Venue #32

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Sydney40 Kent Rd. Mascot NSW 2020Ph:(02) 9582 0909 • Fax:(02) 9582 0999www.jands.com.au

MelbourneUnit 11, 21 Sabre Drive, Port Melbourne VIC 3207Ph:(03) 8698 0909 • Fax:(03) 8698 0994www.jands.com.au

For more info please contact:

The True Foundation of Quality Professional Audio for your next Sound System Install.

Performance, Integration,

Reliability,Quality.

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NIDA - Anzac Parade, Kensington, Sydney

Sanctuary Hotel - Corner of Kent and Liverpool St, Sydney

studio3 - Crown Entertainment Complex, Melbourne

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02 8920 1499 www.bergstromarchitects.com.auNominated Architect: Thomas Bergstrom reg. number 7052 (NSW)

Architecture . Interior Design

2010

int_venue32V2_HR.pdf 2/9/09 5:28:16 PM

Find out why 1600 venues have switched to the system that does it all!

• Music and visuals for every space in your venue

• Exclusive music packages designed to your personal brief

• Fresh music delivered twice a month

• An in-built advertising program• Ambient visuals

(supplied in conjunction with ) • 24/7 phone support• 100% legal music!

For an obligation-free consultation call 1800 679 748

“I have seen and heard many things and can say that the is a magnificent music and advertising management tool that gives our venues a real edge”

- Peter Hurley | AHA National Senior Vice President

www.nightlife.com.au

Ambient VisualsMusic + Video Clips

Digital Advertising

One system. One company. One solution.

whenever wherever you need it

Love the look and feel of venue?

Love what it does to the prestige of your foyer coffee table?

Hate the fact you can’t lay your hands on that article when you need it?

We feel your pain.

Which is why our scientists at the venue institute have developed the venu-e-zine.

venu-e-zine is as yet unpronounceable but its impact will be felt immediately.

venu-e-zine can’t be ‘borrowed’, dog-eared, lost in the post, chewed by the dog or attacked by mildew.

venu-e-zine loads quickly, is dead easy to navigate, stays drier longer, ticks all the boxes, plays one game at a time and gives you the ring of confidence just when you need it.

venu-e-zine: everything you didn’t know you were hoping for… and much more.

See for yourself: www.venuemag.com

www.showtech.com.au

02 9748 1122

Sydney Melbourne

Brisbane Perth

ONLY…Christopher Holder, Editorial Director

[email protected]

» edit

www.showtech.com.au

02 9748 1122

Sydney Melbourne

Brisbane Perth

ONLY…

» issue thirty twoSeptember 2009

62 — Dragon i Hong Kong’s best club operator speaks out.

36 — Temperance Hotel Something grown up in South Yarra.

74 — Kit & Kaboodle

Something different in The Cross.

34 — Victor Churchill Not just another meat market.

66 — The Residence, Grand Hyatt Come home to The Residence.

30 — Sebel Surry Hills A refurb with a big tank.

62 30

66

347436

You prepared for a stunning presentation.So have we.

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Portable Series to the powerful Professional Series for larger venues, Hitachi has the range to deliver renowned performance with unprecedented reliability and durability.

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For more information visit www.hitachi.com.au or email [email protected] more information on these products please visit www.hitachi.com.au or contact us on 1800 HITACHI or at [email protected]

Ultra Portable Installation Ultra Short ThrowPortable High Resolution

Advertising Office: (02) 9986 1188 PO Box 6216, Frenchs Forest, NSW 2086

Editorial Office: (03) 5331 4949 PO Box 295, Ballarat, VIC 3353

Publication Manager: Stewart Woodhill ([email protected])

Editorial Director: Christopher Holder ([email protected])

Publisher: Philip Spencer ([email protected])

Assistant Editor: Mark Davie ([email protected])

Art Direction & Design:Dominic Carey ([email protected])

Additional Design: Heath McCurdy ([email protected])

Circulation Manager: Miriam Mulcahy ([email protected])

Accounts: Jen Temm ([email protected])

™

alchemedia publishing pty ltd (ABN: 34 074 431 628) PO Box 6216,

Frenchs Forest, NSW 2086 [email protected]

All material in this magazine is copyright © 2009 Alchemedia Publishing Pty

Ltd. The title Venue is a registered Trademark. Apart from any fair dealing

permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any

process without written permission. The publishers believe all information

supplied in this magazine to be correct at the time of publication. They are

not in a position to make a guarantee to this effect and accept no liability in

the event of any information proving inaccurate. After investigation and to

the best of our knowledge and belief, prices, addresses and phone numbers

were up to date at the time of publication. It is not possible for the publishers

to ensure that advertisements appearing in this publication comply with the

Trade Practices Act, 1974. The responsibility is on the person, company or

advertising agency submitting or directing the advertisement for publication.

The publishers cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions, although

every endeavour has been made to ensure complete accuracy.

Hotels & Clubs

Sheraton on the Park — 72Temperance Hotel — 34

Lord of the Isles — 46Castle Hill RSL — 52

Glenquarie Hotel — 58

Bars & Nightclubs

The Fixer: Clive Morley — 41Martin Place Back Bar — 16

Maya Tequila Bar — 28

Restaurants & Cafés

Liar Liar — 12Pan Asian — 13

Zhen’s Kitchen — 14Stella Italian Kitchen— 18

News

Lit — 20Sit — 22Kit — 24

Commercial Edge — 79

» Cover: Temperance Hotel, South Yarra» Photo: Rhiannon Slatter

Bosch Communications SystemsUnit 2C, 6 Boundary Rd NORTHMEAD NSW 2152Tel: 02 9683 4752, Fax: 02 9890 5928Email: [email protected] • www.boschsecurity.com.au

At the heart of the EV-I family are brand-new and highly refined transducers, designed by EV engineers—th e most knowledgeable and passionate in the industry—using the very latest developmental and diagnostic tools, exclusive to Electro-Voice R&D. Manufactured to the highest standards in EV factories, EV-I systems collectively represent the most comprehensive family of loudspeakers the industry has ever seen.

• Seven distinct coverage patterns from seven newly designed waveguides• Six pre-designed finishes, including two weatherized versions• Completely flexible installation accessories• Intuitive input panels• Three system formats: horn-load (EVH), front-load (EVF), and a true line array (EVA)

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{12}

Pants on FireSalvatore Malatista has owned 72 venues and he’s only 36. How’d he do it? “You start when you’re 20, you have an appetite for risk, you don’t sleep and you trust and hire really talented people. You delegate a lot and cross your fingers.” Last issue, venue featured St Ali’s, Malatista’s benchmark specialty coffee café. His latest acquisition is Liar Liar, a café in Hawthorn, which also fits his ‘third-wave coffee guy’ title. For those that want to be ‘in the nose’, the first wave began with the Nescafé-style industrialisation of coffee, second wavers popularised espresso coffee, with darker roasts and blends, and third wavers are all about single states and the subtle characteristics of flavour in your coffee cup. It’s why Malatista begged and borrowed on the coffee black market to source Clover coffee-making machines to fit out his cafes. The Clover is a device created by a couple of Stanford engineers and there are only 200 in operation in the world after Starbucks bought the design. It takes the best parts of a French press and a siphon system, combines them with stainless steel, digital dials that can set every temperature, time, and litreage to make the perfect cup, and an IP address for sharing your latest single state ‘best settings’ with fellow coffee nerds. The final aromatic coffee is dispensed into a brandy glass, a nod to Malatista’s intent to rival wine as an experience rather than a commodity: “Coffee for too long has been traded and treated like a commodity, second only to oil. You might say commodities are good, but best left to the guys who buy coffee by the container loads. We want to treat coffee as an agricultural product as opposed to a commodity,” explained Malatista.

He’s all about the education process, recently inviting Paul Wilson to create a food and coffee degustation match, and employing a full-time Director of Eduction, so that anyone who works as part of St Ali’s has access to a library of resources. He also hired a full-time green bean direct buyer who spends nine months of the year sourcing beans, and supplies only his own cafés, so other people don’t screw up the taste, and the brand. “The only way we can develop the specialty coffee market is by educating our people, then educating the end user. In the same way that Apple owns the ‘touch’ space with iPods and iPhones, we’d like to dominate the ‘coffee learn’ space. With things like the Clover we might only do 20 or 30 sales a day, but they’re really instrumental in helping people understand that coffee isn’t just beans, burnt and put together in an espresso machine.”

Going even further, at the end of October, he plans to launch ‘Sensory lab by St Ali’s’ on Little Bourke Street, a place where Malatista and Co. can flaunt their coffee knowledge dressed in white labcoats, and take visitors through the various nuances of the Clover, siphon bar, vacuum pot, French press, Slayer espresso, espresso, and every other pouring method possible. “It will be completely like a cellar door experience. There will be people in white lab coats and ties and they’ll be coffee consultants. You’ll sit with them and ask them any question about coffee from origin tour trips down to brewing methods for coffee. It will be an end user education platform,” said Malatista. “Probably, commercially, it isn’t a very wise decision in the short-term because it’s expensive to do all this stuff and no-one really appreciates it except coffee geeks and passionate people but I reckon we’ll chip away at that market slowly. In the same way that fewer and fewer people drink instant coffee now because of the second wave guys, the third wave guys are chipping away at the second wave guys in the espresso market.”

» Liar Liar: 90 Kinkora Rd, Hawthorn VIC (03) 9818 8864» Photo: Diana Snape

» tidbit

Aqua, Back to the ’80svenue casts a sly eye over the latest in pop music videos.

Guess what? Aqua — a loose affiliation of talentless Norwegian

Eurovision rejects — has decided to wager its final shred of

credibility on the decade that style forgot — that’s right, the ’80s.

Apparently we oughtta ‘get back to’ the Reagan Era for some

satellites, skinny ties, Top Gun, Twisted Sister, Mr T, moon boots,

Dynasty, Rubik’s Cube, and the Commodore 64.

Come again?!

Aqua is old enough to know better. They’ll remember the

’80s and should know darn well one of the world’s great

indisputable truths:

The ’80s were crap.

And if this was a royal commission and ‘Council Assisting’ was

wheeling in five barrows full of trumped-up evidence to the

contrary, I would need only to mouth the words “Michael Bolton’s

Mullet” for the former Chief Justice to clear the courtroom

and be ordering cups of Lan Choo and Custard Creams in his

chambers for elevenses.

For those not convinced, I’ll rephrase my original contention.

The ’80s were crrrrrrap.

Let me table the purportedly ’80s-tastic Commodore 64 as

further evidence. It was crap. Your niece’s Tamagotchi is like

the proverbial NASA mainframe in comparison. You had to load

in programs via cassette. Cassettes I tell you! Spend a couple

of days of hardcore Basic programming and, hot diggity, you

might get this infernal contraption to print out a dot matrix of a

half demolished Space Invader base. Ace!

No, the ’80s were unequivocally crap and any effort by some

Scando-airheads to rehabilitate it should be treated with all the

enthusiasm of a holocaust denial.

The Rubik’s Cube?! Apparently there’s a subculture of hyper-

nerds that can routinely solve the puzzle behind their back,

one handed while reciting 10-digit prime numbers. But the rest

of the world was duped. Hoodwinked. We had no chance of

solving Dr Rubik’s diabolical trinket of satan. Which goes some

way to explaining why any Cube you’re now likely to encounter

has been pulled apart and reassembled a hundred times, or

the stickers pulled off and rearranged.

Yes, the ’80s were crap. So unremittingly crap that Aqua’s

original lyrics alluding to Michael Jackson being black were

elided for the sake of not rocking any boats. Blimey. Sorry to

speak ill of the dead but Off The Wall was the only MJ album

worth listening to and that was released in 1979! Otherwise,

all the Peter Pan of pop bequeathed to the ’80s was Weird

Al Yankovic, as well as years of mouthy misfits sporting single

fingerless gloves and sleeveless anoraks.

The ’80s can be consigned to the dung heap of history as far

as I’m concerned. You can take all your shiny tracksuits, your

dangly clown ear rings, yuppies, Hawthorn premierships,

Noiseworks, legwarmers… bung them in a giant time capsule

and fire them off in one of Aqua’s satellites.

Take it from someone who was a teenager in the ’80s and who

only narrowly avoided owning a pair of Adidas Romes, Fabergé

jeans and a pink polo shirt: the ’80s were crap. «

Music Video Watch

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Asia All OverEverything from the look, the location and the menu telegraph Pan Asian’s intentions loudly and clearly. Located on the busy corner of Chapel and Chatham Streets in Prahran, Melbourne, Pan Asian serves up a contemporary menu of Thai, Japanese, Indian, Malaysian, Chinese and Indochinese cuisines. Masterminded by restaurateurs Robert and Le Teoh, ably assisted by Company Executive Chef Kin San (ex Taxi) and head chef Ben Corp (ex Magic City), Pan Asian is fresh and exciting, inviting customers to have fun outside the bounds of what’s conventional and to venture from the me-too confines of Chinatown.

The décor and ambience is equally fresh. Originally designed by Wayne Finschi, the Pan Asian interior is vibrant with bold graphics and a mural depicting the four deities of Pan Asian cuisines hung in the centre of the restaurant. The theme is continued with the soft upholstery of cushions and banquette covers, and these can be changed from communal dining to smaller, more intimate dining booths as required.

Many features of the original building have been retained, from the Corinthian columns to the rose ceiling. The space is cleverly divided with oriental screens, a drinking shelf and feature chandeliers made of mixing bowls and salt and pepper shakers.

» Pan Asian: (03) 9533 7022 or www.panasian.com.au

Venues in the News

Winter Freeze — A freeze on the opening of any new late night bars or pubs in Melbourne has been extended till 2012 in an effort to curb late-night violence. The licence freeze was introduced in May last year, but with recent attacks, including a police officer recently getting his jaw and eye sockets smashed, and a girl found with multiple stab wounds, the powers that be hope to buy more time to figure out what the hell is going on. The freeze is limited to applications for bars and pubs open after 1am.

Masterchef was the talk of the town when over 3.7 million viewers tuned into the finale to see Julie Goodwin bring it home for all the mums. The show got Australians discussing the finer points of foie gras on their way into the kitchen, but Restaurant & Catering Australia hope the widespread exuberance for all things culinary will flow over into the hospitality sector to fill the labour shortage. It’s hard to see reality TV actually translating into reality though, Big Brother didn’t spruik any desire to live with intentionally antagonistic housemates in a Gold Coast commune — living in a theme park might be cool though.

