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Pub and restaurant empire Merivale is reopening its venues in Sydney from June 1 as restrictions ease
Merivale is reopening several of its venues for up to 50 guests in June.
CEO Justin Hemmes said it "marks the real beginning to hospitality’s road to recovery."
Some of the venues that will reopen include The Beresford Hotel, Charlie Parker’s, Fred’s and Hotel Centennial.
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Hospitality group Merivale is reopening a number of its venues for up to 50 people.
It comes after New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian allowed pubs, cafes, restaurants to have up to 50 guests from June 1, as coronavirus restrictions continue to ease across the state.
It's a more viable customer limit for Merivale than the originally proposed 20-person limit for restaurants, as the company wouldn't have been able to reopen many of its larger venues.
"This is the best news we’ve had in months, and marks the real beginning to hospitality’s road to recovery," CEO Justin Hemmes said in a statement.
"Whilst we are still a little while away from operating all our venues at full capacity, the increase to 50 customers is a huge leap forward and one that will result in an exponential increase in employment," he said.
"Thank you, as always, to our incredible staff and loyal guests for their patience, support and unwavering optimism that things would get better. They finally have."
The Merivale venues that are opening their doors
Merivale venues that are new open are Bar Totti's, the ground floor of the Coogee Pavilion, Jimmy’s Falafel, Mr. Wong and The Paddington.
It also revealed its timeline for when other venues are reopening:
More Merivale venues will open their doors during phase three of the government's recovery plan, which will allow gatherings of up to 100 people.
The venues will be reopening with government health and safety guidelines, with some booking guidelines. If you're planning to go to Mr. Wong, Felix, Fred’s, mimis or Berts, they will require a pre-payment of $100 per person which will then be deducted from the final bill. All other places will have a $50 per person fee if you don’t show up.
During the forced closure of pubs, clubs and restaurants, Merivale rolled out takeaway services at Mr. Wong, Coogee Pavilion, Totti’s Bondi, Bar Totti’s, Jimmy’s Falafel, Lotus 2.0, and The Paddington / The Chicken Shop.
It also introduced a 'Just in' delivery service run by its own employees and the 'Merivale at Home' option which lets customers order a box full of ingredients to make signature dishes from the group’s top restaurants.
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