BUSINESSMAN Allan Virieux remembers a time when patrons used to dress up to go out, and restaurants and bars focused on individual service.
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He and business partner Nick Daking hope to bring that back, as they prepare to launch their new bar and restaurant, Henry’s.
“It’s all to do with what hospitality was in the past and what we want to see in the future,” Mr Allan Virieux said.
“It was friendly (hospitality in the past), it was all about the service, and it was all about the quality. People dressed up to go out.
“In today’s age we’ve got all this fantastic technology but we’ve kind of forgotten what we used to do which was go out, communicate and socialise with one another.”
The pair has acquired Launceston’s esteemed Northern Club with plans to revamp and relaunch the business with a new focus.
“The Northern Club has a fantastic history of Launceston, it’s a living history and we don’t want to see this beautiful old building remain closed,” Mr Daking said.
“The tie in with Henry’s is Henry Ritchie was the founding member of the Northern Club, where the club actually was for close to 100 years.
“We’re not going to open the club back up but we’ll pay our respect to what the club was with getting the old club members back in...having lunches for them.”
Mr Daking said the bar would feature a range of Tasmanian wines, beers, and whiskies.
He said the food offering would offer a contemporary menu that was in between a share platter and dégustation.
“We’ve got some of the greatest produce in the country, so we’re about bringing that to Launceston,” Mr Daking said.
Mr Virieux said he wanted to showcase Tasmania’s spirit offering.
He said the beer system was a Tasmanian first, where patrons could see the beer before they purchased it.
“We’ve purchased direct beer taps for a boutique company in Western Australia, so we’re really excited to have those installed and be ready for the opening,” Mr Viriaux said.
Mr Viriaux said he hoped his upmarket restaurant would boost the local market, and make it more competitive.
There are a number of high quality venues in Launceston, Mr Daking said, but he believed a gap in the market existed for a venue specifically about service that caters for 30 to 60-year-olds.
Marketing manager Jayde Baker said the week-long launch would include a ladies night on Wednesday and a public lottery draw on Friday, to be advertised on Facebook.
The launch week will begin on Tuesday, May 17, and bookings can be made from Saturday, May 21.