When a Japanese couple complained about a $1400 bill for a seafood lunch in an historic restaurant in Rome, Italy’s tourism minister, Michela Brambilla went on the rampage. Just days after the complaint hygiene officials inspected and shut down the restaurant, ending an era of service to patrons included the Queen of England, according to The Australian. Sounds like the bottle of Sauvignon they had with lunch was a bit too vintage for their taste.

Stuart Prosser, a veteran of Tasmania’s food industry who runs Prossers on the Beach, offered a suggestion to the Tasmanian industry that he and other industry figures could poke around their kitchens and offer a few suggestions here and there ala Gordon Ramsay. Prosser reckons the standard of quality across Tasmania befits its lowly latitudes, but doesn’t reckon the state’s food has to go south too. Source: Hobart Mercury.

The Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority has kicked out the Sydney Entertainment Centre’s venue operator after the promoter, Arena Management, fell $1m into rental arrears. Apparently the rent is double that of Acer Arena, so Arena Management took it upon itself to even out the rental competition by only paying half.

Victorian Consumer Affairs Minister, Tony Robinson, announced a new ‘risk-based’ liquor licensing fee structure that could see fees for venues in troubled spots rising from $6659 to $25,560, according to The Australian. The minister says the money will go to “the real cost of regulating the licensed venues” — because it costs more money to take more money. Robinson also says the remainder not funnelled into the real cost of regulation will be used to make these alcohol-fuelled crime spots safer. Given current trends, the government may soon introduce a rent-a-cop scheme. The exact licensing fee will be determined by a bunch of factors, including operating hours, history of liquor act breaches, number of patrons and type of license. venue did a few calculations of its own and found that under the new structure QBH already owes the government more than it could make in its lifetime.

Mushroom heaters were banned about a year ago in the EU, but it seems the outdoor appliances have been spreading like a fungal infection and raising the alarms of environmental groups. Environment Victoria campaigner Fraser Brindley said, “If you’re talking about products that are inefficient, there is almost nothing as inefficient as an outdoor heater.” The Australian and New Zealand governments have organised an E3 committee that will present a report in November pertaining to the fate of the breed of heaters. Meanwhile, savvy venue owners the nation over are realising the cost and environmental benefits of installing energy efficient heaters, see Issue 30 for more.

Platform 3 in the Melbourne suburb, Richmond, has closed up shop after five years. The crew had last drinks and then handed the keys over to the new owners who plan to reinvent the place as Maeve Fox. www.maevefox.com.au

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ABOUT SPACE

3 light colours via remote control. 550mmD (692S2)

Acrylic, steel & glass. 2 sizes available (665S2)

Clear glass. 300mmD (343S2)

Opaque glass.650mmD (780S2)

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Glass balls available in 4 sizes (406S1)

lighting179 Gertrude St Fitzroy, VIC

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[email protected]: 03 9417 5000 f: 03 9419 0937

Email for a full product range brochure

Zhen’s Top End KitchenZhen’s Kitchen is a canteen-style Asian restaurant located in Darwin. Designed by Andrew Waller Design, the eclectic interior references the ‘Night Markets’ in Taipei where the counter areas have taken on the form of street trolley eateries with billboard-style street signage. It’s all about mismatched gung-ho furnishings comprised mainly of randomly-sized wooden tables and stools in the relaxed mode of make shift ‘drinks crate’ clusters seen all over Asian streetscapes. Collections of lanterns and birdcages hang from the ceiling and The Australian Chinese Daily is plastered to the walls, giving something to stew over while waiting for your food. The fitout alludes to an Asian streetscape, but this is a classy, well-conceived design despite a tight budget.

» Photography: Simon Furlong» Andrew Waller Design: 0422 992 676 or www.mrwaller.com

» flit

ABOUT SPACE

3 light colours via remote control. 550mmD (692S2)

Acrylic, steel & glass. 2 sizes available (665S2)

Clear glass. 300mmD (343S2)

Opaque glass.650mmD (780S2)

Bright Chrome.2 sizes available (726S1)

Glass balls available in 4 sizes (406S1)

lighting179 Gertrude St Fitzroy, VIC

Bright chromed glass. 350mmD (721S1)

[email protected]: 03 9417 5000 f: 03 9419 0937

Email for a full product range brochure

The Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre hit the unconventional button, hosting a dinner event for 80 international and Australian buyers. In an all-white setting, the buyers wore personalised aprons as they moved between illuminated cooking bars enjoying some gourmet nosh prep’ed by the SCEC’s cooking staff. Buyers were impressed by the creativity of the concept, and floored when they found out the whole event was produced inhouse.

The British Invasion — First Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen opened in Melbourne, than Gordon Ramsay announced he’d try out a Maze restaurant in Crown after two of his London restaurants closed, and now Rick Stein of Padstow and Rock in England has taken on the Bannister’s Hotel in Mollymook, three hours south of Sydney. With our economy sidestepping most of the financial crunch, British chefs are eyeing off Australia as a land of opportunity. Stein says it’s our proximity to South East Asian cooking, and willingness to experiment, that has attracted him to mimic his seafood restaurant down under. But when high-profile chefs breeze in with a brand and barely stay in the country long enough to taste the menu, it makes you wonder whether we’re getting a taste of Britain or the short end of the stick. Read about another Pom invading in the Clive Morley story later in the issue, at least he’s staying in the country.

Sloaney Pony in Port Melbourne played host to the sole Australian women-only party recently. Party organisers Pinkalicious were given the go ahead to stop any men entering the 400-strong party by VCAT, who also recently gave gay men’s pubs Laird Hotel and the Peel Hotel permission to ban women. The ‘man ban’ was a success according to company director Julie Mckenzie, who said, “I don’t think there were any men that tried to get in.” Apparently champagne and pink cushions aren’t what the male population is looking for.

The Carr Design Group are joining forces with Brookfield Multiplex to design and build the luxury $700m Hilton Surfers Paradise Hotel and Residences project. The project will comprise 410 premier residences, 169 luxury hotel rooms, day spa, Hilton signature restaurant, VIP lounge, theatrette, gym and swimming pools. The development will feature twin beachside towers where the Dolphin Arcade once stood — the first reaching 32 levels, and the second tower soaring to 57 levels.

The Melbourne Convention and Visitor’s Bureau is making it easier for environmentally conscious event organisers to go green with its new Carbon Calculator. The Event Carbon Calculator will automatically calculate an events carbon footprint from information including catering packages, venues booked, etc. It’s online at www.mcvb.com.au/melbourne-green-calculator.aspx

The Goulburn Valley Hotel (pictured below) took out the Best Re-developed Hotel Award at the AHA awards recently. The GV Hotel has been around since 1928 and is a Shepparton icon. Seven months of refurbishment and $5m later, the only recognisable feature left is the façade. Architecture and design firm Tm Design worked with construction company Procon development to complete the project, which now includes a 25m-long marble bar, large glass atrium and LEDs to light up the kegs.

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Martin Place Bar Shows SpiritThe Martin Place Bar has revealed a hidden gem: its ‘Luxe Spirits’ Private Back Bar. Designed by SJB Interiors, the Private Back Bar provides a separate area for pre-dinner drinks, bar dining, event location, private dining room and lounging.

Martin Place Bar owner Peter Wynne commented: “While it’s a compact space, the look is very much downtown New York meets Sydney inner city style.”

Indeed, there’s plenty to savour in the look and feel of the new addition. Xorel fabric panelling now lines the walls behind the existing leather banquettes, and an Ici Et La feature wall light creates soft shades over the bar area. Reflective black glass and a stunning polished stainless steel shelf set off the display of primo booze.

In addition to the new Private Back Bar, Martin Place Bar itself has undergone a series of renovations. Gineico David Chipperfield chandelier lights create a moody ambience throughout the space, and the entrance now houses an impressive black steel custom-made wine rack. Black Euroluce Regianni ‘Sunny Lights’ illuminate the impressive selection of desirable Australian vino.

MPB’s menu, devised by chef John Docherty, is a modern interpretation of classic bar/bistro food. Martin Place Bar’s signature dish remains on the menu: the show-stopping, hand cut, house-made chicken schnitzel with salad, fries and chili aioli is renowned for being the ‘biggest and best’ in Sydney.

» Martin Place Bar: (02) 9231 5575 or www.martinplacebar.com.au» SJB: (02) 9380 9911 or www.sjb.com.au» Photo: Anson Smart

» flit

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The financial year has ended, so we can forget about bean counting for a moment and look forward to Christmas. Well, maybe the purse strings are a little tighter this year, but it shouldn’t stop anyone having a good night out and donating a couple of dollars to charity while they’re at it. Streetsmart Australia’s Dine Out to Help Out event is on again from November 9 to December 24. Last year the event generated $260,000 from participating restaurants asking diners to add $2 extra to their bill, and this year the campaign has been extended to South Australia, with Awganix at the Marienberg Centre and Lenzerheide Restaurant already signed up. So to serve up a dish that feeds twice visit www.streetsmartaustralia.org

In other ‘news’, the chairman of the Seafood Council’s name is Rob Fish! Sounds like he could be a little out of his depth.

Melbourne’s Chinatown on Lt Bourke St will undergo $2m of development soon, including limiting traffic to open up more space for alfresco dining, improving lighting and street furniture, and the restoration of its grand archways, according to the Herald Sun. It’s one of the busiest dining and entertainment precincts, and the match of outdoor dining and Asian food is a no-brainer given its proliferation across Asia. Traders also plan to close down several laneways and make them into pedestrian malls with outdoor tables — the first to go is expected to be Heffernan Lane, connecting Lt Bourke and Lonsdale street.

Art Series Hotels’ Brush with Fame: The media recently descended on a frosty work site in Chapel St, South Yarra, for an alfresco lunch to mark the arrival of a signature piece of art from John Olsen. Sounds a bit oddball? Well, a builders’ RDO allowed the Art Seres Hotel Group to reclaim its work-in-progress for a day to tell the world about its $90m, 15-storey Olsen Hotel, slated to open in March of next year. The octogenarian guest of honour, Mr Olsen, sat beaming underneath his newest masterpiece — a giant, radiant painting that will take pride of place in the hotel’s lobby. Boasting 241 rooms, the interior of The Olsen will be a testament to Olsen’s art and, architects, RotheLowman’s penchant for stylish understatement. Rooms get larger at every floor and feature city and bay views. A 20m lap pool is also a feature, threatening to splash passing traffic as it overhangs Chapel Street. An Argentinean-style steakhouse will occupy the ground floor restaurant position. The Olsen is the flagship hotel of the Art Series Hotel Group. The group is opening six hotels around Melbourne over the next 18 months, the total project is valued over $300m. First cab off the Art rank will be the Cullen Hotel (named after Adam Cullen) in Prahran, which will be a seven-storey, 115-room hotel with boutique touches aplenty. The Cullen is due to open before the end of the year. Other hotels will include The Blackman, The Knight and The Larwill.

Pricey Pizza!Stella Italian Kitchen in Collaroy auctioned off Australia’s most expensive pizza with 100 percent of the proceeds donated to Cure our Kids. The pizza went for a hefty $1850 and little wonder, check out the primo toppings: shaved Australian truffle, porcini mushrooms, authentic Italian pork sausage and buffalo mozzarella… hold the small hairy fish.

Previously, the title for world’s most expensive pizza was held by a £100 white truffle, mushroom and fontina cheese pizza at Gordon Ramsay’s Maze restaurant in London. Apparently if you have the temerity to ring Maze and ask for a serve of that pizza to be home delivered Gordon will personally pop by to “give you a f**king serve”… allegedly.

For those not familiar with Stella Italian Kitchen, it’s a welcome spinoff from Northern Beaches institution, Stella Blu. Nick Salerno, Owner Stella Italian Kitchen and Stella Blu has overseen the establishing of genuine local eatery, serving up an authentic brand of Italian food.

» Stella Italian Kitchen: 1/1073 Pittwater Rd, Collaroy NSW (02) 9982 2188

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moving with technology

Ph: 1300 666 099 [email protected]



Ph: 03 [email protected]

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The Shelbourne comprises four bars, a courtyard, lounge and the newly refurbished Linq Bar & Restaurant. Beyond AV was asked to bring the space to life with some high-quality audio and lighting. For when the venue morphs from a chic restaurant into party central, there are two Studio Due Shark 150 moving heads bringing the dancefloor to life. The Shark 150 is ideal for small-medium nightclubs supplying myriad colours and effects. A custom made gobo of the Linq Bar & Resaurant logo has been made one for each of the Sharks and these are projected around the room. Two Geni Colour Changers add some more colour while an ELC wallmounted 12-button controller supplies an easy control option.

» Show Technology: (02) 9748 1122 or www.showtech.com.au

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Studio Due Shark: Fresh Bite

The Sierra Range

The Sierra landscape series from Beacon Lighting Commercial is a collection of architecturally attractive lighting systems. The slim shaped, low glare fixtures are IP54 rated for outdoor use, and have a neutral silver finish that complements garden vegetation. The fixtures have low power consumption and come with a rugged mounting plate assembly for long-lasting attachment. The series includes the Shadow bollard, Spirit bench seat, Etheral bollard, Oracle bollard, and the Puella wall bracket.

» Beacon Lighting Commercial: (03) 9369 1000 or www.beaconlightingcommercial.com.au

Nimbus LED

Nimbus LED.next LEDs are quoted as being the world’s most energy efficient and environmentally friendly LED lights. They deliver energy savings of up to 70 percent compared with conventional fluoro and incandescent lighting and have an extra long life of up to 50,000 hours. The LEDs are recyclable, can be installed in any surface, and also come in a slim line table lamp.

» Koda Lighting: www.kodalighting.com.au

Healthy Lustr

Lustr is the white light specialist in the Selador Series. Lustr’s x7 Color System is optimised to produce theatrical-quality whites and tints that render pigments and skin tones in their natural appearance. For key and fill light applications the Lustr features a yoke for one- and two-cell fixtures as well as frosted optics for a soft beam of light that blends well with existing Source Fours. Lustr’s subtle tinting capability is also the perfect solution for lighting scenery.

