A TRIBUTE to the name of his eldest son, Jeremy Norris will expand his business empire across the Central West's hospitality sector and is set to launch Monty's restaurant and bar in Molong later this year.
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The Bank Street heritage-listed building will soon be the former home of Sweetness Café and General Store; a well-known business which has operated in the town since 2015.
"We wanted to retire so we put it on the market a while back, but it was about two weeks before COVID hit," former owner of Molong's Sweetness Café Michael Johnson said.
"We had some bites, but everyone wanted it for nothing and we're glad we waited, because what [Jeremy Norris] is going to turn it into is going to be great for the town."
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Owner of seven established cafés across the Central West, Jeremy Norris currently operates three of those businesses in Orange, which includes the city's well-known Byng Street Café, with two in Dubbo and one in Lucknow.
But now, he's feeling pumped and ready for the world of fine dining.
"It's my first restaurant venture which I'm really looking forward to, because my background's always been with restaurants," Mr Norris said.
"It's definitely taken me back to my youth in hospitality, so I'm very excited about it."
Visions for Monty's restaurant include evening dining experiences with brunches, which Mr Norris says will also provide some extra roles within the town.
"The plan is to do dinner on a Thursday, Friday and Saturday night, and then brunch on the weekend for both Saturday and Sunday mornings," he explained.
"I think it'll be good to have those five services with three dinners and two brunches and it'll also provide those full-time gig hours for a few people during the week."
The dining gigs will encompass a theme of local produce from the west, with a unique twist on table service.
It's definitely taken me back to my youth in hospitality, so I'm very excited about it.
- New owner of the Molong building, Jeremy Norris on opening up new Monty's restaurant in the town
"For example, we'll have semi-smart service, but we'll still have all red wines decanted at the table, with both local and a few imported wines," he said.
"So, a modern style, but also having a bit of fun with service at the same time by looking at regular menu changes on either a weekly or fortnightly basis to be very seasonal."
There's also a new chef ready to join the Monty's ranks, who will relocate from the big smoke to be a part of the fresh venture; and he's worked in some fairly notorious establishments already.
"The fabulous chef, John Hicks, loves butchering nose to tail with pigs, for example, so I'm also very excited about having him on board with the potential for some charcuterie masterclasses in the future," Mr Norris said.
"Previously, he's worked at Sydney restaurants like Sean's in Bondi, Flying Fish [in Darling Harbour] and Ad Lib [in the North Shore], but he'll be making a move to Molong once he's back from holidaying in the UK."
Said to be ready for launch around the July/August mark this year, Mr Norris says the title 'Monty's in Molong' has "a nice ring to it", as he prepares to go full steam ahead with plans to fully revamp the newly purchased space.
"We'll get stuck in about three weeks from now and plans are to put in a new kitchen and bar, but I want to still keep its country charm with a small restaurant that also reflects its past," he said.
"But we'll do a total renovation of the existing building and hopefully have a little herb garden out the back with great big windows, too."
The restaurant, once operational, will amplify dining choices in the town, creating another level of options in Molong - which currently has evening food options at only its hotels.
While Mr Norris says the next business venture is "all falling into place" and feels "meant to be", it's still a bittersweet time for the venue's present departure - but the bucket list got a good run.
"We'll miss the people, the atmosphere," Sweetness Cafe's Mr Johnson added.
"I'll miss sitting here talking with everyone and seeing their dogs ... there's a lot of work involved when you own your own business, but it's been enjoyable work and we're just glad we got the chance to do it."