Penrith’s new secret bar with a Panthers pedigree; Jolene’s `mutes Mariah Carey’s Christmas anthem

With it’s flower store front and connections with some big name Panthers NRL figures and a UFC champ, Penrith’s new ‘secret’ bar won’t be under wraps for long.

The Flower Shop licensee Brendon Hill and venue manager Claudia Hunt. Picture: Jonathan Ng

A secret bar, hidden behind a flower shop, will open in the heart of Penrith with Penrith Panthers pedigree.

The Flower Shop is being opened by venture capitalists Quiet Capital, who own the Asian inspired Duck Duck Goose and brewery Drink West, the latter of which Panthers star Nathan Cleary has a partnership with.

The Flower Shop is a secret bar in Penrith set to open this week.

Jacob Farragher, the son of former Penrith forward John Farragher, is the brains behind the new bar. UFC champion Tai Tuivasa, who is ranked No. 5 in the world, is also a silent partner in the business.

Farragher, who himself played NRL for Cronulla Sharks before moving into hospitality, based his inspiration of The Flower Room on Atlanta hotspot The Garden Room, in the US, as well as the flower stands in Europe.

Details of the bar are being deliberately kept vague until the launch on Thursday, part owner Brendan Hill said it will have international offerings, offer table service, expensive champagnes by the glass, and have a focus on live music.

“We don’t want to be the best bar in Penrith, we’re going to be the best bar in NSW,” he said.

“We are passionate about Western Sydney and want Penrith to be a destination. I’m born and bred in the West but spend years working in the city and was sick of it. We want to build something out here we are proud of.”

Big plans for success: The Flower Shop licensee Brendon Hill Picture: Jonathan Ng

Penrith star Nathan Cleary owns part of Drink West with Quiet Capital, who are behind The Flower Shop. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

Hill joked that Farragher’s floral concept for the bar is not surprising when you know him.

“He might be a former NRL player and into MMA but he will also be captivated by a tree for 10 minutes,” Hill said.

Cleary, along with Tuivasa, will be at Thursday night’s opening, which is just the first stage in the bar’s concept. Another space within the venue is planned in coming months.

Former Penrith player John Farragher who became a quadriplegic when injured in scrum during game with Newtown in 1978. He’s pictured here with a 10-year-old Jacob in 1998.

The John Farragher story is well known in Penrith. He’s a life member and board member of the Panthers. In 1978 he was left a quadriplegic after a scrum collapsed on him during only his seventh game of professional rugby league.

MARIAH ON MUTE: JOLENE’S BANS CAREY CAROL FROM PLAYLIST

In streams alone, Mariah Carey has made an estimated US$4m from Christmas anthem, All I Want For Christmas.

But one Sydney bar has decided it will not be adding any money to her growing bank account.

The team at Country and Western bar Jolene’s have declared this festive season a Mariah Carey free zone and will not play the famous song.

Nor for that matter will the CBD basement bar play anything from fellow Christmas icon, Michael Buble.

The bar’s owner Simon Rose-Hopkins, said while he’s leaning into the Christmas season, he refuses to play the clichéd Christmas songs you’ve heard on repeat.

Jolene's bar in Sydney has boldly banned Mariah Carey Christmas tunes from its playlist. Pictures: Supplied

“We are doing Christmas on steroids. We’ve got lights, reindeers, Christmas trees and Christmas cocktails like a Gingerbread Manhattan and a Pavlova Christmas slushie. We’ve got a Country Christmas playlist, but we won’t be playing Mariah,” he said.

Instead the bar is playing Lee Kernaghan’s version of Jingle Bell Rock, Dolly Parton’s A Smokey Mountain Christmas and Blake Shelton’s Two Step ‘Round the Christmas tree.

So far, Rose-Hopkins said he hasn’t had any complaints from his stance over the “holiday clichéd” music.

“It’s been met with giggles and admiration. We get a lot of retailer workers coming in after their stores close and say thank you because they are so over hearing the traditional retail Christmas music!”

The bar has become a respite for many of Sydney’s bar staff, who often pop in during their breaks at work or after. Country music star Troy Casser Daley also recently visited.

ZAFFERANO’S SPECIAL DELIVERY FROM SICILY

Shows like The White Lotus and From Scratch might be transporting to viewers to Sicily, but now an important piece of the picturesque Italian island has arrived in Sydney.

Chef Francesco Crivello has arrived in Sydney to cook at his son, Simone’s Paddington restaurant, Zafferano Trattoria.

Simone and his partner Isobel Galloway turned the cafe into a charming, a bustling, neighbourhood trattoria earlier this year.

The restaurant serves authentic Sicilian food and wine and was a way for Simone to pay tribute to his father, who is a famous chef in Italy and run an iconic restaurant in Sicily’s Capo Zafferano, Trattori Francu U’Piscaturi.

After three years separated by Covid, Francesco has come to Sydney and will help cook with Simone a five course Sicilian Christmas or Buone Feste from 21st to 24th December.

Sicilian chef Simone Crivello, with his father, Francesco Crivello, who has come to Australia for Christmas and to cook with his son, at Zafferano Trattoria, in Paddington. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

“If you say my Dad’s name in Italy, everywhere you go, everyone knows him! I impersonate my dad in my life. I’m honoured to be his son and now for him to help me in my kitchen,” said Simone.

Francesco jokes, in Italian, that with our 53 years experience in the industry it means he’ll be the boss on the nights.

Highlights of the menu include antipasto fritto plate, panelle, olives, arancini as well as a seafood risotto, pasta al forno, cannoli, gelo di melone and spicy margaritas.

“I’ve learnt that Sicilian Christmases are about abundance, about family and celebrating life and that’s what we are trying to bring,” said Galloway.

The two add that the recent boom in television series set in Sicily, like Binge’s The White Lotus and Netflix series From Scratch, have put a spotlight of the island’s flavours.

“The presentation of Sicilian food is not like a Michelin star restaurant in Paris. It’s not fancy. It’s out honouring simple ingredients and having food and culture come together,” said Galloway.

“It’s been interesting for me having Simone’s parents here because we’ve eaten together so many times and can taste the influence of both Simone and Francesco. It’s made me want to burst into tears.”

When asked what Francesco thinks of his son’s restaurant, he replied: “Bellissimo.”