» Jands: (02) 9582 0909 or www.jands.com.au

An Integral Part Of The Arc

The Anolis ArcPad 3.48 Integral is the ArcPad 3.48 with an inbuilt power supply and an intelligent LED driver. This format provides a solution that simplifies both the cabling and the installation of the ArcPad 3.48 Integral. The ArcPad 3.48 Integral does not have any control panel or display, as all settings and addressing of the fixture are fully controlled via RDM (Remote Device Management) Protocol. Built with 48 Luxeon Rebel LEDs, the ArcPad 3.48 Integral is available in various formats to allow dramatic effects for both interior and exterior architectural applications. Prices start at $2000 excluding GST.

» ULA Group: 1300 852 476 or [email protected]

» lit

Since 1914, Paynter Dixon has been at the forefront

of Australian design and construction industry. With a

huge portfolio including some of the countries landmark

facilities, we are acknowledged for our expertise and

understanding in designing and building better business

through ongoing consultation with clients.

From small building improvements to multi-million

dollar redevelopments, Paynter Dixon is committed

to innovative solutions on time, on budget and with

minimal disruption to your business.

D E S I G NC O N S T R U C TC R E A T E

Paynter Dixon Constructions Pty LimitedPh: (02) 9797 5555

www.paynterdixon.com.au

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Oh! Lounge is a versatile and economical seating program designed by Gabriel Teixidó for Enea Contract. Oh! is an understated modern chair that blends creatively into a multitude of environments. Its simple, balanced appearance results from the linking of identical seat and back shells. Oh! comes with either a sled base or 4 leg swivel base and the option of upholstered seat and back pads. Complimentary occasional tables are also available. Chrome or epoxy powdercoat finishes are available for the bases of both the Oh! lounge chairs and side tables.

» Kezu: (02) 9699 6600 or www.kezu.com.au

A Chair For The Lady

The Lady P is a stackable chair that is air-moulded from a single piece of polypropylene. It’s suitable for outdoor use, and the seat is available in a range of options including wooden finishes of teak and acacia, or upholstered finished for indoor use. The chair comes in a wide range of colours.

» Chairbiz: 1300 888 434 or www.chairbiz.com

Oh! Yes

Plumb Stuff

Robert Plumb offers a varied range of high-quality outdoor furniture and accessories using specific materials to suit different applications, styles and budgets. Developed and designed by renowned landscape architect, William Dangar of Dangar Group, each product in the Robert Plumb collection can be easily personalised to suit different tastes and aesthetics. Rigorously tested and refined to withstand the harsh Australian climate, the Robert Plumb collection works in the great outdoors.

» Robert Plumb: (02) 9316 9066 or [email protected]

Bon Uno

For more than 125 years, the Bon factory has been producing an esteemed range of genuine European Bentwood furniture. The Bon Uno chair is the flagship of the Bon range and every Bon Uno chair is handmade in Europe from sustainable plantation European Beech. A brand new release of Bon Uno chairs, for commercial hospitality projects, is available through Nufurn in a classic wenge stain with a choice of upholstered fabric seat pads. Custom finishes are available on request.

» Nufurn: 1800 650 019 or www.nufurn.com.au

A Bit Askew

Askew is designed by Billiani in italy. The solid beech or walnut frame is crafted from specific plantation timber and is available as a lounge or armchair. The frame can be stained or painted as specified, and upholstered to taste.

» Café Culture: www.cafeculture.com.au

» sit

24/7 Support Australia WideAustralian Owned and Operated100% Legal Music and Video

Audio and Music Video System to suit any venue, we have 8 systems of choice.

New Music Update twice a month.

Custom Music Packages to suit your venue and Clientele.

Complete your package with Plasma’s, LCD’s, Projectors and Audio.

We can supply and install it all.

www.visualsounds.com.au 08 9444 0094 | www.pulsemusicvideo.com.au | [email protected]

pulse music videosystems

Samsung’s Thin Bezel

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Samsung’s UT series is designed specifically for video wall applications and features bezels of just 2.4mm on the bottom and right, and 4.3mm on the top and left. The UD video wall software allows control of content from up to 125 source PCs — with a single PC, all in real time on up to 250 display units. You can zoom in, zoom out, switch images, drag and control content with native resolution capability across multiple screens.

» Samsung: 1300 362 603 or www.samsung.com/au

Hitachi’s Big Picture

Hitachi’s latest addition to its professional series, the CP-SX12000 offers quality, innovation and reliability to large venues that require a high-end projector. With 1400x1050 SXGA resolution, the Hitachi CP-SX12000 offers brightness of up to 7000 lumens. The model also features exceptional image quality, with an iris-based high contrast system delivering a contrast ratio of 2500:1. The projector is ideal for auditoriums, exhibition halls, large lecture theatres or stage productions. The CP-SX12000 features a dust resistant cooling system that eliminates one of the main reliability issues in high-end projectors. The efficiency of this system also means that the air filter will last for over 10,000 maintenance-free hours, regardless of the ambient conditions. Priced at $17,700.

» Hitachi Australia: (02) 9888 4100 or www.hitachi.com.au

NEC’s Big LCD

NEC has introduced the MultiSync LCD8205 82-inch LCD. Its largest display to date, the LCD8205 is full 1080p HD with a 5000:1 contrast ratio, and a viewing angle of 178°. The screens are optimised for the 24/7 hard life of digital signage, with thermal protection with heat sensors. And if 82 inches isn’t big enough (roughly the diagonal viewing area of an average professional basketball player), then you either need your eyes checked or a few more screens. Luckily, NEC has included the ability to link up the display in a 4x4 configuration, making a whopping 328 inches of diagonal viewing area. Connections include DVI, HDMI, as well as a range of analogue connections. Price estimated to be $124,520.

» NEC: 131 632 or www.nec.com.au

Optoma Shines On

New Optoma projectors have hit the market: the EP-1691i and 7155i 1.3kg portable projector, offering 3000 ANSI lumens in native 16:9 or 4:3 aspect ratio, and the EX-766W WXGA 4000ANSI lumens 1280 x 800 native DLP widescreen with lens shift and weighing 5kg. The EX-766W also offers 2 x VGA S-Video composite audio inputs, RS232 or network control, and +12V trigger. All new Optoma projectors carry a three-year parts and labour warranty and come with direct power on and quick power off, remote mouse, laser pointer, key pad lock, and a soft carry case.

» Amber Technology: 1800 251 367 or [email protected]

Panasonic’s Big Plasma

Panasonic has expanded its commercial plasma range with the development of an 85-inch full hi-def plasma display panel — great for boardrooms or conference rooms, pubs and clubs, staging and rental companies. The new screen takes advantage of its latest energy-efficient, double luminance technology, NeoPDP, to deliver ‘industry-leading picture quality with amazingly crisp, blur-free dynamic image reproduction’. The panel is equivalent to four 42-inch panels, yet has a relatively slim depth of 99mm. Price: $44,000.

» Panasonic: 132 600 or www.panasonic.com.au

» kit

I N S P I R E DL A D Y P · 7 C O L O U R S · 4 S E A T O P T I O N S · F R O M $ 1 3 9 . 0 0

M E L B O U R N E · S Y D N E Y · 1 3 0 0 8 8 8 4 3 4 · C H A I R B I Z . C O M

Regent Plaza Ballroom

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Just beneath Melbourne’s Regent Theatre is the heritage-listed Plaza Ballroom, a spectacular function room that hosts everything from grand gala dinners, to weddings and AGMs. This year, technical director Mark Allen decided to upgrade the audio system and made the move to go with HK Audio. The previous system had issues with bass travelling upstairs, so Brad Parker of Parker Black recommended a Contour Array line array system with three CTA-208s and a CT-118 a side. MC² T3500 amplifiers were used in conjunction with the HK Audio DSM2060 controller. dB Technologies’ DVX-D12s were used for near field and side fill, while a combination of four DVX-DM12s and four DVX-DM28s were used for stage monitoring.

» CMI: (03) 9315 2244 or www.cmi.com.au

Ecler’s Perfect Spin

Ecler is busting onto the Australian DJ technology scene with a bunch of extremely well regarded mixers. Ecler’s EVO 5 is the perfect tool for today’s DJs and producers thanks to its combination of a state-of-the-art internal 12-channel Firewire soundcard, the hi-def (24-bit/96kHz) digital sound quality, flexible MIDI control and a powerful built-in editable effects processor. The more down-to-earth NUO series (2-, 3- and 4-channel versions) packs features such as the precise and ergonomic full-cut EQ, FX Send control per channel in pre- or post-fader mode and curve adjustments for the faders.

» Production Audio: (03) 9264 8000 or www.productionaudio.com.au

Crestron Media Centre

Crestron’s new TPMC-4SM is a compact, low profile and affordable touchpanel that provides direct LAN connectivity for powerful room scheduling and control, with versatile mounting options. It’s an ideal way of controlling everything that opens and shuts in your venue or hotel, without spending the earth.

» Crestron: (02) 9737 8203 or www.crestron.com.au

EV Innovation

The EVF series from Electro-Voice is part of the EV-Innovation family and consist of two-way, front-loaded, full-range systems with 12-inch or 15-inch woofers, a wide range of coverage patterns and low-frequency systems. The series is intended to provide versatility with compact, lightweight, and simple to use packages for fixed installations. The boxes have a whopping 22 threaded suspension points, making any horizontal or vertical array possible. The black and white models are available in three versions: EVCoat for interior use, PI for indirect weather exposure, and a fibreglass (FG) finish, for direct exposure.

» Bosch Communication Systems: (02) 9683 4752 or [email protected]

Evolution No 3

Sennheiser has the new G3 series of Evolution wireless microphones. The 300 series in particular is well suited to install applications with rugged metal housings, fast set up with infrared synchronisation between transmitters and receivers as well as the ability to remotely control the receivers on a computer over Ethernet using the Wireless Systems Manager software. The series has a new extended frequency response range from 25Hz – 18kHz and comes equipped with Evolution 800 series microphone heads. Prices start from $1999.

» Syntec International: 1800 648 628 or www.syntec.com.au

» kit

TAG0119_MA_venue.indd 1 13/6/08 7:54:25 AM

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My-a TequilaAccording to American movie folklore, tequila is a frat boy drink, in much the same way that bourbon is for rednecks. It’s funny how trashy labels stick. Unfortunately in Australia, a low supply of quality tequila has left the Mexican spirit with a tainted image of white trash in a sombrero licking salt, sucking on a lemon, and doing shots while singing that song, Da-da-da-da-da-da-da-daaa… But according to Brian Townsend and Clinton Hor of Maya Tequila Bar there’s more to tequila than merely lining up shots. Just like whisky or any other spirit group (even bourbon) there are premium tequilas too.

There’s been a seachange in the last few years with many of the good cocktail bars in Sydney and Melbourne stocking a few quality tequilas in their back bar. A dedicated tequila bar, however, is an entirely different proposition, and some people don’t want to have a bar of it, until they meet Clinton. “Brian runs the floor, I run the bar, and between the two of us we do a lot of talking. I mean, we’ve got to, we’re breaking down new barriers. Bartenders can really shape the way people drink. A lot of people still come through here and say, “I can’t have any tequila, just give me whatever else you’ve got.” But we break them down a little bit, get them talking, and talk them through the tequilas. And by the time they leave here they’ve at least had one or two. We’ve got so many tequilas, there’s always going to be one out there for everyone.”

Brian used to work for Tom Estes, the Tequila Ambassador for Europe, at his Mexican restaurant and tequila bar, Café Pacifico in London. He then moved to Australia to help Estes and partner Phil Bayley, the Tequila Ambassador for Australia, open a Café Pacifico in Sydney. Clinton has a list of bar credits to his name and had moved to Melbourne to wmanage drinks at Kam Fook’s proposed mega restaurant, Duck Duck Goose. When it was placed on indefinite hiatus, Clinton helped open Maya. The pair enlisted friends and family to help turn a French restaurant into a hacienda-style Mexican tequila bar. It’s full of homely Mexican touches: plenty of wood, exposed brick covered in half smashed plaster, a collection of Spanish-inspired prints, and a wall mural of a ‘Tequila Sunrise’.

Brian’s considerable tequila experience and ambassador connections means Maya is fully stocked with rare Blancos, Reposados, and Anejos, personally brought in by Phil Bayley, and served in sipping glasses. “There’s one thing we can do that no-one else can do and that’s compare different types of tequila. Because we’ve got so many different Blancos, for instance, we can compare three against each other, so you can find your favourite.” A proposition venue gladly took Clinton up on. There are also cocktails and tequila liqueurs for those needing a subtler introduction, as well as some classy fajitas and quesadillas. It’s all part of the process required to shake the fraternity image associated with tequila without losing the fun.

» Maya Tequila Bar: 74 Toorak Rd, South Melbourne (03) 9866 8836 or www.mayabar.com.au

» flit

The World’s Purest White

Pure White. One of nine new colours.

Imagine the Difference

For our latest brochure phone 1300 119 119

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v_12_white_des_sps.indd 1 30/07/09 5:33 PM

After all these years the name Sebel still has the ring of louche abandonment about it. Of course, I’m referring to the now defunct Sebel Townhouse in Elizabeth Bay, the notorious rookery for the ‘mad, bad and dangerous to know’. Its dark, pokey bar was famous for chance meetings. In one corner you might have Benny Hill sipping a sherbet with Paul Simon, in another, a chain smoking Keith Richards might be handing the beer nuts to Brett Whiteley, while you’re just as likely to see Elton John ordering a round of tequila shots for Mother Theresa… or so the legend might go, possibly.

The Sebel Surry Hills Sydney, formerly known as The Citigate Sebel, has just completed a $20m refurbishment to become Sydney’s latest 4.5 star hotel. And, it’s savvy enough to realise it could do with some of that Townhouse zest and vigour, which is no doubt why its Townhouse Bar is festooned with autographed black and white images of the great, the good and the seedy taken from the old hotel.

It’s a significant and good-looking refurb masterminded by Michael Munro from Hosking Munro architects and was recently named the ‘Redeveloped Hotel of the Year’ at the 2009 AHA NSW Awards.

