2 weeks Ago By Scott Bolles
A decade-long legal stoush between Hugos restaurateur David Evans and the Sydney Opera House Trust over the 2014 tender for Opera Bar has finally been resolved, just as the first deadline passed for the latest contenders trying to snare one of the golden geese of Sydney hospitality. Expressions of interest closed on Thursday to operate Opera Bar and its neighbour, House Canteen, for the next decade. Located at the base of the Sydney Opera House, it is one of Sydney’s most coveted hospitality venues given the breathtaking harbour views and commercial yields.
Hospitality group Solotel and chef Matt Moran have successfully run the venue, which sits on the edge of the harbour, as a joint venture for two decades and confirmed they will contend again. Speculation has been running hot this week about the operations that would like to take Solotel’s spot. The Boathouse Group confirmed it has placed its hat in the ring, with in-the-news hospitality giant Merivale and Laundy Hotels also rumoured to be in the running.
A couple of expected contenders have ruled themselves out. Sunday Co., the burgeoning group behind Morrison’s Oyster Bar & Grill and Opera Bar neighbour Whalebridge, confirmed it hasn’t joined the race, and it’s the same applies to The Point Group ( Shell House, The Dolphin ), which is busy opening The International at the entrance to the new Martin Place station and has its own long-term waterside project, Fort Denison.
Etymon, which runs Loulou Bistro , Poetica and The Charles Grand Brasserie , are also out of the running. The tender contenders are in the middle of an arduous process, with either a new operator to take over later in 2025, or the incumbent staying put. The last time Opera Bar came up for tender in 2014, a closely fought race turned into a legal battle after Evans, the owner of Hugos, accused an architect of leaking his plans and the Sydney Opera House Trust, which controlled the tender, and giving Solotel an unfair advantage by allowing it to make a second submission after the deadline.
The architect denied the accusations, as did the Opera House Trust, which said that as a state institution the Sydney Opera House must abide by a strict procurement policy. It also explained that the process was closely monitored by an external probity adviser. The case reached the courts in 2018, and a judge ordered the parties to go to mediation.
Evans was not suing Solotel or Moran. Six years later, Evans says the matter was eventually settled in July, but he is bound by a confidentiality agreement. “The settlement was confidential.
I cannot discuss the matter,” he says. A spokesperson for the Opera House says: “The settlement and terms of settlement are confidential, and the parties are unable to make any public comment about the matter.” Celebrity hotspot Pelicano bar to be reborn at former Hugos Lounge site in Kings Cross.
