Blank cafe canvas needs creative flair

IMAGINE a bustling cafe where a coffee machine sounds, you can smell freshly baked cakes, and overhear deep and delightful conversations about visual art between friends.

These are the sensory experiences that Art Gallery of Ballarat director Louise Tegart has missed in her workplace since its Lydiard Street cafe closed in 2020.

Operator Sara Kittelty moved her business from the three-shopfronts worth of space during the height of the pandemic, and two-and-a-half years later, gallery management are still seeking a proprietor to put their creative stamp on the popular coffee spot.

Ms Tegart said she understood that potential tenants were nervous to risk opening a business throughout the challenging COVID climate, but with the economy recovering and visitors returning to the city and gallery, it’s time to put another call out.

“There’s an exciting opportunity here not just to align with the gallery and its brand, and reactivate the space, but a real long-term commercial opportunity to operate the only cafe in this stretch of Lydiard Street,” she said.

“We’re looking forward to working really closely with a cafe operator with offerings that can cater to a diverse range of visitors, while emphasising amazing local produce.

“The gallery is all about being bold, embracing the community, and showcasing what Ballarat has to offer.

“The cafe can reflect that in a fun, accessible and engaging way. We want to grow their brand with ours.”

Ms Tegart said having a quality cafe at the gallery, with delicious food and coffee, is not just a pleasant bonus in the visitor experience, it’s what people expect.

The shop also has a history of regular customers, including the gallery’s 40 volunteer guides and workers in the CBD.

A proprietor could apply for an outside dining permit for the Lydiard Street footpath, and a liquor licence.

“We want it to be a cafe during gallery opening hours, but somebody might like to open it as a wine bar at night as well,” Ms Tegart said. “There’s flexibility.”

Venue hire for events at the Art Gallery of Ballarat will ramp up in 2023, and the cafe operator would have opportunities to cater those functions