Chief among the new ‘you what?’ selling points is an in-ground 10m-long, 41,000-litre aquarium in the lobby. Guests can wander over the fish tank — gingerly at first, as the fear of ‘falling in’ is only human — and coo over the 20 Japanese Koi fish including the hotel’s mascot Albie.

The General Manager of the Sebel Surry Hills Michael Sheridan said the in-ground aquarium has become a unique point of interest.

“The idea for the in-ground aquarium came from hotel owner, Dr Jerry Schwartz who, due to his passion for all things acquatic, uses fish tanks in his properties as his special signature. Specialists were called in to draw up the plans of the aquarium and ultimately install it,” added Michael Sheridan.

The refurbishment included an overhaul of the 270 guest rooms, all of which now include king ‘Cloud’ beds. The rooms feature big tellies, modern timber furniture, new custom-designed sofas and spacious bathrooms.

The 10 conference rooms have also been revitalised. Catering for groups from 10 to 220 delegates, these rooms offer natural lighting, double-glazed windows, spacious breakout areas and state-of-the-art audiovisual facilities with dedicated in-house AV specialists.

The 20m indoor swimming pool, heated spa and sauna have also been smartened up. The pool area features several large skylights which effectively brighten the area with natural lighting.

» The Sebel Surry Hills Sydney: 28 Albion St, Surry Hills, NSW (02) 9289 0000 or www.sebelsurryhills.com.au

Sebel Fishes for Compliments

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» flit

pomp offer a furniture consultancy service to architects, interior designers, café owners, restaurateurs and hoteliers

phone: 03 9696 9669 email: [email protected]

Temperance Hotel, South Yarra — Victoria Potography: Rhiannon Slatter

services include sourcing & selection • furniture planning & layout • custom-design & manufacture • procurement • project & budget management

pomp_ven32.indd 1 28/8/09 5:37:22 PM

St Jude was the patron saint of lost causes. Ironically, St Jude’s wine cellar, the venue, used to be a dodgy parma and pot joint called Bungalow 8, in desperate need of saving. The owners, James Langley and Laki Papadopoulos, have a history in Fitzroy, where St Jude’s resides; Langley started the Ilk bar, and Papadopoulus owned Vegie Bar, then both put their heads together to drum up the Panama Dining Room before opening St Jude’s. However, unlike the Panama Dining Room where they did everything themselves, this time the pair enlisted landscape artist Cassandra Chilton and architect Byron George to help out with the design. Byron recently won an Interior Design Award for Emerging Interior Design Practise, his work at St Jude’s contributing to the win.

Bungalow 8 had apparently been more of a den — all dark and heavy, exposed brick, a brown ceiling, and a central bar. St Jude’s, however, has a calming effect. Natural and raw materials feature throughout; and not just timber and glass, but raw concrete sheeting, and wire mesh reinvigorated as chairs, pared down with creeping vine screens and natural light.

“The brief was to make the space feel intimate, calm, and at the same time light.” Explained Byron. “It was a very organic process where the clients made decisions and we made decisions. We also wanted the space to reflect the style of food, which is very rustic, high quality, served on small earthenware dishes and intended to be shared. The produce is very organic and fresh, quite raw, and we wanted to make the interior reflect that. There’s raw steel, and creepers up the middle, which are meant to add a touch of nature as well as providing a screen. The landscaping is really different for me and it makes the air clean.”

Fellow designer and Byron’s sometime work compatriot, Ryan Russell, came along for lunch and made this observation: “It’s a fairly casual atmosphere in here, I think the tactile nature of the space — the tiles, the vines — makes people feel comfortable dining here. It’s not meant to be a “look at me” type of space. It’s meant to be a space where you can sit for hours.”

Byron George: “There’s also a bit of history in it as well. The floor was stripped back and sealed. You can see a bit of spray paint in areas, where the old bar was.... It’s not precious, just something you can live in and be comfortable in. It’s not a very expensive fitout either. It ended up being the low end of the scale: the kitchen was pre-existing and we used raw cement sheet; the local hardwood timber tables were made by someone around the corner; and these stools were all designed and made by David Murray, who actually built the space as well, just to tie in with the theme. And the intention with the lighting was to direct it only at the tables so nothing else was lit up. At night-time, only the food and the products are spot-lit.”

venue: In case someone really ugly walks in.

Ryan Russell: And ruins the design.

Byron George: Exactly!

» St Jude’s Cellars: 389 – 391 Brunswick St Fitzroy, VIC (03) 9419 7411 or www.stjudescellars.com.au» Byron George Architect: 0412 122 321 or [email protected]

St Jude’s Revives Lost Cause

p: 1300 727 637 | f: 02 9796 7800 | [email protected] | www.bseatedglobal.com.au

BSeated_Venue_225x68-5mm_left.indd 1 2/09/09 11:37 AM

» flit

We Make Seating Simple

BSeated_Venue_225x68-5mm_right.indd 1 2/09/09 11:37 AM

Meat ’n’ GreetVic’s Premium Quality Meat Supplies is well known among the restaurant elite, supplying products to more than 80 percent of Sydney and Melbourne’s hatted restaurants, including Aria, Rockpool, Vue de Monde, Mo Vida, and Flower Drum. Victor Puharich, the Vic behind Vic’s, comes from a long line of Croatian butchers. His grandfather was a butcher, his father was a butcher, even his brothers were butchers, and now his son Anthony works with him in the business. In 1999, Vic’s Premium Quality Meat moved to Mascot, where state-of-the-art coolrooms, cutting floors and packing rooms, as well as a dry-age beef room, keep the butcher’s busy supplying Kurobuta pork, 15 cuts of Wagyu beef and the like to this day. Since then, Vic’s has made its way to Shanghai and Singapore, providing Australian produce overseas. And Vic thought it would be nice if Australians were able to get a taste of the old tradition of butchering. Victor Churchill, Vic’s flagship retail outlet, will be the first butcher shop of its kind to not only offer the finest red meat, but also a full range of traiteur (ready to eat), charcuterie (products made from ‘the pig’) and roasted meats from the rotisserie. There’ll even be sales assistants on hand to walk customers through the meat buying experience.

Victor Churchill represents another first, it’s the first time Michael McCann and Dreamtime Australia Design has lent their expertise to a retail outlet. McCann has successfully blended a traditional European butcher shop with some, ahem, cutting-edge design elements that could redefine the category, including the delectable sight of slowly circulating carcasses on a cog and chain rack. Other features include an uncovered old sandstone wall as a backdrop for the butchers at work, historic black and white photos of Vic’s past and of the former Churchill’s butchery site — which had been there since 1876 — lining two other walls, and a floor-to-ceiling glass walled cool room that houses ageing carcasses backed by a Himalayan salt brick wall to infuse the meat with flavour and sterilise the air. Every bit of the animal gets used at Victor Churchill, with hair-on leather clad walls covered by protective glass lining the hot and cold kitchens. The ceiling and counter fronts feature hand-carved copper fretwork by Di Emme Creative Solutions, and an Italian Calacatta marble slab floor that has been sliced into mosaic tiles and relaid in book-matched slab form by Gitani Stone in an Australian first. Sitting pride of place is a museum quality antique Berkel floor-standing slicer that was restored in Europe for the new store.

» Victor Churchill: 132 Queen St, Woollahra, NSW (02) 9328 0402 or www.victorchurchill.com.au» Dreamtime Australia Design: (02) 9368 0800 or www.dreamtimeaustraliadesign.com» Di Emme Creative Solutions: (02) 9550 0811 or www.diemme.com.au» Gitani Stone: (02) 9838 8880 or www.gitanistone.com.au

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The Jbn Sound Ceiling speaker systemProviding sound solutions in venues around the world

~ Indoor and Outdoor ~

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NOISE COMPLAINTS?

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The Jbn Sound Ceiling speaker systemProviding sound solutions in venues around the world

~ Indoor and Outdoor ~

The Intelligent Sound Systemwww.jbn.com.au / 0409 931 704 / [email protected]

NOISE COMPLAINTS?

problem solved

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Temperance Hotel

Melbourne’s Chapel Street bars and nightclubs have traditionally

appealed to a younger crowd. But Red Rock Leisure has decided on

a more temperate approach.

Text: Sophie Gebhardt

Photos: Rhiannon Slatter

» visit

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I have always wanted to start an article with “My companion and I…” so, here it is. My companion and I [how very Miss Marple of you Sophie — Ed.] decided to

eat at the Temperance Hotel before I interviewed Peter Little, the General Manager, and Drew Carling from Maddison Architects. We sat outside on high benches at wooden tables watching the parade of decorative bird life indigenous to Chapel Street. The food was good, and not expensive. The NZ Nobilo Sav Blanc was perfect for a fitfully sunny, late winter lunch. I was thinking, thank goodness you can eat here, because nothing else in the area was even vaguely appealing. There’s either the high-end and much vaunted café/restaurants, like Caffe Sienna, or there’s fairly standard takeaway fare. After all, Chapel Street is mainly known for its place in the pantheon of Melbourne’s independent fashion scene, or, after dark, for its particular brand of nightclub. Which is where The Temperance steps in. I talked to Peter Little, the hotel’s General Manager, about the heritage-listed pub’s transformation and the role it plays in a much-needed redefinition of Chapel Street.

venue: It’s a beautiful façade — what’s the hotel’s history?

Peter Little: The Hotel has a long history: in 1890 it was The Morning Star, hence the heritage-listed façade. Two generations ago it was the New Orleans Tavern, very much a traditional pub style, with pool tables etc. Then it transformed to the infamous Frost Bites, which was an iconic venue in Chapel Street. So then it was purchased by Red Rock Leisure — who also own PJ O’Brien’s and Bear Brass — and became The Temperance Hotel.

Red Rock is always searching for venues in good locations, which primarily is what this is, a fantastic location. Chapel Street is synonymous with Melbourne culture and local designers — the fashion and nightclub culture.

venue: So where does The Temperance fit into Chapel Street culture?

PL: The owners wanted to retain all the elements of a good Melbourne pub, but with a classy, stylish edge. It’s clear from the menu; there’s traditional pub food, but it’s not displayed in the pub format. We’re not going for ‘pub fine dining’, but we do want to be at a level above the usual ‘pie and parma’ fare.

South Yarra is very much the fashion centre of Melbourne, though if you have a look at the hospitality offerings down this end there are quite a few small, iconic restaurants, but as far as bars go there’s been nothing that lives up to that standard of class and style. You walk in here and it suits the stylish reputation of the area.

In the last few years Windsor has really taken off, with lots of small bars and coffee shops that have become trendy places to go. But hospitality down the South Yarra end has suffered because of that.

venue: But The Temperance isn’t exactly bringing the average small Melbourne café or bar to the South Yarra end is it?

PL: What I like about this venue is, while it’s a big venue — it’s licensed for 600 people — there are still lots of intimate little spaces, so you never feel like you’re in a massive cold foyer. But it’s still big enough to draw a great crowd and the healthy atmosphere that a crowd brings.

Temper Temper: Reclaimed Argentinean tiles on the floor, mirror tiles on the bar front, Calacutta marble on the bar, custom furniture from Pomp, neat-o graphics from 3 Deep Design and architecture by Maddison.

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Less is Sometimes Just Not Enough…The transition from Street to Temperance is marked — the unremitting ‘ker-ching’ of retail commerce makes way for something far more warm and inviting. Yet, what at first might seem like ‘too much’ resolves into a clever balance between mirrorball, over-the-top-ness and contemporary chi-chi. It’s a fine line to tread, and The Temperance Hotel, designed by Drew Carling (Project Manager, and the team from Maddison Architects) does it well. The hotel interior is a collection of textures, spaces and subtle references to the surrounding area, with each detail thought through for a particular impact in a way that surprisingly all ‘works’ together. Mirror tiles on the bar front, set in recycled timber (from an old army barracks in Queensland) and the optical illusion of reclaimed Argentinean tiles on the floor: who would have thought?

Maddison all but gutted the first floor of the old Frost Bites, leaving the kitchen where it was, and re-jigged the second floor, including moving the staircase. They have created a series of comfortable and discrete spaces, each with its own feel, but not disconnected from the Hotel as a whole. Drew Carling says that this was at the heart of the design: “We were very aware of creating that inner cosiness, but then offering glimpses through — as eye contact throughout is very important. So it’s keeping that eye contact without over-exposing it — it’s the whole balancing thing.”

Working the RoomI asked Peter Little, whether, from his hands-on experience, the space works well.

PL: Yes it does. As with any bar you get your main focal point, which is the bar. But having the outdoor courtyard/smoking area at the back actually does draw people back and forth and they flow well throughout the venue. My main concern was we’d get a log jam right in the middle, under the stairs, but the flow through there is actually a lot better than I’d anticipated.

We also have that secondary option to make the most out of the function business, not only in the function room upstairs, but also by utilising the downstairs area because we can break it up and get rid of the tables if necessary. If you’re not diversifying like that, and making your venue adaptable, then you are closing your options for different revenue streams. I really love the design of the place in terms of that; I don’t know if that was the intention, but it works really well.

Growing-Up is Hard to dovenue: Have you experienced a full house?

PL: We’ve never quite made it to 600, I think 520 was about the closest we’ve come. We usually cut it off at around that. It’s nice to have that opportunity to have 600, if you ever have a Grand Prix function, or one of those big major events, but it’s never pleasant to be in a venue where you’re packed in like a sardine. Our target market is quite openly over-25 year-olds, and it really is the 18–22 year-olds who love being in a sweaty mass and writhing around on the dancefloor. The slightly more mature market appreciates being able to get to the bar, and they’re spending a bit more on drinks, so we have to make sure we don’t sacrifice the expectations of our target market purely for numbers in the door and number of drinks across the bar. If you give in to that, you’ll kill your longevity, because all you’ll do is draw a younger and younger crowd, and, if anything, we’re trying to break the stigma of the old Frost Bites…we’re not just another iteration of the old idea.

