Sydney will soon welcome a new pub as the all-new Watson’s comes to life in the Entertainment Quarter, in place of PJ Gallaghers.
After a nearly five-year tenure, PJ Gallagher’s EQ closed for COVID last year, and with only a couple of weeks remaining on the lease when pubs reopened in June, it did not.
The two-storey building has been dormant since, but renovations have now begun to produce new venue Watson’s. It is the brainchild of long-time mates Michael Watson, of Wats On Events, and West’s Tigers director Danny Stapleton.
The pair secured a ten-year lease at The Entertainment Quarter, under management team John Singleton, Gerry Harvey and Mark Carnegie.
Watson’s major events company has been one of those hit hard by COVID-19, further dampened by a slow return to large-scale and pop-up events. He looked for an opportunity to continue Wats On Events, while also satisfying a long-held dream for a permanent venue.
The space is undergoing a makeover of the main bar and dining on level one and the event and function space on level two, for a venue that can cater to the diverse crowds that frequent The Entertainment Quarter.
“We envisage a revitalised space that is both pleasing to the eye and approachable,” he says.
“Whilst making use of the pre-existing bones, the space will be transformed into a bright, fresh, sophisticated, yet comfortable and relaxed venue.”
The pub will offer ample seating and dining options both inside and out, as well as spaces to view big screens throughout the venue or the huge four-metre al fresco mega screen. Interior areas will flow out to the sprawling beer garden and two spacious timber clad decks, shaded by fairy-lit Moreton Bay Fig trees.
Watson’s is scheduled for launch in August 2021.
