OMARI, located in the Bendigo Botanical Gardens, has been open for almost six months and has attracted a bigger response than expected.<\/p>\n
The venue incorporates a rotation of artworks by local creatives that cofounder and managing director Aaron Clay said keeps it fresh and interesting for returning customers.<\/p>\n
Since its opening, the cafe, restaurant, and events venue has seen customer numbers increase week on week.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe response from the public has been great, I think we maybe underestimated a little bit the response we would have,\u201d said Mr Clay.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we first opened, we had a relatively small team because we didn\u2019t think the demand was going to be as huge as it was, and we had to grow that very quickly within a short amount of time.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom there to now has just been a massive change in how we\u2019re running things, a more streamlined approach than there has been.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Clay said the venue now has more than 25 staff, and it\u2019s open seven days a week.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really good now that we\u2019re connecting with the locals and we\u2019re seeing regular return of customers, and so we\u2019re getting to know individuals,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the location specifically being where we are is a real drawcard for people.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey can explore after their lunch or breakfast and really walk through and have a look at what\u2019s around.\u201d<\/p>\n
Management is also testing live music events with a Summer Sunset Series, with musicians playing between 2pm and 5pm on Sunday 10 and Sunday 17 December.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re really trying to gauge if it\u2019s something we\u2019d like to do longer term or if it\u2019s something that we\u2019ll do sporadically as we need to,\u201d said Mr Clay.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t want to be your standard caf\u00e9 or restaurant, we want to toe that line between fun and experiences.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a wedding a couple of weeks ago, and they used the actual restaurant instead of the function centre, and that went off really well which was really nice to kind of see it used for a different purpose in that setting.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
OMARI, located in the Bendigo Botanical Gardens, has been open for almost six months and has attracted a bigger response than expected. The venue incorporates a rotation of artworks by local creatives that cofounder and managing director Aaron Clay said keeps it fresh and interesting for returning customers. Since its opening, the cafe, restaurant, and […]<\/p>\n