Moonee Ponds: Punters hyped over TOTE Bar and Dining restaurant

It used to be a bookies’ favourite spot but now the foodies are taking over the racing club in Moonee Ponds.

The inside of the tote building has been rebuilt into a contemporary dining space. Picture: Supplied

One of Australian horse racing’s iconic buildings is proving to be a hit with punters after a major revamp.

The tote building in Moonee Valley Racing Club has always been a popular spot, and in a previous life, was where punters cashed in their bets and claimed their winnings after a successful day at the track.

The original tote building is one of the last surviving examples of a totalisator facility in Victoria and was one of the first in Victoria to receive the betting machine.

An Australian inventor called George Julius came up with the totalisator device to calculate betting odds in real-time and it quickly became a staple across the racing industry.

Venue manager Mukesh Yengalwar said the TOTE Bar and Dining restaurant reflected the building’s history.

“This building was the tote house in the 1930s … the tote building was shut down for a while but then they decided to open this place as a restaurant with a contemporary style Australian food,” Mr Yengalwar said.

“We have a canopy which looks just like the racecourse … basically the concept of the restaurant is, since we are part of the Moonee Valley Racing Club, is to give you the ambience of the racecourse.”

With almost a year in its new form, the restaurant is proving a hit with punters ahead of the festive period which staff expects to be a bumper patch for the new establishment with a new seasonal menu on the way, head chef John Jo said.

“Next year our plan is to open on more days … we’re part of the community here in Moonee Ponds so hopefully the business will grow and we can open for the full seven days in the future.”