Regional Queensland pub the Grand Hotel in Childers has found itself thriving, bucking the trend of foodservice industry closures across the country.
For those hospitality venues that successfully navigated COVID, the added pressures of rising costs across the board – as well as staff shortages – are taking their toll, and numerous eateries are closing their doors.
Veteran Sydney venue Tetsuya’s will close in July, while trading ceased this week for Botswana Butchery restaurants in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney.
These are just two of the recent closures, and industry experts believe there will be more to follow.
In stark contrast, the Grand Hotel Childers now requires weekend bookings and receives a steady stream of visitors from as far as 350 kilometres away.
The hotel made the move to offer an open challenge called the “Mongrel Menu”, and its decision to follow the lead of some Texan pubs has paid off.
The idea is simple: choose one of three huge meals along with a side, and beat the record of the fastest eater.
Diners can choose from either one kilo of rump steak, a full rack of pork ribs, or a triple-patty burger named the “Big Bastard”.
Hotel manager Helen Corliss had wanted to try the idea “for years” but found herself waiting for the right chef, which she found in Lisa Couell.
“It’s not easy to cook 1kg steaks well and consistently,” Corliss says.
While the meals can be ordered (and shared) without taking up the challenge, anyone who partakes of the challenge and finishes within an hour will receive a commemorative stubby holder and their name written on the hotel’s Mongrel Menu Honour Board.
Those with the fastest times have their names and photos shared on social media.
People who don’t meet the challenge can get a “takeaway box of shame”.
The idea has proven popular, with a strong level of engagement on social media.
Over 150 challenge meals were sold in two weeks, with the record currently standing at 14 minutes and 54 seconds.
However, Corliss said “Our main aim is for people to enjoy great meals at good prices … the challenge is just for fun.”
