St George’s Greek community has been left outraged and disappointed after ‘Omeros on the Beach’ restaurant at Ramsgate Beach announced on its website that it has closed its doors for good after almost 20 years in business.
‘Omeros on the Beach’ was opened in 2002 by John Omeros and his wife Effie. Mr Omeros comes from a long line of restaurateurs, starting with The Paragon, La Perouse in 1970 and several other restaurants over the years.
The permanent closure reportedly came about because the restaurant was unable to renew its lease, which is managed by Bayside Council.
“It is with much disappointment, and sadness, as we are unable to renew our lease, we’ve closed our restaurant as of the 21st March 2021,” the statement reads.
The restaurant’s Facebook page was flooded with comments from supporters after the announcement, with many blaming the council for the closure.
In response to this criticism, the Leader reached out to Bayside Council for comment and a spokesman said the restaurant was located on Crown Land and was subject to a lease that expired on March 7, 2021.
“Council manages both the Crown Reserve and the lease relating to the restaurant,” the spokesman told the Leader.
“As commercial agreements expire over community and Crown Land, council is obliged to conduct a public marketing campaign and tender process prior to entering into new agreements, in particular where the properties have not been offered to the market for an extended period of time.
“Council will soon call for public tenders to lease the space and the existing operator has been advised that they are welcome to make a submission.
“The process of tendering commercial leases aligns with the recent process conducted for the Cahill Park Cafe (Wolli Creek) and the C-Side Cafe/Restaurant (Kyeemagh), and forthcoming sites, such as the proposed replacement of the Le Beach Hut Cafe/Restaurant.”
The restaurant had won numerous awards, including the Restaurant & Catering NSW Awards for Excellence for best formal seafood restaurant in 2019 and 2020.
It had also won numerous Leader St George Business Awards, including 2015 Business of the Year, and was awarded one hat in the prestigious Gault & Millaut restaurant guide in 2016 and 2017.
Source: The Leader.
