Iconic Kings Cross venue Hugo’s to close its doors
HUGO’S — formerly one of the hottest nightspots in Kings Cross and owned by Dave Evans, brother of chef Peter — will call last drinks this weekend as the Bayswater Rd strip grows even quieter.Substitute images]
FORMER Kings Cross hotspot Hugo’s, the last venue standing in once-thriving Bayswater Rd, will call last drinks this weekend, joining a long list of venues to close in the Kings Cross strip.
“I didn’t want to be proven right, but I have been,” said owner Dave Evans, who fronted the We Love Kings Cross campaign in 2012.
After meeting with the bank over the past few weeks, a spokesman said the 15-year-old venue has gone into voluntary administration and, subject to a decision by the administrators, this could be its last weekend of trade.
“We always said these laws would work against the good operators as well as the bad ones, and result in people simply voting with their feet and going to other, less prepared parts of Sydney,” Evans, the brother of chef Peter Evans, said. “And here we are.”
The bar, nightclub and pizza restaurant, celebrity hang-out and scene of many a product launch had a combined capacity for 680 people, but failed to have any strike recorded against it under the Government’s three strikes rule.
Since the NSW Government introduced one-size-fits-all alcohol laws in Kings Cross in 2012, there has been an 80 per cent decrease in pedestrian foot traffic, resulting in Hugo’s business being down 60 per cent, the operators said.
Crowds have relocated to areas such as Newtown, where there are increasing concerns about assaults and violence.
There are similar scenes in Double Bay and Bondi, but Hugos – six times voted best nightclub in Australia, and six times voted as having the best pizza in Australia and once, in New York, the best pizza in the world – now cannot make ends meet, the company said.
“Look, it’s a fun industry but I am absolutely serious when it comes to making sure that our patrons and neighbours are safe,” said Evans.
“Hugos had no trouble with alcohol, which as it turns out is more than former Premier Barry O’Farrell can say.
O’Farrell might have #notearsshed but yesterday our company, as the operator of one of the best and safest clubs in the country, probably has to say goodbye to 70 jobs because of his one size fits all approach.
“Let’s not forget that this is on top of 100 jobs already lost in my venue over the past couple of years, and thousands more in adjoining venues.
“The real kick in the guts is that well-intentioned but ill-informed laws don’t appear to be solving the problem – they are simply moving it away, while the good, safe operators can’t sustain their business.
“I’m not even angry any more, I’m just sad that such horrible tragedy was followed by such ineptitude, and now mass sackings in one of the places that set the benchmark on how to provide fun, safely.”
HLB Mann Judd was appointed as a voluntary administrator, and will trade Hugos Lounge & Bar Pizza in Kings Cross for the last time this weekend.
Hugos is currently investigating a class action with other operators and property owners, for financial compensation due to the loss value in their commercial properties and trading businesses.
Other venues in the Hugos group, including its Manly restaurant, are unaffected.
The failures in Bayswater Rd in particular have taken place over the past few years, not just the past 17 months after the lockup laws were introduced.
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The famous Bayswater Brasserie closed in 2013, replaced by the short-lived Janus which lasted just a few months. The Piano Room, with its ties with Kings Cross kingpin John Ibrahim, closed after a few year. It became Santa Barbera, operated by Drink N Dine duo Jamie Wirth and James Miller, who tragically died of an accidental overdose soon after it’s opening in 2013.
Then there was the sprawling Mansions pub which is now an apartment complex.
Hugos neighbour Concrete Blonde, with its $2.5 million fitout, went bust in 2013 after soft sales.
More recent closures include Soho, Trademark and the Backroom.
Staff were told about the Hugo’s closure in a meeting on Wednesday night, with the news leaked soon after on social media.
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