By Vanessa Cavasinni, editor Australian Hotelier
Colonial Leisure Group (CLG) have rebranded Lamaro’s Bodega in South Melbourne to Lamaro’s Hotel.
Lamaro’s became Lamaro’s Bodega in September 2015 and, as the name implied, had a focus on Spanish and South American cuisines. However CLG management decided to temporarily shut the pub since Christmas Day, to revamp the hotel once more, bringing back a traditional pub vibe and F&B offering.
The renamed Lamaro’s Hotel opened to the public on Thursday 19 January, serving up traditional pub fare with a familiar face at the helm.
Sandy Ingram last headed Lamaro’s in 2012, and has sinced worked at O’Connells, another award-winning gastropub in the vicinity. He has returned to Lamaro’s Hotel as venue manager, and has worked on the new menu which includes a premium steak selection (including a 1.2kg prime rib), ploughman’s plates and veal schnitzels, among other classic fare.
Grady Patching, national operations manager for CLG, explained that the decision was made to rebrand the venue in an effort to make it a more traditional pub offering.
“We wanted to reintroduce Lamaro’s as your classic local pub. The development has been focused around the menu with some subtle changes to the venue.”