Montezuma’s Mexican Restaurant and Bar at Burleigh Heads arcade moves after 42 years
An iconic Gold Coast restaurant is reluctantly leaving the Burleigh Theatre Arcade - but it’s not the end of the venue.
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ICONIC Gold Coast restaurant Montezuma’s Mexican Restaurant & Bar is reluctantly leaving the Burleigh Theatre Arcade after 42 years at the Goodwin Terrace address.
But it’s not shutting forever, with managing director Rachelle Kyte confirming the popular eatery is moving to a nearby site in Park Ave beside Woolworths.
“Sadly our lease is up in December and we're moving to make way for a development, it’s certainly going to be the end of an era,” she said.
“We’re devastated but we don’t have a choice, so we’re going to make the most of it.”
One of the Gold Coast’s longest-serving restaurants, Montezuma’s is know for its sangrias, nachos, colourful salads.and authentic cuisine. It was established in 1978 and was taken over by Ms Kyte’s parents six years later.
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“Mum bought it in 1984 and I was working here from the age of 16, and I’m now 45, so that’s nearly 30 years,” she said.
“But there are staff that have been working here for longer than me, some nearly 35 years. And they’re all coming with us to our premises.
“The last week in November will be our last in the arcade and we hope as many locals enjoy a meal with us at our iconic location before we move.”
“It’s going to be very sad to leave because we’ve made a lot of memories here.”
Ms Kyte said the new restaurant would be a lot smaller but it would still have an alfresco dining area, and next door would be Montezuma’s takeaway store.
“We plan to move as much as our memorabilia with us, because we’ve acquired so much over the years and we want to ensure our new restaurant has the same relaxed and fun feeling this one does.”
Broadbeach local Stacey Joseph dined at the Burleigh Heads restaurant last week, a place she’s been visiting since the late 1980s when she worked at Brothers Neilsen surf empire.
“Heaps of us who worked in the surf industry used to have long lunches at Montezuma's and never made it back to work, back in the day it was the place to be in Burleigh,” she said.
“With its Big Bertha tables, world-famous sangrias and secret recipes that to this day I adore, it’s always been one of the Gold Coast’s hidden gems.
“John (her husband) and I used to go there when were dating 20 years ago, and I recently took our kids to show them the incredible atmosphere and food.
“When we were there I saw bottle after bottle of sangrias go past our table to customers, it’s just that good.”
“It’s very sad to see it leave the arcade, and I personally wish it could stay and be kept for a funky movie theatre for locals, but I suppose it’s progress and all that.”
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