A bar and restaurant serving up one of the trendiest food cuisines in New Zealand at the moment – and located in a prime waterfront venue in a busy seaside township – has been placed on the market for sale.
Stoked Restaurant and Bar in Whitianga on the Coromandel Peninsula has been operating for six years – specialising in charcoal oven cooking serving up chargrilled meats, seafood, and vegetables with a charred finish and smoky aroma. The venue also cooks woodfired pizzas.
Renowned for the quality of its food along with its prime location, Stoked’s customer catchment area stretches in all directions around Whitianga - from Cooks Beach and Hahei to the east, up to Kuaotunu to the north.
The business is owned and operated by the well-known husband-and-wife team Andy and Bex who converted what was a three-bedroom bach into the stylish hospitality entity it is now. The couple are selling up the restaurant and bar to spend more time with their children, but are retaining ownership of the land and building.
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Now the Stoked Restaurant hospitality business operating from 19 The Esplanade in Whitianga is being marketed for sale at auction by negotiation through Bayleys Whitianga.
Salesperson Josh Smith said the venue was well known as one of Whitianga’s foremost food and beverage venues – capitalising on its sensational location overlooking the town’s estuary and boat harbour from a central town address.
“The establishment delivers multiple ‘zones’ within its floorplate to pander for different customer dynamics – with a nook-style bar area with leaners for those wanting a casual drink or bar snack type meal, through to a large internal dining area, and an extensive decking area allowing for al fresco dining and drinking. Bookings at Stoked are essential to get a table over the summer months when Whitianga is inundated with local visitors and holidaymakers,” said Smith.
“For any new owner, there is obvious potential to grow Stoked’s revenues by operating during the morning and lunchtime periods as a café, which its current owners have chosen not to do for lifestyle reasons.
“There is also the opportunity to increase the number of weddings and functions hosted over the quieter winter months. Unlike some holiday destination hospitality venues, Stoked trades all year round servicing a loyal Whitianga clientele.”
Chattels included in the sale of the Stoked Restaurant and Bar business include a full commercial kitchen fit-out with stainless steel benching, fridge and freezer units, bar fridges, extraction hoods, all front-of-house furniture, along with all crockery and service implements.
The business employs around 20 staff over the busy summer months – comprising full-time personnel and part-time workers in both front-of-house and kitchen sectors – with that number reducing to around eight staff over the winter period.
Stoked currently has a lease on its premises at 19 The Esplanade through until 2027, with two further five-year rights of renewal, paying an annual rent of $120,000 plus GST. The rear of the property has access to chillers and a kitchen, with a sealed vehicle yard for the unloading of supplies, along with private parking for staff. Substantial customer parking is available outside Stoked’s front deck on The Esplanade.
The marketing of Stoked Restaurant and Bar for sale comes not only as the summer season looms, but also as Whitianga is undergoing substantial regional growth.
Thames Coromandel District Council’s 2018-2028 Long Term Plan demographic trends report identifies Whitianga and Tairua as the two towns in the province forecast to experience the biggest growth in the number of holidays and full-time occupied homes being built.
“The projected dwelling and rating unit growth rate (for Whitianga) is higher than population projections due to the ongoing growth in holiday homes. Mercury Bay (which includes Whitianga) is projected to experience the greatest growth in population,” the statistics-based council report noted.
“The number of houses is projected to increase across all parts of the district over the next 30 years - with an increase of around 3,580 new houses between 2018 and 2048. Much of the projected growth in the number of houses is expected to occur in the Peninsula’s popular holiday settlements - Tairua and Whitianga.”
- Article supplied by Bayleys
