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OPINION Summer in Sydney means ... the Hermitage walk, dumplings and the Salisbury Hotel
What does a Sydney summer mean to you?
Finding sand throughout the house; warm evenings drinking a cold beer at a local pub and listening to live music; trying to avoid the seatbelt buckle when you first get into the car; the call of the cockatoos and cicadas. Summer means longer daylight hours to see friends and family and it’s no longer checking the weather forecast because I know it will be hot and humid most days.
First memory of summer in Sydney?
I grew up in Canberra so we’d regularly come up to Sydney for a day trip or a few nights. We’d split our time between shopping in the city and going to yum cha (the since-closed Marigold was a favourite), or going swimming at Maroubra, eating fish and chips and getting a sweet treat at a local Greek bakery.
First place you take visitors?
Anywhere along the Hermitage Walk in Vaucluse – it’s got some of the best views of the harbour and you can see all sorts of fish, birds and stingrays! But you can also never go wrong with some dumplings in Chinatown or a good old-fashioned pub meal at the Rocks.
Favourite cafe?
Anywhere with a good view, great coffee and banana bread.
Secret spot you escape to?
The Salisbury Hotel in Stanmore. It’s got some great food and drinks which you can enjoy under the fairy light and next to a 1926 delivery truck that’s been transformed into a communal table. They even have live country music every Sunday.
The best summer food is …
As if I could name just one! I am a big fan of ripe mangos, mince pies, pavlovas, or fish and chips.
I know it’s summer when I smell …
Freshly mown grass, barbecues, pine trees (although I’m oddly allergic to them), sunscreen or the salt spray of the beach.
My favourite summer song is…
The sound of cicadas! It never gets old – although occasionally very deafening. Although, In the Summertime by Thirsty Merc is a favourite because it reminds me of watching Bondi Rescue and blasting the aircon.
The worst thing about summer is …
Being stuck inside on a beautiful day and hayfever. I desperately need my eyes to stop itching and my nose to stop running.
My closest bolthole is …
Anywhere with aircon.
Guilty pleasure?
Reality television – I am currently obsessed with Below Deck.
What aspect of summer life would you change, and what do you want to always stay the same?
I hope my love of an Australian summer never changes. There is something magical about the smells, sounds and things to do in our city.
But if I could change one thing, it would be the amount of pollen – I am so sick of hayfever.
I taught myself how to do research, how to dig out the pieces... I discovered in the process that, contrary to the notion that the past is a dead thing, that in fact wherever you scratch the surface, you find life. And it was the life, the people and what happened to them, that was the pull for me.
~David McCullough
~David McCullough
The ‘friendly’ Salisbury pub snapped up for $17m
The new owner of the Salisbury pub in the inner west intends to get to know the locals and patrons before making any changes to what is known as having a “very welcoming and friendly” atmosphere.
Private pub owner Matthew Sweeney has paid $17 million for the three-storey 1900s art deco freehold hotel on the corner of Percival Road, Stanmore to the former custodians Ged Dore, Trish Larkin and a private investor who sold after close to a decade.
It will be added to his portfolio of the Narooma Hotel on the NSW south coast. Sweeney, who has a background filming documentaries and large-format TV programs such as MasterChef, previously owned the former Berkeley Hotel, which he rebranded to its original moniker, the Eveleigh Hotel. He recently sold that pub.
“When we did the inspections we felt the pub had a beautiful and welcoming presence,” Sweeney said.
‘It’s not a broken pub that is dark and dingy, it is relaxed, well-kept, and we look forward to looking after the locals and patrons and just getting to know everyone.’New owner of the Salisbury Hotel Matthew Sweeney
“It’s not a broken pub that is dark and dingy, it is relaxed, well-kept, and we look forward to looking after the locals and patrons and just getting to know everyone.”
Dore and Larkin have managed the large-scale pub, which comes with 20 accommodation rooms, since 2015, and they bought it for about $11 million three years later.
“It’s been an amazing journey rebuilding a beautiful classic community hotel,” Dore said.
“With, as always, a touch of sadness, we wave her goodbye and are happy it has landed in the hands of someone who appreciates her and the community.”
JLL senior vice president Kate MacDonald and executive vice president Ben McDonald managed the on-market sale process, and said it was one of the busiest campaigns of the year.
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“At a time when pubs are facing proposed legislative changes specifically around gaming, the Salisbury attracted great interest from Sydney-based hoteliers and groups with its sought-after mix of trade across food and beverage, 15 gaming machines and 20 accommodation rooms, exceeding $95,000 per week in turnover,” MacDonald said.
“It’s a fantastic community hotel which the owners have undeniably poured their hearts and souls into, and we wish the purchaser every success in building on the great business and reputation of the pub.”
Sweeney added that the pub offers a different set-up to the Narooma pub, but said while an overhaul of the menu is not on the table, he believes it is important to offer something a “little bit different”.
While it has been a quieter year for sales compared to 2022, which was one of the busiest on record, well-located pubs are in demand.
The most recent was the sale of Kinselas and the Courthouse at Taylor Square to private property developers Virtical for a combined $61 million. Nick Lower and Tony Bargwanna of Savills Australia advised on the sale.
McDonald said the deal this year have highlighted the ongoing resilience of the pub sector from a trade and transaction point of view despite the broader economic environment both offshore and locally.
“As we enter what is traditionally one of the busiest periods of transaction activity in the pub sector, we are buoyed by the level of unfulfilled capital still seeking opportunities in the asset class,” McDonald said.
