Plans for a major expansion at a hinterland distillery and restaurant that were almost abandoned will soon begin after “differences” were resolved with Noosa Council.
The owner of Pomona Distilling Co says the newly approved expansion to his long-standing establishment is set to fill a gap in the area.
After a few speed bumps with the council, master distiller and owner Robin Yates said works would soon start for the addition of a smokehouse and charcoal grill at the distillery.
He revealed the new 129sqm building would have a rustic timber weatherboard look coupled with pitched metal roofs to complement the village feel of Pomona.
The new building will also include a 45sqm deck and come off the end of the existing structure, which was the site of the original Pomona Bakery built in the early 1900s.
The combined kitchen and smokehouse will be an open-plan area used for preparation and food display.
Mr Yates said a car park with 20 car spaces would be provided to service the development. The car spaces will be shared between the established commercial tenancies fronting Reserve Street and the new smokehouse.
But he said it hadn’t all been smooth sailing since plans were originally lodged and approved with the council.
“The development approval came with a whole lot of conditions, some of which were totally impractical, that we had to work through,” he said.
“They wanted things like shaded trees in the car park, when the existing car park has been there for ages and I’m not sure how we could plant trees in asphalt.
“But we’ve sorted our differences out and council has been pretty good with trying to see it through our eyes. It’s nice that business and council can resolve matters cordially.”
He said the idea for the smokehouse came after numerous customers began asking for more meat products in the existing bistro, as well as the sheer popularity of fire-cooking.
“It will be great,” he said.
“Everywhere I look fire-cooking is beginning to look a bit trendy … I think we are going back to our caveman days of sitting around the fire cooking a bit of meat.
“All this type of cooking is not easy to find, especially done nicely, so we thought we will just do it ourselves.”
He said the demand for fire-cooking was already strongly established.
“We went down to that Agnes restaurant in Brisbane where everything is cooked on flames – and I believe you can’t get in there for two or three months – so it’s exciting to see what attention ours will garner,” he said.
“I know that food tastes better cooked on charcoal because anything that drips down into the fire comes back in the smoke and it just makes a lovely flavour.”
The distiller of 40 years said competition from the many other distilleries now established on the Coast wasn’t even an afterthought.
“We only use organic botanicals in our products and our gin is made very slowly and in a very bespoke fashion,” he said.
“We are very happy with what we are doing. It’s a very slow process – our gin takes a lot longer to make than the commercial one.”
He said the new smokehouse menu items would be as carefully created as the Pomona Distillery spirits.
“It will be grass-fed beef, dry-aged meats and smoked meats, and again we will take a bit of care with what we do,” he said.
“We are doing it for love not money, it’s just nice to know what you are serving and giving people is the best thing you can do.
“We use local suppliers where possible for everything we do, which includes doing the building for the expansion.
“I’d love to be open a month or two before Christmas. We will still have to find kitchen, bar and wait staff … there is still a fair bit to go, but I’m pretty sure it will all work well.”
He revealed future development plans included a new wellness centre where the two newly rezoned houses next to the distillery stand.
“We are still working on that, and we’ve got a meeting with council to begin with,” he said.
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