For the first time in nearly fifty years, one of Sydney’s most well-known bars is being offered for sale, and the asking price is expected to set records.
The Oaks Hotel in Neutral Bay’s owners are accepting expressions of interest with a record-breaking $175 million asking price, which is anticipated to set off a bidding war between pub tycoons.
It will be the highest price ever paid for a pub and surpass the $160 million record sale of The Crossroads Hotel in Casula earlier this year if the new owners buy the beloved bar for close to the asking amount.
Before the brewing company Tooth & Co. constructed the current Art Deco hotel in 1938, the original hotel on the Military Road location opened its doors in 1880.
The lower north shore establishment, a favourite hangout for wealthy Sydneysiders, is known for its 80-year-old English oak tree in the beer garden.
David “Taffy” Thomas, the father of the family, bought the bar in 1975 and subsequently transferred ownership to his son Andrew.
The sports bar is called in Taffy’s honour, while another bar with the same name as the late Crocodile Dundee actor John Meillon OBE has been frequented throughout the years by hundreds of famous people and athletes.
The Oaks has growth potential for up to five storeys and had a $6 million major repair three years ago.
According to Andrew Thomas, the family decided it was time to move on after receiving numerous unsolicited advances.
“We’ll depart the Oaks with many friends and happy memories…”
We are eager to see it in its next form under the new custodians because it retains a very important place in the landscape of Australian hotels,’ he said.
On behalf of the family, the sale is being handled by LL Hotels & Hospitality managing director John Musca and senior vice president Ben McDonald.
‘Owning an iconic pub hotel in actuality is considerably more fulfilling and exciting than any other sort of investing,’ Mr. Musca added, for individuals who have amassed riches in the mining, media, software, logistics, or any other sector.
In the highly protected hotel industry, where assets of this scale and quality will never be approved or replicated again in high-end Sydney demographic locations, premier assets frequently only come to market once in a lifetime.
In essence, we’re talking about one of the best hotels in the asset class.
The Entrance Hotel on the Central Coast and Winston Hills Hotel in Sydney’s west are the only two pubs owned by the Thomas family that are not currently in the market for sale.
Interest declarations end on September 6.