Lebanese pizzeria opens at Pendle Hill shops

A strange thing happened at Pendle Hill last week.Maryooch Lebanese pizzeria and cafe opened opposite the train station, a business that stands among a sea of Sri Lankan and Indian eateries.

Maryooch Cafe owner Fatma Hussein brings some pizza and coffee to Pendle Hill. Picture: Angelo Velardo

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A strange thing happened at Pendle Hill last week.

Maryooch Lebanese pizzeria and cafe opened opposite the train station, a business that stands among a sea of Sri Lankan and Indian eateries.

Fatma Hussein and her husband Mohamad Mohamad, who also runs Pendle Hill Fruit World around the corner, are using his mother’s pizza making techniques in their Joyce St shop.

“We noticed there was a shortage of Lebanese pizza in the area,’’ Mrs Hussein said.

Maryooch is the only eatery selling Lebanese pizza at Pendle Hill.

“We have a shortage of cafes.

“I love it here. Generally people like to get good quality and cheaper prices so they want a bit of both.”

Mohamad Mohamad and Fatma Hussein saw the need for coffee in Pendle Hill. Picture: Angelo Velardo

Over the past five months Pendle Way, the main street of Pendle Hill, has seen long time businesses including Tanya’s Green Orchid Florist and Hardware and General shut.

A medical centre has replaced the hardware store, which relocated to the Girraween industrial area but has since shut.

Fatma Hussein serves traditional and Lebanese pizza. Picture: Angelo Velardo

Pendle Way has seen the closure of several businesses in recent years. Picture: Carmela Roche

Five years ago, Lisa Govorko shut her hair salon of 14 years and relocated to Bella Vista after renting it from her parents-in-law.

“Basically I outgrew the salon,’’ she said.

“I opened it in 2000 and it was just a matter of upsizing and changing the location.”

Many of her former clients keep her up to date with Pendle Hill’s changes.

Pendle Hill’s main drag. Picture: Carmela Roche

“I think a lot of my clients missed that community spirit that the town used to have and I think a lot of the shopkeepers don’t look after their shops well,’’ she said.

Cumberland Council has a graffiti assistance program that removes tags from private properties. They then are handed a kit to take on the task themselves.

The suburb is best known for its Indian eateries. Picture: Carmela Roche

But residents might have to be patient for more choice of shops at Pendle Hill despite the population expected to soar when the former Bonds factory site is redeveloped into 1200 units and a 5500sq m park.

An artist’s impression of a supermarket earmarked for a former Bonds cutting room.

The project will comprise 6000sq m of commercial space including a supermarket — but shops won’t open until the fourth stage, well after the influx of residents have settled there.

The problem would compound traffic congestion at Pendle Way and hinder retail opportunities.

The project will include a park at the corner of Jones and Dunmore streets.

“We see there’s an under supply of retail in that area now,’’ Cumberland councillor Lisa Lake said.

“The Woolies there has a much more limited range.”

But she said a full-line supermarket, earmarked for the factory’s former cutting room, would provide more retail options for Pendle Hill consumers, many whom shop at Wentworthville Shopping Plaza or Aldi.

Wentworthville Mall has suffered lately. Picture: Adam Yip

Cr Lake said her ward — encompassing Wentworthville, Pendle Hill, Mays Hill, Toongabbie, Westmead and parts of Greystanes and Merrylands — faced the highest population growth across the council.

She said it was expected to leap 54 per cent in the next 20 years when 20,000 people are expected to move here.

However, Cr Lake said a HillPDA Economic Planning Valuations economic impact assessment found the existing shops at Pendle Hill would not be under threat by the Bonds development.

“They also said Pendle Hill town centre around Pendle Way would also have an advantage of being convenient because it’s close to the train station,” she said.

The council has also employed a business engagement officer to liaise with traders.

Wentworthville Mall has also suffered setbacks over the past 12 months when IGA supermarket shut.