Devil in the DetailThe Temperance Hotel is the sort of place where, on each visit, you’ll notice new details, such as the magical black & white graphics (created by 3 Deep Design) replayed throughout the venue, including the drink coasters. If you collect all six, they form an image that will, it is hoped, become synonymous with The Temperance. And of course there’s the name, incongruous for a bar but not chosen for quirk value alone. Drew Carling notes that although the immediate association is with the Temperance Movement (the ‘wowsers’, as they became not-so-fondly known in Australia), “so there’s that play on all of that… but for us there was another meaning, which is about tempering the environment, tempering Chapel Street a bit…” And the fact is, when you get to a certain age, moderation in the finer things in life is highly recommended. A quote from suffragette, Frances E Willard, from the Hotel’s website, sums it up: “Temperance is moderation in the things that are good and total abstinence from the things that are foul.” «

» The Temperance Hotel: 426 Chapel St South Yarra VIC (03) 9827 7401 or www.temperancehotel.com.au» Maddison Architects: (03) 9696 3636 or www.maddisonarchitects.com.au» 3 Deep Design: (03) 9687 4899 or www.3deep.com.au» Nightlife: 1800 679 748 or www.nightlife.com.au

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Text: Mark Davie

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Born and raised in London, international DJ turned venue strategist Clive Morley would regularly make the trip around the globe to

Australia for a sunny holiday. One ‘summer’ day, London’s trademark gloomy skies convinced Morley he should turn his holiday destination into something more permanent. So, recently he moved to Australia with a view to using his marketing company, Deconstructed, and considerable dance music experience to help a few venues get a leg up on the competition. venue delves deep into his past and finds out why venues are asking more of Morley.

Getting The Boot, Eeek!The story begins with Morley sitting pretty as a resident DJ at renowned underground club Fabric in London. At the time, he was also running his own Platform 12 night on the side. It was picking up lots of credible dance music press and turning into a successful underground event in its own right. For a DJ with not a musical bone in his body he’d reached the pinnacle of where his talents could take him. This level of notoriety and success was all Morley could have expected and all he’d ever wanted. But when Fabric wanted to expand, they wanted Morley to expand with them, which took more than a little convincing.

Clive Morley: One of the founders of Fabric wanted to start a chain of boutique pubs, and the head of promotions at Fabric, the guy that used to book me, wanted me to be the Marketing Manager for their first club. It was called The Old Queen’s Head, a horrendous, pokey, old man’s pub on a North London back street that had absolutely no chance. They didn’t really have a vision, and I declined. So he bribed me [some might call it blackmail! — Ed.]. He said, “I’m going to do you a favour

Clive, you don’t really have much of a career, but I think you’d be really good at this. So if you don’t take this on, then I’m never going to book you at Fabric again.” I was mortified; it was my absolute dream to be a Fabric resident. But he obviously had the foresight. Fast forward a year and I loved my hands-on role in running the venue; seeing how people would react to different areas, what people would like about the toilets, and dead areas that we could look at and try and improve.

I eventually became the Columbo Group

Marketing Manager to a group of boutique pubs that had quite a high profile with big-name DJs. Which was quite a good ‘in’ for me in the industry. In my final years before I came out to Australia I left the Columbo Group, and became the in-house Marketing Manager for The White House, a proper 700-capacity club, at the start of their refurbishment and redevelopment strategy.

The Morley DifferenceMorley has already been hard at work on a few venues around Australia, including the Shelbourne Hotel in Sydney, so venue cut to the chase and asked him exactly what he has to offer, and why venues need someone like him.

CM: Most people have a fair idea of what they want to achieve but not necessarily the tools or the knowledge to make that happen. We named our company Deconstructed because we tend to work backwards, identifying what venues want to achieve with their target market and demographic and going from there.

The pubs that the Columbo Group took over were basically holes, doing 1000 pounds a week in revenue, which is why we managed to take them off the brewery. After our improvements it’d go from 1000 pounds a week to 30,000 pounds a week, for a venue that’s got a capacity of 200. The White House achieved around a 25 percent increase year on year. And with the Shelbourne, there are areas that have improved and areas that haven’t; certainly the areas that we’ve been mostly working on are corporate trade and event bookings, which are 25 percent up on last year.

venue: How does a pub dig itself into such a financial hole?

CM: A lot of the time a venue has operated a certain way for a number of years, and employees there have done the same job year in, year out and seem a bit flat. And people don’t react quickly enough to industry trends. When the Shelbourne opened seven or eight years ago it was a phenomenal business in a really great position. Though with the resurgence of the Darling Harbour area and Ivy opening just down the road, there’s greater competition that the Shelbourne hasn’t reacted to. Being objective about a business, you can look into things that need a bit of freshening up; staff, music program… I’ve been able to put my stamp on venues in the past because I come from a strong dance music background. I’ve usually had some fairly good contacts and am able to pull in favours from bigger agents and brands because that history is there.

venue: So what’s the process; how does Deconstructed work?

CM: It’s very different for every venue, and the Shelbourne is a venue that not only requires marketing, but new systems and staff training,

musical programming, brand development, the whole thing.

venue: It sounds like you’re altering a fair chunk of a venue’s operational side, how does the owner and/or operator fit into the picture?

CM: It’s a partnership with a certain amount of crossover. At the Shelbourne the owners are a bit hands off, but the General Manager is quite hands on. So the owners and I have weekly meetings to devise some strategies and then hand them down to the GM to implement.

venue: Do you help with the implementation of those strategies?

CM: Absolutely, it’s not ideal to be honest, I don’t really want to get involved too much with the daily grind; you become 100 percent reactive then. But in some cases it’s necessary, especially if there’s a sufficient body of work to get through.

Bring The Net Work To YouWhen Morley came to Australia he brought with him an impressive list of dance music contacts, but wasn’t well connected in the corporate events world. So he got to work building his own relationships at network event functions, making a point of meeting the right people. Morley stands by the saying ‘you have to be in it to win it’. He even went so far as to host his own high-profile industry networking events at the Shelbourne to bring contacts to him.

venue: Do venues need to be multi-faceted nowadays to attract not only people, but entertainment?

CM: I think the days of the superclub are gone. Like anything, tastes evolve and people don’t want to go out and dance all night in a warehouse-style venue. I think people appreciate different spaces and certainly social trends indicate bars, and smaller venues are on the rise, and bigger clubs less so. Also with multi-faceted venues there are multiple sources of revenue, so if maybe one area is not performing perhaps another is improving. If it was just a nightclub and that wasn’t performing, then you’ve got an unsuccessful business. It also means you’ve got to make more connections in different areas, and do more research. But a multi-faceted venue is a safer option and gives you greater scope for creativity. «

“If you have an ultra-cheesy playlist, you tend to attract a trashy crowd like hen’s nights and bogans”

“a multi-faceted venue is a safer option and gives you greater scope for creativity”

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CLIVE in ACTION

The White House, London — Getting In Early

Clive Morley: The White House would only fill up fairly late — people

used to turn up at midnight or one in the morning. To address this we

introduced a basic pan-Asian food concept, things like dim sum and spring

rolls that could be put in a steaming basket without needing a qualified head

chef. The idea was to encourage people to come down early, book some

tables, have some food, and order cocktails at eight or nine o’clock, rather than

going to a restaurant for food and coming in later on. Because people came

down earlier, it looked busier earlier and drove trade earlier. And when there was

demand for bookings and tables we’d make the requirement even earlier, we’d

tell them if they wanted a table they needed to be in by eight otherwise it wasn’t

going to happen. It meant we’d have 100–150 people in the building that wouldn’t

normally be there. It significantly impacts your revenue, especially when you multiply

that by 104 days a year.

Secondly, prior to me starting, they had an inhouse marketing manager that

essentially booked in other club promoters and other brands on Fridays and

Saturdays, and it was really up to that outsourced promoter to drive the trade

— very hit and miss. The idea was to do the nights inhouse and create an event

budget, and through our dance music connections book in some big-name

DJs. We weren’t losing door revenue and had a consistency that was missing

before. Once it was consistent, more people started coming down, because

people generally stay away from venues when they’re not sure if it will be

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CLIVE in ACTIONShelbourne

Hotel, Sydney — Playing With The Playlist

Clive Morley: I remember having one of my first meetings down here

with a press contact of mine and over the system came Luther Vandross,

followed by Take That, followed by Shania Twain. I was so embarrassed. I think

the Shelbourne is always going to be a relatively commercial venue in regards

to music, but I think there are other ways to go about it. They’ve got a jukebox

with every single track imaginable, from country through to pop and dance, and it

just so happens that the planets aligned to create the worst playlist possible on that

particular occasion. We got someone in that was music savvy and created lots of

different kinds of playlists for different times or occasions. If you have an ultra-cheesy

playlist, you tend to attract a trashy crowd like hen’s nights and bogans. It’s really

helped to change the demographic of the venue, attracting a lot more corporates

during the week, which is a massive improvement.

The Shelbourne’s been around for eight years, and the General Manager’s been here

for two. The owner used to have a number of venues, but over the years he’s sold

them off. Now the Shelbourne is his only hotel and even then he’s been tempted to

sell it off and get another business entirely. The staff here were in bit of a rut — the

GM and owner would be the first to admit it — and that obviously had an impact

on everything from the music through to the menus. Staffing a bar is a transient

business, so it requires more effort to keep on top of things — training, standards

and the like. But it’s amazing how some of the smallest changes can make such

a big difference to customer perceptions. A trained, fresh pair of eyes like mine

can quickly notice areas that need improvement — I’ll address any major

issues immediately while also maximising the venue’s strengths. Some of it

is just coming in and injecting a new sense of optimism and enthusiasm.

And because I’m on site, the owner said I’m not only making positive

changes to the venue, but developing the staff as well. Everyone’s

motivated again, and seeing the new direction has renewed

everyone’s enthusiasm for the hotel.

LORDS OF HOSPITALITY

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Peter Burnett is the Australian Hotels Association Vice President, and was not long ago the National President. Holding titles like these means you’re no hospitality schmuck, and your venue needs to cut some mustard. Like most venues, Burnett’s Lord of the

Isles Tavern has been a work in progress since his family took over the freehold in 1980. Over time the city of Geelong has grown, and the needs of the hotel have grown with it. Unfortunately, for Burnett’s neighbours, the Lord of the Isles required some real estate expansion that placed their homes on the chopping block. “As the years have gone on, I’ve purchased six houses on this side of the street, and four on the other side of the road to pave the way for a 50-car parking area,” explained Burnett. Then when one of his few remaining neighbours packed up for the nursing home, Burnett pounced. He might have paid an arm and a leg for their house, but he finally had the last remaining piece of the puzzle. “The others were all band-aid renovations. I’d buy another house to extend a wall a bit further. This is the fourth and fifth renovation we’ve done, and it will be the last I can imagine.”

Burnett’s ‘do it once, do it right’ resolve is in part emphasised by the hefty $3.5m spend. “We didn’t muck around,” enthused Burnett, confident that the Lord of the Isles finally matches his expectations, and befits his AHA title. Blackmilk Interior Design’s Conrad Manolidis was responsible for the design, and Burnett lauds his work as a quantum leap for the hotel that’s always trying to stay a step ahead. “Before this renovation we put in a waterfall, the first one of its type in a Geelong hotel — people just hadn’t seen that sort of thing in Geelong. We’ve always been trying to keep one step ahead of the pack and I believe that Conrad’s design is as good as anything you’ll see in Melbourne, if not better.”

A Sea Change at The Islesvenue: As Vice President of the AHA, you must get a good overview of changes in the industry. How has the Lord of the Isles moved with those trends?

Peter Burnett: The hotel was built in the late nineteenth century. It was a typical Geelong hotel on a corner street: hotel, bottle shop and a small car park. Hotels have changed over the years. I’ve been to hotels that are just discos or nightclubs plus a bit of food and a six o’clock closing. The world’s evolved and we’re now seeing enormous trends in food, gaming in hotels, and entertainment in different forms.

Lord of the Isles is a good family hotel, but we’ve gone one step further with the new renovations. All the lighting can be dimmed to set different moods in the day and night. We’re also very green; we’ve got flushless toilets, and all the lighting areas that aren’t in constant use are on heat sensors so we’re not burning lights all day. We’ve got private boardrooms with full conference facilities, a private function room, two magnificent outdoor areas, and a walk-in wine vault with over 300 bottles of Grange Hermitage on display, including the biggest bottle of Grange Hermitage in the world [a whopping 12 litres!]. There’s only one of its type. Before, these things were hidden away, but now they’re on display.

Conrad, and Blackmilk, did a fantastic job of developing the place. I gave him the concept that Geelong is moving ahead now. More and more people are moving to the Geelong area — it’s the largest provincial city in Victoria — and we’ve got the Geelong football club across the road, we just needed to go that extra step.

venue: And has the renovation paid off?

PB: We’ve won numerous awards; we’ve been Best Bistro three times in Victoria, and twice nationally, as well as the 3AW ‘Hotel of the Month’. We’d be one of, if not the dearest bistros in Geelong. But the proof is in the pudding. Our bar sales have more than doubled, our food sales are up 80 percent, and considering we were already doing well with food sales, that’s an enormous return for us. The economy is doing it tough, but it’s certainly not affecting us at the moment, we’re just flying.

We created the venue in such a way that you can enjoy the space, have a beautiful steak and then have a flutter if you choose. We have a very successful gaming room that’s nowhere near the bistro, so if you didn’t know it was there, you wouldn’t know it was part of the hotel. We did that on purpose, because we have two sorts of clientele.

The National Vice President of the AHA has a venue befitting his station — Lord of the Isles.

Text: Mark Davie

{49}

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venue: And who are these two types of clientele?

PB: We attract a lot of business people. In tough times like this people drop off the lunch trade. But we don’t have restaurant prices and we’re not in the lower end, we’re in the middle at around $30-35 for a main course, which is not over the top. And because we’re still a bistro — we take your food order, serve your food order — but you go to the bar to get your alcohol unless you’re at the private bar. So it’s still got that hotel bistro name and feel about it.

We’re also a very well established, very well-known hotel, which helps. All the football people come here. Ted Whitten ate and drank here for 22 years, and I’m a life member of the Geelong Football Club. It’s all about building relationships with people. But it doesn’t matter how good your relationship with people is, if you don’t keep up with giving the public something more, especially in tough times, they’ll try something else.

venue: Does that change go deeper than the renovation?

