Stu Laundy snaps up iconic Byron foodie destination The Farm
Byron’s famous foodie destination The Farm, just a short walk from Chris Hemsworth’s mega-mansion, has fallen into the hands of Sydney celebrity publicans Stu Laundy and Fraser Short.
Confidential
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Chalk it up to yet another Byron Bay property snapped up by Sydneysiders.
In this case it’s Byron’s famous foodie destination The Farm which has fallen into the hands of Sydney celebrity publicans Stu Laundy and Fraser Short.
Laundy and Short, who operate under the business name The Collective, are believed to have paid $16m for the site which has become famous among locals and tourists for its “grow, feed, educate and give back” philosophy.
The business, which employs 120 staff, is located just a short walk from Chris Hemsworth’s mega-mansion and was listed for sale earlier this year by long-time owners Tom and Emma Lane.
CHEF COMES TO THE TABLE
Ibby Moubadder does not like the suggestion that Beirut is in “recovery”.
Born in the Lebanon capital, and the only member of his extended family who was not in the city during the devastating chemical blast on August 4, the famed Sydney restaurateur says his home city is far from being in “recovery”.
“Because even before the explosions … Beirut was recovering from something else,” says Moubadder, who runs the Lebanese eatery Nour and fried chicken outpost Henrietta’s on Surry Hills’ Crown St.
“Whether it was COVID-19, or the financial crisis, or a corrupt government … or war itself.
“Beirut is continuously being rebuilt and destroyed, rebuilt and destroyed.”
Thankfully, Moubadder’s family were far enough away from the blast — about 10km — that they were unharmed.
For his part Moubadder, who moved to Australia aged just 18 in 2008, is holding a fundraiser on Sunday at both Nour and Henrietta’s, where he says “100 per cent” of takings will be donated directly towards explosion relief efforts. Tickets for the brunch are $89. Dessert kings Gelato Messina plan to park a gelato van between the venues.
Meanwhile, Moubadder, probably better known more recently as the runner-up in last year’s season of MKR, has ruled out any more reality TV in his immediate future.
“It opened doors for me and I’m grateful but it’s too much … I filmed MKR for six months last year. It was way too long.”
SO MUCH FOR RETIREMENT
Despite reports some weeks back that Sydney’s most-famous ponytail would no longer grace a working kitchen, Neil Perry is back on the hunt for a new venue.
The former Rockpool owner, who sold his share in his acclaimed fine-dining chain in July but remains a shareholder, confirmed he is currently running an eye over a number of venues that will serve as the base for his next project.
“There are so many around at the moment,” says Perry, referring to the spike in empty venues due to COVID-19.
“Landlords are obviously keen to get tenants but I’m hoping to find one with a bit of a philanthropic streak.”
The new site will form a base for Perry’s charity food project Hope Delivery which is currently operating out of his lavish CBD eatery Rosetta (which closed due to COVID).
“However we hope to have Rosetta back operating by around the end of October, early November,” he says.
“So the new venue will basically operate as a production kitchen though we will also seat a few (diners) there also.”
Hope Delivery is churning out about 2000 meals a day which are provided to out-of-work international visa-holders or distributed by food-rescue charity OzHarvest.
Meanwhile, there could be a further venture yet on the horizon for Perry, whose non-compete contract with Rockpool Dining Group ends in 10 months.
“Something big is in the pipeline,” one CBD restaurant spy says. “He’s not retired … not by a long way.”