Granville’s Royal Hotel sold amid ongoing Sydney pub interest

Sydney’s in-demand pub market has ended the year with yet another flurry of deals, with the Redcape Hotel Group offloading both the Royal Hotel in Granville and the Kingshead Tavern in Hurstville.

Private buyers paid $51 million for the Royal Hotel, ranked among New South Wales’ top 30 gaming venues and sold at a 6.25% premium to the property’s book value.

The Kingshead Tavern was sold for $27 million, with both deals brokered by JLL Hotels and Hospitality group’s John Musca.

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The sales mark the latest moves in a busy 12 months for Redcape, with the group having recently picked up the St George Hotel in Belmore for $47.1 million and the Eden Brewhouse in Queensland’s Redbank Plains for $11.5 million.

Musca says investors had been chasing the Kingshead Tavern for some time.

“After years of unsolicited buyer approaches, the long-time owners sought JLL’s assistance to facilitate the sale,” he says.

The Kingshead Tavern.

The Kingshead Tavern includes 27 gaming machines, a restaurant, public and lounge bars, drive-through bottle shop and beer garden, and occupies a prominent 1334sqm corner position on King Georges Rd.

The property was also touted for its future multi-level mixed-use development potential.

Musca says investor interest in Sydney pubs remains as strong as ever.

“In a rapidly consolidating asset class, this sizable transaction is another example of the value afford to the very best assets across the densely populated Sydney metropolitan area.”

Redcape CEO Dan Brady says the time was right to divest the assets, after the group refurbished both venues.

“These transactions are consistent with Redcape’s strategy of portfolio optimisation and demonstrates our continued focus on acquiring venues where we can increase value by enhancing their operations and applying our refurbishment capability,” he says.