PB: We do tapas for all entrees now, which is something we trialled with the new menu and it’s working very well. That way everyone gets a choice of different dishes before they have their mains. Then they have a main and they’re well satisfied. It’s all beautifully cooked — there’s no pre-heating or any of that rubbish. The other thing is, I’ve got to be able to eat in the place. Because I’m Vice President of the AHA I entertain a lot of people, so I’ve got to be proud of what I do, otherwise I couldn’t bring them to my own club.

I’ve always abided by three old adages — things I were taught many years ago: A lady might come to your hotel because you have the best food, the best of everything, but if she puts her foot in a puddle when she gets out of the car and wrecks her dress, it doesn’t matter how good you are, you’re stuffed. Number two: if a patron goes to the toilets and they’re filthy, that means the kitchens are filthy — so our toilets are always spotless. Number three — you don’t have to go to Macca’s on the way home, because we’ve fed you. «

» Lord of the Isles Tavern: 3 West Fyans St, Newtown VIC (03) 5224 2522 or www.lordislestavern.com

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Walking The IslesConrad Manolidis from Blackmilk was charged with the responsibility

for renovating the entire Lord of the Isles Tavern after it had gone

under the knife four or five times previously.

venue: Did you come across any problems or issues related to the

other renovations?

Conrad Manolidis: Initially it had a heavy gaming feel because the

front section is a gaming area. When I first walked in and had a look,

it looked like a food court. There was memorabilia, a ceiling that

was bright blue with neon blue LED lighting around the perimeter,

fairy lights, the whole thing was a bit tacky.

venue: Was there a rethink of the internal spaces?

CM: There was a public bar area that we converted into a private

dining room and a large glass wine cellar that opens up to form

one room, if for instance they have a wine tasting that turns into a

private dinner.

venue: This design seems a bit more toned down from your other

work (such as Alumbra [Issue 11] or the Onyx Bar] was that in keeping

with the area?

CM: I don’t have a particular style. Everything is site-specific and

to a brief. They wanted something that was going to be timeless

— clean lines and a design that would have longevity. A neutral

palette was the only way forward. In contrast to the neutral colour

pallette, we’ve also introduced layers of texture. There are laser cut

metal screens, large carved sandstone tiles and strongly patterned

wallpapers, which give a beautiful sense of balance to the space.

We’ve also wrapped the feature pendant shades in silk ribbon to

add texture to the warm lighting.

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Old biddies stuck to the slots like barnacles to a pier. It’s an image that progressive Clubs have been trying to distance themselves from for some time

now. But what happens if a Club becomes too successful at booting its business into the 21st century? It’s a quandary Castle Hill RSL has had to confront.

Back in 2001 Castle Hill RSL decided to give the community exactly they were demanding, namely a quality hospitality establishment that would rival city venues. First things first, Castle Hill contracted Paynter Dixon to oversee the project from start to finish. Paynter Dixon’s job was to assemble a group of design consultants to deliver a workable masterplan that could be constructed in various stages. Next, they relocated their tired gym next to the club, and turned it into a $15m sporting complex. The complex now has 10,500 members and 60,000 visitors a month. That success led to the next stage (covered in Venue Issue 11), which was to renovate the lounge area into an inviting and modern indoor/outdoor space, introduce quality food, a new bar, and outdoor courtyards fully equipped with heating and mist sprays, outdoor plasmas and cabanas. The lounge became an instant success — it was actually too successful. The club drew new members in droves, and most surprisingly attracted an entirely new demographic of 18 to 25 year olds who started overrunning the restaurant areas and turning them into bars. Most wouldn’t see overwhelming success as a problem, but a problem it was. Castle Hill Director David O’Neil takes up the story:

David O’Neil: After opening the lounge late 2005, due to the incredible success, we found we had a massive conflict of markets — the venue was basically too successful! We had to look at an additional lounge and new state-of-the-art bar facilities to cater for the mixed demographic and markets.

venue: Who was the new lounge designed for?

DO: Originally we were building for the 30-plus market. However, when we actually opened, we were inundated on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights with the 18 to 25 year old market, which we’d only had in small quantities prior to that. Bar sales and catering sales went from approximately $2m a year to $5m in trade, membership went from 15,500 to 33,000 in 12 months, and staff numbers jumped from 160 to 380 in four months.

venue: Did you promote the venue to that younger demographic, or can it be solely contributed to the renovation?

DO: We didn’t do one single thing that was actually targeted at that 18 to 25 age group. They saw the quality as unlike any other venue in the Hills. It was state-of-the-art design and décor, with indoor and outdoor spaces and well-appointed fixtures, not traditional club-style furniture — it’s more of a hotel feel. Patrons flooded in because of that. But our success created a problem, we had to figure out how we would address our other markets as well. So we set about a $12m building program, which was four years in the planning and finalisation, which we’ve just opened.

venue: And has the latest renovation seen an increase in younger memberships?

DO: We’re seeing the younger membership being spread throughout the club and our ability to service them has increased dramatically. And the older market, that had probably left us for a while, has now started to come back in droves. Bar sales have increased by 25 percent since the latest opening, and all aspects of the business have benefited from spreading the market out.

Returning to The RSLvenue: With all this reinvention, is the RSL moniker still meaningful?

DO: Our history is that we provide a meeting place; we’re a club. But the RSL has evolved from purely servicing the needs of the Returned & Services League. Traditional RSLs are surrounded by the perception that they’re old and boring. For RSLs to be successful and progress, they also have to service the needs of the total community, and we do exactly that. We haven’t forgotten our RSL traditions and ex-servicemen and women, but as time has gone on, that’s balanced with targeting the demographic representative of our area, and becoming a social entertainment venue for the community.

venue: Is an RSL of today any different to a hotel?

DO: Well, we’ve gone outside what’s known as a normal RSL club and offer everything that a modern hospitality venue would offer. We have more in common with hospitality venues in the city, purely because we spent a lot of money on artwork, and design and furnishings, and the ‘wow’ factor that goes into a space. We see the importance in actually setting a decent budget to finish the job well, because that’s what the customer notices. The customer doesn’t notice the superior plumbing or the amazing electrical installation. What a lot of clubs tend to do is skimp on the ‘wow’ factor that the customer actually sees, and that’s the one area that you can’t. You need beautiful artwork, and incredible fixtures and furnishings, that way every time you enter another space you see something of interest.

Building a Castle on a HillAfter all this work it’s extraordinary to think that the Club is still only 60–70 percent into its masterplan. Lindsay Verdon of Paynter Dixon is a man that respects the RSL as much as anyone, and has been part of the process every step of the way. Paynter Dixon are so thorough that they had one bloke who’s sole job was to take the finishes schedule and spend the time to assess all the similar options to ensure every item was robust enough to last the distance.

Lindsay Verdon: For a job like this, the reality is: there are a lot of finishes, and if we were to deliver a product or a finish that came up short of expectations for whatever reason, then it bites all of us. So one particular guy on our team, his job was to review all the lights and finishes, and make sure they looked good in four, five or six years down the line. It’s such an important process these days in making projects

Everyman’s CastleCastle Hill RSL a victim of its own success? Well, not quite. Just stick to the masterplan.

Text: Mark Davie

» visit

Rolfe Latimer, Altis Architects: “As a lounge area, these aren’t just bare walls. Every wall within this project has been treated with a really nice finish or a wall feature, or artwork. There’s quite a bit of fixed seating as well. The fire suits the cooler south side of the building and the more passive and sophisticated lounge than the other more family oriented side with kids running around. The other important part is it’s a double-sided fire place, so you can see the fire from the outside where everyone drives in, advertising the intimacy of the venue through the fire.”

Rolfe Latimer from Altis walks venue through some of the concepts behind the Castle Hill design.

“The furniture is quite eclectic, and there are some very quirky pieces. The two-seater lounges are quite ornate, but not what you would call a contemporary slick piece. The red in the lounge appears through the scheme, in the back of the bar, the pendant lights, the fabrics, and the chairs. It becomes a focal point.”

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we spent a lot of money on artwork, and design and

furnishings, and the ‘wow’ factor that goes into a space

Custom-weave CarpetBrintons: www.brintons.net

Haron Robson lighting design: White timber veneer wall lights match the cladding of the supports and illuminate the columns throughout. Wicker pendants with DSI dimmable compact fluorescent lamps hang at alternating heights to break up the ceiling near the fireplace. And the banquettes next to the fireplace are lit with MR11s recessed into the joinery above the seats.

Rolfe Latimer, Altis Architects: “The booths are a good example of the diversity of the sports area. You can get a group of blokes watching a footy match, but at night it could be a social group or even a party group of all girls that can sit there and watch the latest music videos.”

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successful. It’s not a case of taking the schedule and putting the product in there — you can’t wash your hands of things you have to take responsibility.

David O’Neil: We’ve approached everything from a longevity point of view, and built bars that are serviced with proper cool rooms, back of house areas, wash-up areas, all the things that could possibly be needed to service an area. We also used a lot of natural stone and timbers that won’t date. So when years go by and the time comes to refurbish, we won’t have to outlay a huge capital expenditure. We can refurb an entire restaurant with new furnishings and carpet for $100,000 instead of $2–3m.

LV: I think once you develop a masterplan for a facility like a club, you’re always aware the masterplan is going to be attacked in a number of stages over a number of years. You try and have the substantial components in the masterplan upfront and then let the other things flow on. If you get the planning right and put in the big-ticket items — such as the toilets and the kitchen, bars and all the things that literally run up into the hundreds of thousands of dollars — into the right places to start with, you can work around that. When you come back to do your touch ups you do what I call a refurbishment as opposed to a renovation. A masterplan isn’t etched in stone, there’s some flexibility about it. Young guys go out to a bar, and get bored of it within 12 months because there’s a new one down the road. So you’ve got to react to that. You just can’t sit there and say, “well, they’ll come back one day”.

You need beautiful artwork, and incredible fixtures and

furnishings, that way every time you enter another space you see

something of interest

Decorative Wicker PendantsYellow Goat Design Co.: www.yellowgoat.com.au

Pearl Finesse Booth Seat FabricMokum Textiles: www.mokumtextiles.com

Barfront ‘Caviar’ Glass Resin BeadsDi Emme: www.diemme.com.au

Rolfe Latimer, Altis Architects: “There are four different pendants. Depending on the pendant and how low they sit, they help define the different spaces and different uses.”

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All a Big GameWalk into a lot of RSLs and the first sound you’ll hear is the ticking over of poker machines and the club’s revenue stream. Castle Hill still places an importance on gaming, but what Lindsay found and those that have visited Las Vegas will know, is that centralised gaming is the ticket. Place the gaming in the middle of the venue and establish your pathways to circulate punters around the gaming to introduce them to the idea gently. The TAB has been converted into a multi-purpose user area, with strong sight lines into the betting, without encroaching on the rest of the space. By day, the TAB is all go, with the horses and the dogs in full flight, but by night, the screens turn to footy and MTV, the lights dim, and it turns into a bar.

LV: There’s certainly a younger generation of gamers, and it’s one of the things we needed to address. It was very important that we created a space that young people would feel comfortable in, and whilst they’re there, exposure to gaming is not withheld from them. You can see the gaming, there are some very nice lines to it. And you introduce it in a different form, rather than a traditional “here’s a big gaming room and everyone come in and enjoy it”.

DO: If you look to the past, clubs haven’t seen the importance of food, and had more reliance on gaming. We believe food drives our business. Gaming is an important part of what we do, however, we actually believe that we have to have a balance to what we do as a community entity. Our philosophy is that if we’re going to

Custom ‘Wings’ Suspended SculptureYellow Goat Design Co.: www.yellowgoat.com.au

‘Halo’ PendantKezu: www.kezu.com.au

Pendant with Fabric ShadeECC Lighting: www.ecc.com.au

Red Spiral LanternLighting Group: www.thelightinggroup.com.au

Rolfe Latimer, Altis Architects: “A lot of outdoor areas are just a pared back space for furniture with some paving. This reflects what we see outdoor spaces moving towards, as outdoor rooms. The quality of the finishes, lighting, AV and furniture is equal to inside — the same budget’s being used. We’ve broken that outdoor area into different spaces so groups of people can find their own space. It’s got different levels, including a cabana space that’s almost a room within itself.”

Rolfe Latimer, Altis Architects: “There’s a high level of fixed furniture. We see that as a really good way of breaking up the club areas that have lots of loose furniture. Otherwise over time, all the furniture would just get pushed around. The overall principle of hospitality is creating little niches where people can congregate, rather than big open spaces that most clubs are like.”

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do something, we have to do it right. We owe our members and our communities a serious food option.

Hills Turn To MountainsThere’s still more planned for the Castle Hill RSL, as this issue goes to press, the next stages are already underway, with the wraps just about to come off an old bar area that’s been turned into an upmarket vintage chic cocktail bar. Next to that is the Rib Factory, an upmarket family steak and rib restaurant. Upstairs, plans are already underway for an Asian restaurant, a pre-function area, before the development is capped off with a large state-of-the-art function and conference centre. At which stage, the masterplan will most likely roll on. «

» Castle Hill RSL: 77 Castle St, Castle Hill, NSW (02) 8858 4800 or www.castlehillrsl.com.au» Paynter Dixon: (02) 9797 5555 or www.paynterdixon.com.au» Altis Architects: (02) 9364 9000 or www.altisarchitecture.com» Haron Robson: (02) 9819 6611 or www.haronrobson.com.au» Dynalite: www.dynalite-online.com

Total Stone Wall CladdingAll Plastics: www.allplastics.com.au

Bromic Platinum HeatersBromic: www.platinumheaters.com

Feature RugBrintons: www.brintons.net

Bromic Platinum Series Heaters provide an efficient, easy to use and good looking alfresco heating solution. Multiple Platinum heaters are designed to be easily controlled and zoned, and can be linked to your C-Bus control system.Lindsay Verdon: The south-facing aspect of the outdoor terraces required us to ensure that we used the best possible outdoor heating solution currently available. We chose the Bromic Platinum Series heaters as they provide the required efficiency and they were also aesthetically pleasing in the space.Haron Robson lighting design: The long slim outdoor space has three feature Sensitile installations that have been lit with Dynalite controlled colour-change LEDs, hidden along the vertical right hand side of the panel and randomly refracted through the acrylic. When the LEDs are put on a chase and colour-change sequence, the panels lose their static appearance and begin to ripple and flow. Dry bars in the terrace are lit with dimmed warm-white strip LEDs recessed into the underside of the counters.

