The historic Khartoum Hotel of Kitchener is being sold by veteran publican Ray Prescott, representing a rare freehold option in the booming Hunter Region.
Constructed in 1926, the Khartoum Hotel is an attractive two-storey Art Deco-inspired pub, adorned with ornate pressed metal ceilings and stained-glass windows.
It sits on a commanding lot of more than 2,000sqm on Kitchener’s main street, which is the major road into Cessnock. It is something of a destination hotel within the Hunter – Australia’s oldest wine-growing region, drawing 10 million domestic and international visitors last year.
The pub comprises a traditional front bar and TAB, large bistro and elegant dining or function room, footpath seating, big beer garden and back lawn with shade sails and an outdoor stage. Upstairs there are twelve accommodation rooms, plus a standalone building to the rear of the property houses a further two suites.
In 2021 news exploded across the country that a Sydney man had taken on and beaten the Khartoum’s infamous burger challenge, requiring the contender to eat a massive five-kilogram burger and sides in less than 30 minutes.
Ray Prescott has dutifully owned and operated the pub for nearly 20 years, and feeling it is time to move on suggests it is an ‘up and coming’ business in first-class condition, with strong local trade.
“We’ve done a lot of work to it,” he reports.
“It trades really well, and is one of the best pubs in the area.”
The sale campaign is through Manenti Quinlan’s Leonard Bongiovanni, working with Deane Moore at Moore and Moore Real Estate, who see it as a strong investment for new and experienced operators, amid price expectation circa $1.5 million.
“It’s rare to come across such an attractive entry-level freehold opportunity,” says Bongiovanni.
“The hotel is a turnkey business that enjoys strong local and tourist trade and has huge growth potential.”
Freehold going concern of the Khartoum Hotel is for sale by Expressions of Interest.
