life Hotel, for $1.1 million mid-2021, through CRE brokers, but closed it for a makeover early 2022.
Sources suggest the name Kin Kin comes from the local indigenous term for ‘red soil’. The pub was built in 1915, as the Kin Kin Hotel.
The new owners are determined to return her to her “former glory” and have explained that the renovation and closure, while hampered by the pandemic and floods last year, had dragged on longer than expected largely as they were not prepared to ‘cut any corners’.
Although they have strived to retain heritage elements of the hotel, parts of the original infrastructure – including the entire veranda – were not up to being salvaged and had to be replaced, so the old Queenslander could “last another 100 years”.
In 1972 the name was changed to the Country Life, but after 50 years and some local opposition, Ezrine and Flynn have opted to reinstate the original name.
There have been modifications to protect it from future flooding events, after last year’s waters reached knee height and torrential rains in 2009 devastated the region.
Otherwise, the pair intend to introduce a fresh approach to the dining experience, focusing on local provenance, with attention to seasonality and curated dining.
The remade Kin Kin will be without gaming or televisions, and it is hoped the venue will be a welcoming place for locals, visitors and families to reconnect.
While Ezrine remains tight-lipped on a date for the reopening, an advertisement for a general manager has now been posted that he says is generating some interest, and the team are reportedly moving forward diligently but “will not compromise”.
