In a boost to Sydney’s late-night revitalisation, the sprawling old Hugos Lounge site on Bayswater Road is set to be born again as a restaurant and nightclub.

Restaurateur Andrew Becher, whose stable of hatted inner-east restaurants includes Parlar at Potts Point and Surry Hills’ Armorica, will reboot his own dormant brand, Pelicano, in the space next month.

Becher is gambling the tide has finally turned for late-night Sydney. He points to the success of new venues “pumping at 2am” and NSW Premier Chris Minns “taking away red tape” for budding operators.

“There are lots of green shoots bringing Kings Cross back. [Restaurateur] Maurice Terzini has also announced he’s going in on the same strip,” Becher says. In spring, Terzini and business partner Peter Shopovski of queer collective House of Mince will open Mirage KX, a cabaret bar on Bayswater Road.

There is no shortage of action in the neighbourhood. Piano bar The Hook and Caravin wine bar are part of a party of arrivals that includes sherry bar Vermuteria and rebooted stalwart Piccolo Bar. The team behind Fratelli Paradiso and 10 William is also rumoured to be eyeing a site on the corner of Roslyn Street and Ward Avenue.

Becher launched celebrity hotspot Pelicano bar and eatery in 2012 in the Double Bay site where, by a twist of fate, Neil Perry is opening Bobbie’s. Pelicano closed in 2019 due to an impending development, while Hugos Lounge had a less dignified exit.

Hugos Lounge – a six-time winner of Australia’s best nightclub – became a poster child for the effect of the lockout laws, and owner David Evans was one of the most vocal critics of the restrictions. Evans highlighted a 60 per cent drop in trade before Hugos closed in 2015, along with nine other licensed-venue casualties in the area.

“Hugos was my go-to venue, that was my Saturday and Sunday nights,” Becher says, excited by plans for the site under his watch. Pelicano’s first stage – a restaurant and terrace that will open at 5pm and trade late – launches on September 17, followed by the launch of the adjoining Pelicano nightclub on the October long weekend.

“Come in early and stay all night,” is Becher’s mantra, describing the type of venue Sydney has in short supply. The restaurant’s culinary pitch will be coastal Mediterranean with a strong Italian bent. Interiors will have “a similar nautical feel” to the Double Bay original.

Becher is also keen to distil some of the old Hugos spirit. “The crowd, the elegant nature of it, you always felt safe there,” he says.

While COVID ingrained a stay-at-home culture among many Australians, Becher is banking on more Sydneysiders heading out again: “If you build it, they will come.”