By Vanessa Cavasinni, editor Australian Hotelier
The Armada Hospitality Group, has launched its first Beer DeLuxe venue in Sydney, situated in one of Sydney’s hospitality hubs, King St Wharf near Darling Harbour.
There are currently four other Beer DeLuxe venues, two in Melbourne (Federation Square and Hawthorn) and two in regional New South Wales (Albury and Wagga).
Having taken over the Sydney site in December, the Armada Hospitality Group was quick to renovate the site and have it open within a couple of months. Beer DeLuxe King St Wharf offers a beer menu that includes 150 beers on tap and bottled that changes seasonally. Currently the taps include offerings from plenty of local craft brewers including Wayward Brewing Co’s Sour Puss (raspberry Berliner-weisse), tapping into the current trend for sour beers.
Director of Operations for the Armada Hospitality Group, Craig Shearer, says the group have been looking for a Sydney venue for a while.
“We had been planning on a Sydney Beer DeLuxe for some time now, and came close on another couple of sites two to three years ago, however we waited until we found the right opportunity to launch in a space that ticked all of the boxes for our brand.”
Shearer said the move into Sydney was part of a more national strategy, and as a nod to the Sydney beer scene. “The Sydney market has a thriving craft beer community with some amazing local brewers, and having the chance to showcase their beers on tap was a major drawcard. Our aim is to make Beer DeLuxe a national brand so having a presence in Sydney is very important to us.”
The King St Wharf location was also a strategic choice with how the group wanted to place their latest venue in the Sydney market.
“We love King St Wharf and think that the precinct fits our brand extremely well. There is a high number of passing foot traffic including CBD workers, tourists and general Sydney-siders out for a night out, and while there are some awesome craft beer focused bars and pubs located in the city fringe suburbs, we felt there was an opportunity to bring this focus to the city where the craft beer movement may have been less represented. As Barangaroo comes to life over the next few years, it can only be good for us and the other operators along King St Wharf.”