Under a banner of “enough is enough” and calls for government change, chef Neil Perry has added political powerbroker to his CV as the founding chair of a new industry association. The newly minted Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association (ARCA), announced on Friday, May 31, is already making waves, stepping on the turf of a century-old stalwart.

Over recent months, in kitchens and restaurant alcoves across the country, hospitality heavyweights have been plotting the birth of ARCA, with a clear mandate to push the case of restaurants and cafes to government on a range of issues, from skilled worker immigration, wages and tax, right down to micro issues such as outdoor dining.

The association’s newly appointed chief executive is Wes Lambert, who spearheaded Restaurant & Catering’s strategy during COVID and won a number of awards in that period before departing in 2022.

“Every restaurant and cafe owner is facing unprecedented challenges,” Lambert says. “Taxes, inflation, wage pressures, costs of doing business, and skilled staffing shortages, along with ever-increasing rents, are pushing the [sector] to the wall.”

Representatives from the hospitality groups behind high-profile Sydney restaurants such as Quay, Restaurant Hubert and The Grounds, and Stokehouse and Lake House in Victoria have thrown their weight behind the new group. Chris Lucas, owner of Chin Chin in Sydney and Melbourne, plus a number of other Victorian-based restaurants have also joined the lobby effort.

‘Every restaurant and cafe owner is facing unprecedented challenges.’

Wes Lambert, Australian Restaurant and Cafe Association

The restaurant and cafe segment of the hospitality industry holds some sway with government, with its 110,000 venues generating $64 billion in annual revenue. It is also one of the country’s largest employers of young people.

But is ARCA edging on the turf of Restaurant & Catering Australia, the industry association that traces its origins back to 1922? “We want to work with them, we’re adding another voice,” Perry says. “There are many industries as big as ours with a number of voices.”

Lambert agrees: “We need to work collaboratively, the more voices we have for advocacy the better.”

While details of ARCA’s board haven’t been announced, it is believed it will include Merivale’s chief people officer Jessica Furolo and Alla Wolf-Tasker, the owner of Lake House in Daylesford, Victoria. With restaurants and cafes in the midst of one of its most challenging years in memory, the ARCA board met today to “address the tough economic conditions” and set its priorities.

“The current policy framework is not supporting the restaurant and cafe sector to continue to contribute to Australia’s economy,” Perry says. “We’ve been calling out for change and today we’ve gathered Australia’s leading restaurant owners together to drive impactful change in legislation and policy shifts to allow the industry to survive and thrive.”