A year that's thrown some curveballs has not stopped Dubbo cafe owner and chef Errin Williamson from going after her goals.
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The proprietor of CSC has taken the plunge to start a new restaurant in the city.
Down The Lane opened on Friday offering a modern Italian-style menu with a "focus on local food and wine".
The new venture has created 10 jobs, making Mrs Williamson the employer of a total of 34 people across her two hospitality businesses.
The restaurant's opening also returns activity to the Macquarie Street property left vacant by the closure of tapas eatery and bar Two Doors in September.
COVID-19 restrictions devastated the hospitality industry earlier this year, forcing its members to close for all but takeaway for more than two months.
Despite the experience, Mrs Williamson was not deterred from pursuing her goal to open a second venue.
"It was a little bit daunting but also through the past 12 months, my team has been so amazing, they've really shown me how they can just step up, and they have been running CSC, and they've given me time to work on the business," she said.
"And it kind of got to a point where I was like ok, everything is running really well down here, this is a good time to do it."
In arriving at the "beautiful space", the restaurateur has in a way come full circle.
"I actually started my apprenticeship here, and was head chef down here, over 10 years ago now," Mrs Williamson said.
"So it's been nice to be able to come back here, lots of memories."
In a "full-on five weeks" the property received a makeover, with Mrs Williamson reporting of engaging local tradespeople and suppliers to complete the work.
Jack Cross, Mrs Williamson's brother, has moved from his position as head chef at CSC to take up the same role at the new restaurant.
They had always worked "really well together", and designing the menu was one of the first jobs they did together for the new venture, Mrs Williamson said.
It includes "seven different types of pizzas, five pastas, and then some cute antipasto" and desserts.
"Everything is made in-house, and our fresh pasta is hand-made pasta that we order from Mudgee," she said.
The businesswoman said she could not have imagined in her early days that she would come so far.
"I was very young when I started and I probably didn't think that this would be where it would be," she said.
"It's been really rewarding and we're really lucky to have such a good team, we have such good employees."
Faye Wheeler
I have been a journalist for more than a decade and in that time I have been keeping Daily Liberal readers up to date about issues affecting them and what's happening in their community. Throughout my career I have covered a range of rounds and most recently I have been focusing on the business round.
I have been a journalist for more than a decade and in that time I have been keeping Daily Liberal readers up to date about issues affecting them and what's happening in their community. Throughout my career I have covered a range of rounds and most recently I have been focusing on the business round.