VISIT WWW.PLATINUMHEATERS.COM CALL 1300 276 642 EMAIL [email protected]

We love the modern, stylish look of the heaters.We needed a heating solution which complimented our new renovations and nothing came close to Platinum in terms of style and functionality. We are very happy.

‘‘ ‘‘

Castle Hill RSL, Sydney Australia

Allan DePaoliGroup Facilities Manager - Castle Hill RSL Club

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» visit

Glenquarie HotelThe Glenquarie Hotel is about 30 years old and had grown somewhat weary over the years.

The owners wanted to refresh the hotel for its customers and contracted Premier Building Group to develop a design and construct proposal. As is often the case, one thing led to another and

the project became a no-stone-left-unturned, full-scale renovation. The roughly square building remained intact, but Premier added a new outdoor gaming terrace, replaced the roof, put new balustrade on the existing terrace that stretches around the hotel, installed new windows and painted the exterior. Indoors, Premier moved the position of the bar, built a new kitchen to more adequately service the space, put toilets in new locations and revamped them, and relocated the gaming area and public bar to the other side of the building.

The Glenquarie could hardly be happier with the new fitout, especially the outdoor gaming area. venue asked Premier Builders Project Manager, David Nugent, what building an outdoor gaming area entails. “There’s a roof but the walls allow air to freely flow through the space to meet the government health department regulations that permit players to gamble and smoke at the same time. It’s not an easy balance to get right, especially given some solid walls are required to screen the pokie machines from the public — a council requirement. The ‘drafty’ walls consist of an aluminium grille, allowing the flow of air as well as providing security for the machines. We’ve also got ‘comfort air’ coming from the air conditioning system, which blows onto the players to keep them cool in summer. It doesn’t air condition the whole space, it just puts cool air onto them. And there’s also heating to keep patrons warm in winter. A glass wall and a door acts as a division between the indoor and outdoor gaming areas, but the finishes and colours are continuous through both and link the two areas. The only difference is the tiled floor finish in the outdoor area as opposed to carpet.”

Glenquarie Hotel undoubtedly has a more upmarket look than before, aided by Bergstrom Architects assistance towards the end of the job in finetuning some design details. Bergstrom took the new Glenquarie ‘GQ’ branding for the hotel and incorporated the circular motif into some new screens surrounding the dining area. The circular idea was also carried through the carpet and lighting selections to link the space together. Split Watermelon selected all the furniture for the job, which comprises a mix of lounges and hard-wearing bistro furniture.

» Glenquarie Hotel: Cnr Harold & Victoria St, Macquarie Fields NSW (02) 9605 5111» Premier Building Group: (02) 9979 8377 or www.premierbuild.com.au» Bergstrom Architects: (02) 8920 1499 or www.bergstromarchitects.com.au» Split Watermelon: (02) 9698 1883 or www.splitwatermelon.com.au

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When it comes to Hong Kong nightlife, Gilbert Yeung is ‘big man on campus’. venue drops by his Dragon-i club for some pearls of wisdom.

of the Dragoni

» transit

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Dragon-i is arguably the most famous, the most successful, the best run, most glamourous club in Hong Kong. At its helm is Gilbert Yeung. Gilbert is

the scion of a fabulously wealthy property developer. His privileged upbringing brought plenty of swanky party invitations, which… hang on, I’ll let Gilbert tell the story:

Gilbert Yeung: Back in 1999, me and Gordon Lam, a club promoter, met up. He’s a Chinese guy who was brought up in London and when he returned to Hong Kong we started to hang out and go to all these parties — y’know, launch events — where we’d see the same old thing over and over again. We were amazed: if you’re going to invest enormous amounts of money and invite guests to come to your brand party you want to leave people with a good impression, otherwise, why do it?

venue: But these were formulaic?

GY: Exactly. You go there and then the next day you’re like, “What did you do last night Gilbert?” “Oh I went to some party.” “What was it?” And in most cases you’d hardly remember it was so boring.

Gordon and I thought that if we got a chance we’d do something really crazy, really edgy. As it happened, I was having my haircut and my hairdresser said, “I’m opening a new place called Ken Qi Hair Salon,” which was a really hip salon in those days. He said, “Gilbert, I’d like to invite you.” “Is it like a cocktail thing?” “No, I want to throw a hip party, y’know because it’s a hip salon.” And I said, “Who’s

venue: I guess the biggest challenge is to get the right people to these events… getting them to open the invitation envelope.

GY: Yes, exactly, the first impression for your party is the invitation. We did a beach party once for Carlsberg and I rang the Coppertone distributor in Hong Kong. We bought 1000 bottles of Coppertone, we ripped off the Coppertone label and put on a label of our own. A twist like that can mean everything.

Join the Clubvenue: Am I right in saying your Dad was running a nightclub at the time you started staging these parties?

GY: That’s right. Our success didn’t go unnoticed by my father who had a nightclub called Pink Mao Mao. Initially, the club was very successful but it was in the wrong part of town and after the honeymoon period it began to suffer.

Dad said, “Look Gilbert, I want you to run the club for me.” I said “no thanks”, because the club was in Happy Valley, and I’m a Central boy — I hang out in Lan Kwai Fong and Central, I don’t come to Happy Valley.

He said, “I’m sorry. You’re my son, you have to do what I tell you.” I said, “You know what? I’ll do one night for you!” So we took on Wednesday for him. We came up with the idea of making the night free to fashion models. Then with the models on board we changed aspects of the lighting, the décor, we finessed the atmosphere, the

doing it for you?” He said, “I have this PR company.” I said, “Me and my partner, we want to do something like this. Give me a chance and I’ll give you a proposal.”

I rang Gordon, he came over, we opened a couple of bottles of whiskey, and we came up with some ideas, a format, and gave it to him. The Ken Qi guy said: “Yeah Gilbert, I’m not sure I should be doing this, but I’m gonna give you a chance.”

So we did the party and ‘Boom!’ it was an instant success. Then after that Moschino, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, all these brands started to approach us.

music, everything, and at that time no clubs had a door bitch, so we hired a supercool door bitch. She was an Australian woman. She was six feet tall and covered in tattoos. And we said to her, “We don’t care that it’s winter, we need you to show all your tattoos.” She was amazing. When you go to a party and you see a door bitch like that you’re like, ‘Wow, I want to come to this party.’

Within five or six weeks we built up the club. A lot of operators phoned us: “Gilbert, how do you do it? You’re in the middle of nowhere and everybody goes to your place.” Yes, because when people need an apple, you give them an apple. It’s a simple formula. My team,

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we’re party people, and we’ve been partying for years, so we know what people need. And, most importantly, we do it out of passion; we don’t do it for the money. We want to throw a good party, and people can smell that, they know if you’re just making a cynical grab for cash.

venue: And this drew you into running your own club?

GY: I always wanted to do a club and I always wanted to learn how to do a club. Then I found this dream venue where we are now: a beautiful terrace with a high ceiling and big floor plan — in Hong Kong it’s very difficult to find a big floor plan with a high ceiling. Then we start pitching the idea, and I had to get finance from my family, I had to sign a loan from my own father.

venue: No free ride then?

GY: No, no. He said, “this is not a cheque for you to play around with, so you can sit there and have your cigar and your bottle of champagne with 50 blonde girls sitting next to you”.

venue: Was it instantly successful?

GY: It took us a long time to make our money back. But I like to run the business differently to other operators... my partners are always challenging my theories about running a business.

venue: What theories?

GY: For example, our maintenance bills for Dragon-i are enormous. For the first two and a half years I’d go in the club at about 2 or 3pm everyday, and I’m like a sniffer dog trying to find scratches on the furniture and upholstery: “What is this? Come on, I told you, we have to keep this place immaculate. [clicks fingers]. Replace it right away.”

venue: It’s the detail that people pick up on then?

GY: Yes. You think people don’t notice the details, but they do. And that’s what the whole concept of Dragon-i is about — you can feel it. What do I mean? If you go to a restaurant you can feel it right away; whether the people who run it are really paying attention to every detail — to the uniform, to the lighting, to the candles, where they put the ashtrays, what kind of music is being played, when to dim the lights. Us? At 11 o’clock sharp, boom, we dim down the lights and then all the tables are lowered four inches.

venue: I beg your pardon?

GY: Dragon-i is a multi-functional place — we do lunch, we do dinner, we do happy hour, we do lounge, we do clubbing. After dinner, at 11 o’clock, we start up a separate sound system and we remove about four inches from the dining tables. So at 11 o’clock the staff will ask you to hold onto your drink, take off the top, and the table will be four inches shorter. Why? Because after dinner if you’re partying, you need more room to dance and move around.

venue: Was that an easy proposal to get past your partners?

GY: No. They said, “but Gilbert, that will disturb the guests. A waitress will need to clean the table top, take the dishes away and ask the guest to hold their drink for a second — it would disturb the guest for at least two or three minutes!” You know what? The guests will really appreciate it, because it shows that you thought about their comfort.

venue: And your decision has been vindicated?

GY: Yes. Because it demonstrates to the guest that they’re the most important person to us. We’re not thinking about our pockets; we’re not thinking about how much we can charge for drinks; we’re thinking about their comfort. «

So we did the party and ‘Boom!’ it was an instant success. Then after that Moschino, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, all these brands started to approach us.

» inside & out: Dragon-i’s interior is perennially spotless and pristine thanks to Gilbert’s keen eye for imperfections. Come 11pm an entirely separate PA is sparked up and four inches of table top are removed for greater room to groove. The terrace area (below) is a rare luxury in Hong Kong, and may revert to public space in a recent move by the authorities. Pity, the cages are amazing.

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The Residence is a standalone function space at the Collins Street end of the Grand Hyatt’s events Level 8 that has its own front

desk, courtyard, open kitchen, bathroom amenities, wine cellar, and three connectable rooms (dubbed the Wine Room, Veranda and Library). All up, the entire space has a capacity of 450 for a cocktail reception or 160 sit down.

The Residence isn’t a new idea; though the only one in Australia at the moment, it’s a Grand Hyatt concept that’s slowly being rolled out internationally. There are already Residences in Taipei and Bangkok, all exchanging ideas of how to best utilise The Residence concept for different events. venue talked to Marketing Communications Manager, Danielle van der Griend, about how The Residence is different to run-of-the-mill function spaces. “The whole idea of the residence is that once you hire it, it’s your own private mansion. It’s quite unique compared to other events spaces in Melbourne. When you enter, you’re greeted as if you’re coming into your own house.”

Not being Richie Rich, I’m not sure what it would feel like having someone other than my wife welcoming me home, and I have an inkling that the Residence staff won’t be dishing out kisses to all its customers [or the sound of the hoover, screaming kids and something burnt in the oven at my place — Ed.]. It’s not to say The Residence doesn’t have a level of intimacy though. It’s relaxed, but rather than being a home away from home, it’s a bit more like going to your friend’s place for dinner, where you can discuss current events on the Veranda, pull up a chair at the kitchen for a meal, then retire to a couch in the Library for some private conversation, or repair to the Courtyard for some fresh air.

It is, however, like a private mansion, with great views over Collins Street, a balcony (the whole residence is non-smoking) and an undercover courtyard with evergreen trees, natural light aplenty and fresh air. It’s hard to find meeting spaces that provide a serene outdoor respite to

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the often-stuffy world of corporate engagements. And with bathrooms that are exclusive to The Residence, once you arrive there’s really no reason to leave. “We’ve found that people are really relaxed when they come in for events,” said Danielle. “You’ve still got the polish of a five-star hotel events space but it’s a bit more contemporary and relaxed. It’s conducive to having fun.”

All the food served up in The Residence is cooked in its own open-plan kitchen. Like the new Collins Kitchen restaurant (see Issue 29) “it’s all about the chefs interacting and seeing the fresh food being prepared. It’s similar to when you would come to a friend’s house for dinner, or to a party. You’d probably go to the kitchen first, because that’s where the action is, so we find that’s what happens. People will come in here and hang out in the kitchen.” And it’s not just used to cook up corporate dinners; The Residence kitchen is also used for cooking demonstrations and

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Grand Home AVPoint of View designed The Residence AV system, which was installed by IBSAV with Staging Connections looking after the system on an ongoing basis. The Verandah, Wine Room and Library all have a Christie LW400 projector with a 16:9 format screen accompanied by a Pioneer DVD player, an Allen & Heath Zed 14 mixer, and four Meyer MM4XP powerful, pint-sized speakers. Being a little larger, the Verandah also has two Meyer UPM1P powered speakers to help fill the space. The Courtyard has a Panasonic PTDW5100 DLP projector as well as eight Meyer MM4XP speakers. A Biamp NexiaCS 10x6 I/O processor handles all the audio distribution and processing, while an Extron 8x8 matrix video switcher and three Barco DCS-100s take care of the video routing. An AMX NI-4100 integrated control system is linked to five AMX NXD-CV5 five-inch touchscreens for easy control of the system.

» Point of View: (03) 9321 6777 or www.pov.com.au» IBSAV: (03) 9568 2800 or www.ibsav.com.au» Staging Connections: (03) 9321 6600 or www.stagingconnections.com

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master classes. For a more intimate setting the Wine Room is ideal for lunches and dinners with its feature cellar wall and a glass window affording a view into the machinations of the kitchen. For larger events utilising the entire space, a cheese and wine station can be set up in the Wine Room, with martinis in the Library.

The Residence has an impressively-spec’d audiovisual installation. All the individual rooms have screens and projectors, and you can select the event playlist from a comprehensive music menu if required. Lighting and equipment can be added, but if you rent The Residence you likely won’t need much else. It’s the Grand Hyatt; it’s all about five-star service with five-star gear to match. And if you want your own theme, Danielle says you’re better off heading to one of the ballrooms — The Residence is about simplicity and staying true to the Grand Hyatt experience. “We find that people don’t want to do much to it, because they just want to have that real luxury, understated feel.” «

» Grand Hyatt Melbourne: 123 Collins St, Melbourne VIC (03) 9657 1234 or www.melbourne.grand.hyatt.com

You’ve still got the polish of a five-star hotel events space but it’s a bit more contemporary and relaxed. It’s conducive to having fun

Are you having trouble...• Attracting new patrons

• Upgrading your venue

• Competing with other venues

• Creating a “WOW” factor

• Reaching gaming and dining revenue targets

Contact Innersphere now for a FREE consultation on 041 959 5656

Is it timefor a facelift?

