Want to own one of Australia's best restaurants?

CALLING all chefs, foodies and would-be restaurant owners. Mooloolaba restaurant named one of Australia's best is on the market.

TOP GONG: Mooloolaba Spice Bar has been named in TripAdvisor's Top 10 Australian restaurants for 2016. Picture: Contributed

IT WAS recently crowned the seventh-best restaurant in Australia by TripAdvisor, is a Mooloolaba icon and could be yours to own.

Spice Bar is up for sale, the Asian fusion restaurant that has earned plenty of plaudits, with owners Kym-Sarah and Aaron Ruttan looking for a change of pace after a decade in operation.

The business, which is set to turn over more than $2.1 million in revenue this financial year has been on the market for about six weeks with Savvy Business Sales, marketed by Steve Schindler.

He said it was an opportunity for buyers to come in without having to make changes to a business clearly operating well.

"You would not change a thing there," he said.

Spice Bar at Mooloolaba

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He said there was room to expand operations with more functions in the venue and said the restaurant had one of the highest revenues on the Coast, commensurate with its status.

It's on the market for $450,000 plus stock at valuation, which he said was about $20,000 worth of goods.

Owner Kym-Sarah Ruttan has operated Spice Bar with her husband Aaron for 10 year, starting in South Australia before moving to Mooloolaba.

She said it was part of their 10-year business plan to exit at some stage and with their 10-year anniversary approaching next year it felt like the right time to step back, enjoy some time off and focus on family.

"We want the right person to come in," she said.

Kym-Sarah said the 30-strong staff had been assured they were not under threat, that their expertise was one of the assets of the business.

"The first thing we did was meet with all our staff (to tell them of plans and reassure them)," she said.

She admitted it wasn't an easy decision, the duo now reaping the rewards of years of hard work to establish a reputation and a brand well-respected.

"It's a good time to do it," she said.

"We want a big holiday, we haven't had a real holiday in 10 years."

She said they would return with a smaller-scale venue in future, hoping to buy a premises outright and that new venture would be on the Sunshine Coast.

"We're going for more of that lifestyle," Kym-Sarah said.

She advised anyone looking to buy the business to ensure they had hospitality experience and said with dedication it was rewarding.

"We feel really proud of how far we've come but at the same time we've been talking about it for years," she said.

"We're excited for someone to step into that."

Kym-Sarah said there was no real urgency for the sale with strong cash flow, meaning the process could take its time to ensure the right buyer was found.

"I think that's what it's all about," she said.

Originally published as Want to own one of Australia's best restaurants?