- The restaurant is located on the promenade between the ferry terminal and The Sydney Opera House.
- Tourists and Sydneysiders alike flock to Eastbank for its unrivalled views west to the Harbour Bridge.
- The iconic 151sqm luxury ground floor property sold at a rate of $135,761 per sqm.
One of the largest strata retail offerings on the blue ribbon East Circular Quay strip has sold for $20.5 million.
Located in a corner ground floor position and leased to renowned Italian restaurant ‘Eastbank’, the 151sqm property at 2/61-69 Macquarie Street, Sydney sold at a rate of $135,761 per sqm.
Best restaurant location in the country
Situated on the eastern bank of Circular Quay, Eastbank Café is the perfect restaurant location whether you’re sightseeing, attending an event, en route to a concert at the Sydney Opera House, meeting with clients and colleagues for a business lunch, or planning a romantic dinner by the harbour.
Eastbank features an extended outdoor seating area, allowing guests to dine and drink on the edge of the harbour. Looking directly out to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Eastbank is also just minutes away from Circular Quay’s main attractions including Sydney Opera House, Botanic Gardens Sydney, Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), The Rocks, as well as Circular Quay train station, buses, and ferry wharf.
However, the enviable harbour-front location doesn’t automatically mean that the restaurant is profitable. “It’s taken a lot of hard work and organisation to turn the restaurant into a favourite eatery for tourists and locals” said owner Jimmy Kazal. “It’s a prime location but the overheads for real estate here are high so there is no margin for error”.
Colliers National Director Joseph Lin and Steam Leung and Senior Executive Callum Cooke sold the property in conjunction with Fiona Yang, Executive Partner of Plus Agency.
“This sale comes off the back of multiple successful strata retail campaigns run by the Colliers Strata team including a sale of a prime retail café on Macquarie Street for 4.19 per cent yield to another local Asian investor,” Mr Lin said.
Mr Lin continues: “Regardless of recent rate rises and perceived worsening purchaser sentiment within the market, trophy assets such as ‘Eastbank’ have proven to be resilient and are still achieving premium results.”
“Furthermore, long term leases with strong increases have attracted an additional buyer pool of investors seeking sustained, robust returns over short-term capital appreciation,” Mr Cooke added.
The property has a net income of $850,000 per annum with a five-plus-five-plus-ten-year lease structure with 4 per cent annual reviews.
It has a 90sqm licenced outdoor space from Place Management NSW for 72 seats, and an approximately 80sqm external area entitlement for ongoing use under the Strata By-Laws for a further 82 seats.
“Circular Quay is the most expensive retail strip in Australia. In the last 18 months, buyers have paid over $180,000 per sqm for a 16sqm shop. In another two larger transactions handled by Colliers and Plus Agency, buyers paid over $150,000 per sqm for a 75sqm shop and $130,000 per sqm for a 43sqm shop,” Ms. Yang said.
“Investors face headwinds in terms of higher costs of capital and their natural reaction is to seek safety, which results in excellent prices for assets such as this premier Circular Quay retail space.”