Suite 2, 20 Cliff Street Milsons Point NSW 2061P +61 2 9959 5656 F +61 2 9959 5539

www.innersphere.com.au

» Joinery: H& F Joinery 0418 166 526» Carpet Supply: Shaw Contract Group www.shawcontractgroup.com» Chairs: Jardan www.jardan.com.au» Fabrics: Elliott Clarke www.elliottclarke.com.au» Leather supplier: Wollsdorf Leder www.wollsdorfleder.com.au

» visit

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Sydney’s Sheraton on the Park has unveiled its new-look Executive Club Lounge which could easily be described as a ‘hotel within a hotel’ providing extra bells and whistles to selected hotel guests.

The $500,000 refurb was masterminded by Joseph Pang who cherry-picked the deluxo furnishings, the finishes and colour palette, presenting a feel of comfy decadence.

Club Lounge is open plan, with the library, main lounge, executive check in/check out, executive board room, cocktail/buffet, and fireplace lounge all taking advantage of spectacular views over Hyde Park, Sydney Middle Harbour and St. Mary’s Cathedral.

Deep brown tones are mixed with splashes of olive green, while high- and low-pile carpet mix the textures underfoot. The library and lounge featurewall highlights in deep burgundy, coloured leather and sparkling bronze mirror panels. The cocktail bar features a black crystal glass wall with the city view as back drop.

The day time experience is sunny and bright, with city and park views as the main focus. Oversized table lamps with silky material lamp shades provide a relaxed mood in the evening. The feature glass fireplace further enhances the cosy and clubby feel of this luxury lounge. « » Sheraton On the Park: 161 Elizabeth Street, Sydney NSW (02) 9286 6000 » Joseph Pang Design Consultants: www.jpdc.com.au

Sheraton’s Hotel Within a Hotel

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» visit

The Sugarmill Hotel stretches across three levels of a former bank building in the heart of Kings Cross. Sugarmill, on the ground

floor, has a familiar Kings Cross feel for regulars of the area, while above it, the first-floor Asian-influenced Kit, and second-level ’60s Hollywood-glam Kaboodle, are a touch more eclectic.

The former bank provided the odd challenge for designer David Hicks. The bomb-proof construction proved difficult to demolish. Hicks didn’t entirely rob the building of its banking heritage though; some of it was just too hard to budge. He retained the main structure of the central building — a network of columns and beams — turning a potential liability into a design feature across all three levels.

Originally the site consisted of two separate buildings, posing more headaches. The crossover of the two buildings was a formidable challenge — floor levels didn’t match up, and connecting the kitchen in one building with the bar in the other and guaranteeing disabled access to all three levels wasn’t a doddle either.

Regardless, Kit & Kaboodle is a winner. The vintage feel is a poke in the eye to “all the stark white boxes that are so predictably Sydney” according to Hicks. “The objective is to create an atmosphere of a space that had been frozen in time and then given a makeover.”

Manicure KitKit is a mix of red and gold colonial Shanghai and ’80s discotheques, with pieces from Dolce Gabbana and the whiff of some Yves Saint Laurent’s Opium advertisements thrown in for good measure. Hicks describes it as ‘Shanghai-tastic’; with custom-made bamboo-framed side chairs in black gloss frames, vintage pieces from America, custom-designed gold drums with marble tops dotted between the 13m-long Dolce Gabbana-inspired leopard print snake banquette, and an assortment of side tables including a classy Saarinen side table in white marble.

“A vast majority of the furniture used within this project was sourced from vintage suppliers both in Australia and overseas. This avoided the requirement to manufacture vast quantities of the new furniture and enabled us to retain the vintage flavour we were seeking,” said Hicks. The owners were very clear that the combined outcome of all the design elements were to strengthen the business. “Generally when dealing with hospitality projects the client has something to say or a direction they want to take, as they know their business better than [the designers] do.”

venue experiences the whole Kit & Kaboodle.Text: Christina Woodhill

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» Lend a Hand: Kit (right) is “Shanghai-tastic”. Over 100 glass antique lanterns trace the bar. And a ’60s Pedro Friedeberg hand-shaped chair, carved from solid timber and covered in gold leaf, is just the sort of luxurious yet bizarre gesture one would expect.

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The vintage feel is a poke in the eye to ‘all the stark white boxes that are

so predictably Sydney’

Kaboodle-ing AboutKaboodle, on the second level, is all marble and seductive lighting. In fact, the green mottled marble doesn’t only find its way into the main bar top, but various other tabletops, the candleholders, and the long washbasin in the ladies’ loo.

Kaboodle is eclectic yet consistently sleek. There are pale green velvet couches, wire-backed chairs and high wingback chesterfields, most of which were sourced in the U.S. A number of pieces are rare finds, such as the white Platner side chairs with green upholstered seats, white gloss swan arm chairs in Missoni fabric, ceramic elephants, Chinese ceramic drums and Saarinen side tables. The southern wall can almost rival the palace of Versailles’ Hall of Mirrors with a mix of shapes and sizes in matching black twisted wood frames.

Hicks dressed up the DJ booth with cut mirrors in a blue glass Italian Murano chandelier taking centre stage. Above the bar is a blending of Sciolari chandeliers in gold, ’70s blue glass and chandelier drops, and custom white garland wall sconces are from Surround Interiors in Melbourne. And both Kit and Kaboodle have custom-made carpets to mirror the major colour themes in each level.

All elements of the fitout were new, but the materials and finishes were used in a way that gives the space and established look. To get a little intimacy back, Hicks dotted lamps throughout Kaboodle, as well as restraining from bedazzling evening drinkers with an overwrought backbar display. «» Sugarmill: 33–37 Darlinghurst Rd, Kings Cross NSW

(02) 9368 7333 or www.sugarmill.com.au» Kit & Kaboodle: (02) 9368 0300 or

www.kitkabooodle.com.au» Surround Interiors: (03) 9593 8744 or

www.surround.com.au

Audiovisuals — Fully Kitted Out

Avsound Productions’ Peter Ivanoski, installed all of the AV. The PA was supplied by the Technical Audio Group — Martin Audio speakers and QSC amplifiers. The BSS audio processing ensures the music finds its way to the correct speakers at the right volume. The main challenge Ivanoski encountered was the noise restrictions, as a result, all speakers were fitted with isolation mounts to restrict the transmission of sound through the walls and out of the building.

» Avsound: 1300 663166 or [email protected]» TAG (Martin Audio, QSC): (02) 9519 0900 or [email protected]» Jands (BSS): (02) 9582 0909 or www.jands.com.au

Rory O’Brien, Construction Manager at Arcon Australia, fills venue in on the construction process. Not everything was smooth saling.“Difficulties were evident from the outset, with the site situated right in the middle of Kings Cross. The only access was via a one-way lane with tight turns, so no semi-trailers could deliver materials to the site.The demolition process was extensive as the building was previously a Westpac Bank and contained steel lined walls and three very large vaults. And with additional fire stairs and a lift required, over a third of each floor plate had to be removed. As the structure was reinforced and the new stairs and lift installed, extensive noise retarding windows were designed and installed as noise restrictions was a major D.A. condition. To add a further level of difficulty, a basement had to be excavated out of rock from beneath the existing building,

and due to limited air flow an electric excavator was used.The fitout incorporated very detailed joinery and finishes to give the new hotel four distinct bar areas. Materials used in this process ranged from marble and travertine to zinc and mirror-finished stainless steel metals, Makassar ebony and New Guinea rosewood timbers, and gold leaf. Additionally, some 600 different light fittings were used to create different lighting levels across the venue.Finally the project was handed over 11 weeks ahead of schedule for the owners to capture the pre-Christmas trade. To do this we had up to 220 workers onsite each day towards the end of the construction.”» Arcon Australia: (02) 9389 4100 or www.arcon-nsw.com.au

600 Light Fittings & Steel-Lined Walls — The Construction

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ISSUE 6OUT NOW

Get your copy: www.av.net.au

Safety Film

Bleux has released a safety film collection of eight designs available in a wide selection of colour ways. The films are 100mm high and are available on optically clear and frosted film, or cut vinyl. Purchased by the lineal metre, the safety films cost $75/m, which includes installation.

» Bleux: (02) 9380 6544 or www.bleux.com.au

Ripple Wall

The Wovin Wall product range has expanded with the Ripple dual curved tile system, that comprises a ripple curved tile backed by a shadow tile. The ability to contrast the colour and finish of both tiles allows for interesting depth effects. And the shadow tiles can be backlit if made from polypropylene, generating a gentle glow on the rims of the ripple tiles. Ripple is a modular system for easy transportation and is available in standard finishes from timber veneer, to timber laminate, polypropylene, laminate and aluminium.

» Wovin Wall: (02) 9317 0222 or [email protected]

The White Agency advertising agency recently underwent a full renovation at their HQ in Sydney. Siren Design chose Bolon BKB Sisel Plain Beige and NOW anthracite products for the flooring, to cope with the hustle and bustle of the advertising world. Bolon has also been hard at work developing their Green Vinyl, which should see the light of day in 2010. It’s aiming to become the first company in the world to switch entirely to using plasticisers (the stuff that makes PVC soft) based on renewable resources.

» The Andrews Group: (03) 9827 1311 or www.theandrewsgroup.com.au

Bolon Does White & Goes Green

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Keep Quiet

Inspired by 19th century timber church pews and their connection with contemplative thought, Schiavello developed Kayt Quiet as a plush lounge for intimate gatherings and conversation — thankfully with none of the associated back pain. It’s part of the Kayt range, distinguished by the fold between the seat and the back that’s echoed throughout the collection.

» Schiavello: 1300 366 236 or www.schiavello.com

All Is Honeywell

Fires have caused a lot of people to reassess the security of their valuables. And Honeywell Safes has come up with an answer. Its safes are ‘dry filled’, a process that ensures no residual moisture trapped in the safe will spoil its contents over time. Its fire-resistant safes can withstand external temperatures of more than 850 degrees Celsius for over an hour, and still remain completely water tight when the fire brigade turns up and douses it. In fact, the safe can be fully submerged and remain watertight. For security, the safes have pry resistant concealed hinges, heavy-duty locking door bolts, optional biometric fingerprinting scan locking, an automatic re-lock system and an override key if the combination is lost or forgotten. There are around 50 different models ranging from $99.98 to over $1000, the model pictured is priced at $849.

» Honeywell Safes: (03) 9538 9200 or www.honeywellsafes.com.au

Low Impact Glide

Glide is the latest collection from Instyle’s Low Impact For the Environment (LIFE) collection. Glide is a locally produced textile that comes in a medium-scale pattern and 12 colourways. It’s designed for use as commercial upholstery, but can also be used for screens, workstations and partitions. It’s also the first fabric in the Instyle range to be made from 100 precent Australian Worsted EthEco wool.

» Instyle Contract Textiles: (02) 9317 0222 or www.instyle.com.au

Hot Metal Laminate

With Hot Metal laminate decorative ceilings, you could say things are, erm… looking up. But you’d probably prefer we didn’t. Hot Metal laminate is a surface finish that combines the look of metal with trend colours and handcrafted patterns. Hot Metal creates a three-dimensional surface finish that is durable, lightweight, flexible, easy to maintain and is fire rated. It’s also Australian designed and handmade, as well as environmentally friendly and recyclable.

» Hot Metal: (02) 9905 1371 or www.hotmetal.com.au

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Designed by Marcel Wanders as a modern fairy tale castle, the Mondrian South Beach features giant lamps and tables and jaw-dropping contemporary design.

There are plenty of surprises and original one-off marquee moments. Giant, curvy pillars lead inside to the bright Florida-white reception, which features graphic wallpaper, and Maarten Baas ‘Smoke’ chairs and a floating staircase.

Outside you’ll discover an oasis of lush gardens with an outdoor pool bar, private cabanas created with curtains of living foliage and even an adult sandbox — byo Tonka toys… brrm brrrm!

The Asia de Cuba restaurant’s pièce de résistance is the royal communal table, something made popular at the first Asia de Cuba at Morgans in New York City. Golden ‘bells’ above the table call out to diners to take their seats and crystal chandeliers set within the bells shower guests with faceted light.

All up, the property features 335 hotel ‘residences’, comprising studios, one- and two-bedroom rooms, and four tower suites priced from $500,000 to $6 million. «

» Mondrian Miami: www.mondrian-miami.com

Mondrian South Beach — Miami

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No audio corners were cut when Hugo’s Lounge in Kings Cross was refit with with EAW speakers ranging from DC5 & DC6 Avalon boxes for the dancefloor, through to JFX88 as room fill and CIS400 ceiling speakers for the balcony. Skyy bar has been fitted with speaker cabinets from the MK range and all processing & zoning was digitally performed with Symetrix Symnet.

Don’t Cut Corners

Hugos Lounge and Skyy Bar, Sydney, named 2007 ‘Nightclub Of The Year’.

System: EAW Avalon Series PA, Powersoft amplification, Symetrix Symnet processing.

Sound design & installation: DJW Projects.

Production Audio Services Pty LtdP.(03) 9264 [email protected]

DJW ProjectsP. (02) 9114 9993 [email protected]

DJ Warehouse has been instrumental in

providing Hugo’s Lounge & Skyy Bar with

a complete Audio & Lighting Solution.

They are an amazing outfit and remain our

company of choice. We have also recently

used them in our new venue Hugo’s Manly.

Dave Evans - MD Hugos Group

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”

Tough act to follow

> IP54 rating (dust & splash proof) > Economical power consumption> 3-year factory warranty> Portrait or landscape mode> Ideal for digital signage

Sony’s 65-inch GXD L65H1 is a super-ruggedised commercial LCD panel, built to thrive in environments where other screens simply wouldn’t survive.

For more information on this and the entire range of Sony digital signage solutions visit:

www.sony.com.au/displaysolutions or phone: 1300 13 7669.

A sleek protective casing with tamper resistant front glass & internal temperature management makes this the ideal choice for the more demanding of digital signage applications.

* Panel shown with optional speakers and Sony media player attached.

Sydney Opera House Choose Sony Screens

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