For a while there, she’d fallen on hard times, and nobody wanted her.
But now the newly revived The Riverhead tavern is back on the market for the first time since owners Stephen and Paula Pepperell picked up the tired old pub and restored her in 2010.
The tavern started trading in 1857. That makes it one of the oldest continuously trading pubs in the country (the title of oldest is contested by the Moutere Inn, near Nelson, which was established in 1850). But it had fallen on hard times, infamous for its rough trade in a part of Riverhead that was far from chic.
After nine years sailing around the world, the Pepperells were ready for a project that was uniquely New Zealand. They settled on hospitality industry as a way to show off Kiwis' famed friendliness, but were on a bargain hunt.
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They were tied up on their yacht at the Viaduct Harbour when a broker offered them a look at The Riverhead with a winning sales pitch: “You won’t want that, it’s completely stuffed.”
But the couple – Stephen had a trade, Paula had a marketing and graphic design background – were looking for a something they could breathe life into, that was near the water and within 40 minutes of family in Auckland.
The couple were determined to renovate the pub to keep the historic character, seeing themselves as custodians of the history of not just the pub, but the whole Riverhead area. They were, gratified to welcome locals who descended with photographs and stories about the area, including photos of the original Deacon family who ran the pub; a reception room is named after them.
The pub was closed in May 2010, reopening after a mammoth restoration in February 2011. Everything was done – plumbing, electrical, fire-proofing, new sewage, a new dock – but the Pepperells were looking to restore character, not strip it out.
The owners of The Riverhead have become custodians of the local area history. Photo / supplied
Nick Thompson, JLL New Zealand director of hotels and tourism, who is marketing the property in Australia and New Zealand, says that the Pepperells invested some $6.42 million in the renovations and extensions, making The Riverhead a destination from the city.
Stephen says that they’d planned to add accommodation on the adjoining land (it is available for sale too) as the area is easily accessible from Auckland airport through the new tunnel. Riverhead has gentrified around the tavern that has spread to include a garden bar, boat house for events, marquees and lawns for weddings. The charm of boating or ferrying up the river around high tide to the tavern is still a big attraction, he says, and the couple are already expecting tenders from super yachts here for the America’s Cup to wend their way north west and up the river.
JLL’s group vice president Will Connolly says that this sort of venue in New Zealand is also attractive to international operators, particularly from Australia, attracted by the tourism opportunities and the lack of any similar competition here.
The Pepperells are proud of the staff they’ve nurtured through the nearly ten years of operation. Some have been there since the beginning, a rare achievement in the notoriously mobile hospitality industry, and the business has won several hospo and business awards.
And the Pepperells? Stephen says after nine years, he and Paula have itchy feet again, planning to travel the world again.
