The owners of the popular and recently burned down Meni Cafe have asked Wollongong council for permission to expand their second venture, Lili J.
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In an application on exhibition through the council's website, the cafe owners have applied to turn a disused residential home which is attached to their small Corrimal Street corner venue into a larger restaurant and licensed premises.
The application, which is open for public comment on the council's website until August 28, is also seeking to renovate the outdoor space around the cottage, to allow for dining out the front, and in the backyard under a timber pergola.
Layout plans attached to the application indicate seating for 60 people.
They would also install a much larger kitchen, and apply for a restaurant liquor licence to sell on-site beer and wine, the application says.
"It is proposed that at a later stage the operators wish to install a commercial kitchen, to the existing domestic kitchen area," the application says.
"This kitchen will be able to supply the café with a bigger menu and more efficiently to the dining area. It is proposed that this stage will take place, a few months later, when the business begins to pick up more and warrants extra expenditure."
Meni Cafe, which was located on western Crown Street across the road from the hospital, closed in mid-July after the building was destroyed in a suspicious fire which began outside the cafe wall.
A 47-year-old man from Mangerton fronted court charged with starting the fire and was sent to hospital for an urgent assessment of his mental health.
A few days later, the owners announced on social media that their much-loved cafe would stay closed for good, but that their work would continue at Lili J.
"With a heavy heart we say, Meni is not reopening," they said.
"It's been an amazing nine years getting to know and love every customer and friend we have been privileged enough to serve and we hope we can continue to do so at Lili J."
Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
