The days of the traditional pub front bar are almost over, with renovations creating a new culture of drinking in our suburbs. Forty years after the end of the six o’clock swill, when men guzzled huge volumes of beer every afternoon before hotels closed at 6pm, the once male-dominated suburban pub now is home to their wives and children as much as their mates. Australian Hotels Association’s SA general manager Ian Horne says the reason is hotels now have to match restaurants, cafes, bistros and other eating and entertainment options if they are to compete for our dollars. The old public bar just does not pull enough patrons any more. “There’s an inevitability about its future,” Mr Horne says. “The front bar is on the way out.” He cites a change in the local loyalty of customers with so much choice available in the modern hospitality sector and increased affluence of much of the traditional hotel’s customer base compared with previous generation. “Customers have high expectations today,” Mr Horne says. “They’re much more savvy than even a decade ago.” The major changes in hotel offerings have come in gaming facilities and food and beverage areas, the former often providing funds for the latter’s updating. The Advertiser (Adelaide), January 12.
Jan 13
