South Melbourne beauty the Wayside Inn has come to market, looking to a new long-term leaseholder in the newly refurbished pub, less than three kilometres from the CBD.
Built 1915 on the corner of arterial City Road and Ferrars Street, the commanding two-storey brick Wayside offers a large public bar with footpath trading, bistro and commercial kitchen, and leafy courtyard, under a rare 5am general licence.
Upstairs holds a function room with dedicated public bar and additional rooms suitable as office space. There is also consideration for extension of the upper deck, with views of the city skyline.
The Cadzow family purchased the pub in the mid-90s, and ran it for around a decade before installing a tenant in the early naughties.
It has most recently been operated by Australian Venue co (formerly Dixon Hospitality Group), which purchased the lease in 2014.
Last year it underwent further refurbishment to modernise the interiors, finding itself today amongst a population of office workers and commercial warehousing.
A new lease is now being offered by the freehold owners, who have appointed CBRE Hotels’ Will Connolly to market the business.
South Melbourne continues its hospitality resurgence, and given lack of opportunities in the region agents expect significant interest from a range of operators.
“The successful tenant will be able to take advantage of both the pub’s locational advantages, its high-quality fittings, and the potential to expand on its current offering, such as an upstairs extension and rooftop activation to capitalise on the available city views,” suggests Connolly.
The Wayside Inn lease is being offered via Expression of Interest, with negotiable terms, closing Thursday 14 March.
