THE Western Hotel has trumped a number of Melbourne-based finalists to take home the trophy for Best Takeaway Initiative at this year\u2019s Australian Hotels Association (Victoria) State Awards for Excellence, at a glitzy ceremony at Crown Palladium.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s a pretty satisfying reward for the effort, for all the work the team did during the lockdowns to try and keep us afloat,\u201d owner Dan Cronin said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone loves to win something, but to win an award from an industry nominated category that\u2019s judged by peers and industry leaders is pretty gratifying for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like many other Victorian hospitality venues, Mr Cronin said a significantly increased focus on takeaway food became crucial for the hotel throughout the course of 2020.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had takeaway available in the past but it certainly wasn’t a large percentage of what we did each week. It wasn’t a key focus for our business,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut then obviously, during the lockdowns, we were trying to find a way to increase our revenue, which enabled us to employ more of our casual staff that weren’t eligible for JobKeeper or JobSeeker for whatever reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt meant that we were able to maintain a reasonable level of casual staff and stay in touch with our customers as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cronin credits the pub\u2019s increased social media presence, plus the establishment of a new drive-through option – built from an old shipping container – as two key elements that got the judges\u2019 attention.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur social media presence played a huge part in staying engaged with the community and our customers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also fitted the shipping container out and put it in our driveway to create a drive-through coffee and food venue, which was open from seven o’clock in the morning till two o’clock in the afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo that was a key driver, as well as our usual busy nights of Thursday, Friday and Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were quite surprised and really encouraged by how much the community supported us, and how much locals got behind local businesses in general.\u201d<\/p>\n
Zagame\u2019s Ballarat Hotel claimed the region\u2019s second win for the night, taking home the gong for best regional gaming venue (51 machines or more).<\/p>\n
Timothy Fulton from Irish Murphy\u2019s was nominated for Excellence in Service and Irish Murphy\u2019s was also nominated for Best Speciality Bar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
THE Western Hotel has trumped a number of Melbourne-based finalists to take home the trophy for Best Takeaway Initiative at this year\u2019s Australian Hotels Association (Victoria) State Awards for Excellence, at a glitzy ceremony at Crown Palladium. \u201cIt’s a pretty satisfying reward for the effort, for all the work the team did during the lockdowns […]<\/p>\n