Cross Keys Hotel in Cavan latest pub to drop topless bar – and Land of Promise in Hindmarsh could follow

Another Adelaide suburban pub has dumped its topless bar – but it’s not just a “philosophical” decision. It’s also about the numbers.

The Cross Keys Hotel in Adelaide’s industrial north is the latest suburban pub to ditch its topless bar, and it could soon be followed by the closure of another of the city’s infamous adult venues.

The move to a more family-friendly offering comes as part of a $2m revamp of the Cavan pub overseen by new owners GM Hotels.

It follows a similar decision by the nearby Cavan Hotel to end topless waitressing, and leaves the Land of Promise in Hindmarsh as one of the last remaining suburban pubs to offer adult entertainment.

However it is understood developers are closing in on an acquisition of that site after it was put on the market earlier this year.

MAPPED: Who owns SA’s pubs?

Inside the refurbished Cross Keys Hotel in Cavan. Picture: Supplied by GM Hotels

GM Hotels managing director Greg Maitland said his company acquired the Cross Keys last year with a vision to reposition it to “a much broader customer base”.

“If you look at suburban pubs in Adelaide, I think there’s only one pub that does that (topless bar) now,” he said.

“It’s not really a sign of where we are in a modern society, for a suburban hotel to be doing that. Sixty per cent plus of my employees are female so it didn’t really sit comfortably with me. I never bought it on the proviso of trading it as a topless bar – we bought it to specifically renovate it, change it, reposition it and off we go.”

The refurbished Cross Keys Hotel in Cavan. Picture: Supplied by GM Hotels

GM Hotels is one of the state’s largest hotel groups, operating 13 venues across Adelaide including the Paradise Hotel, Tower Hotel, Whitehorse Inn and recently renovated Pier Hotel in Glenelg.

Mr Maitland said the venues were trading strongly in the aftermath of Covid-19 but a shortage of workers, including chefs and managers, remained an ongoing challenge across the portfolio.

And while admitting the Cross Keys had lost some regular customers due to the recent changes, he was confident they would pay dividends in the future.

“It’s not just a philosophical thing, it’s actually a specific strategy,” he said.

“We know from our other venues that there’s a much more broader opportunity out there than just guys going to a topless bar basically.”