Melbourne-based Francis Venues has divested Sydney’s Kings Head Tavern to local powerhouse Parras Hospitality, less than two years after purchasing the big corner pub.
The two-level Kings Head Tavern (KHT) resides on a prominent 1,334sqm site on the major intersection of King Georges and Connells Point roads, adjacent to the South Hurstville Shopping Centre.
A diverse operation in a high-density precinct, it provides sports bar, gaming with 27 machines, and the popular Mr & Mrs Parmi bistro, and is licensed to trade until 2am.
Francis Venues, controlled by Ian Francis and his son Tom, ventured to Sydney to take the keys to the KHT from Redcape in 2024, for around $30 million.
They immediately set about a capex program, renovating the façade, refurbishing the gaming room and reactivating the kitchen.
“We have thoroughly enjoyed our first foray into the Sydney hotel market, there remain quite a few differences operationally and jurisdictionally between NSW and Vic, but what is consistent is that if you provide the right customer experience, positive results will follow,” offered group MD Tom Francis.
The group still holds the Wattle Grove Hotel in Sydney’s south-west, also purchased from Redcape in 2024, and a collection in Melbourne for which it has plans.
An exit from the KHT arose in the wake of recent major Victorian projects for the group, notably including development of a golf driving range entertainment complex behind its Edwardes Lake Hotel, in Reservoir. This will feature 24 driving range bays, function spaces, an 18-hole mini golf course, golf simulators, and six holes of ‘chip and putt’.
“The remaining nine venues in Victoria are undergoing renovations over the next 24 months, upscaling bistro fit outs and finding ways to expand on entertainment, which in return grows F&B,” Francis told PubTIC.
Stepping into the KHT, in a deal reported at $40 million, is experienced hotelier Colin Peter Parras.
Parras Hospitality expands the collection to four hotels, counting the Ambarvale Hotel, acquired late 2016, the former Lantern Hotels El Toro Hotel in Warwick Farm, and most recently the Shaws Bay Hotel and Fenwick House, in Ballina.
“The last few years have been a labour of love getting the Shawsy open, where we have just enjoyed our first full summer of trade up there, and received an astounding response,” says Parras.
“We had been looking to get back to our roots in Sydney, and the Kings Head Tavern fits perfectly for us.
“Francis Venues have done an amazing job, and we hope to continue to foster the growth tangent that it is already on.”
The sale price represents a strong return on investment in a relatively short period, allowing the Francis’ to redeploy capital into existing assets.
“It was a testament to the attractiveness of NSW Hotels as a collective, when Francis Venues made the investment trip north,” suggests HTL Property’s Dan Dragicevich, who orchestrated the off-market sale in collaboration with colleague Andrew Jolliffe.
“The fact it has been a success underlines the rising value and liquidity potential of assets in such a dynamic marketplace.”
The first quarter of 2026 has proven tumultuous both abroad and locally, recording over $300 million in pub sales in NSW alone as hard assets are increasingly in greater demand.
“Unsatisfied capital earmarked for Sydney pub acquisitions continues to outweigh supply, with geopolitical events and equity market dynamics corralling investors more than suggestively towards the safe harbour of property,” says Jolliffe.
