The sounds of laughter, music and clinking glasses have been missing from Towradgi Beach Hotel since lockdown swept the nation back in March.
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Finally, the beloved watering hole and live music venue will reopen its doors on Wednesday October 21, but it will be almost unrecognisable aside from a couple of iconic items.
Expect a "a combination of contemporary coastal-inspired interiors of today, with a chic and sophisticated Hamptons beach style".
Everything from the colour paint and carpets, furniture, new booth seating, marble bar tops, wood cedar French provisional windows, a wood fire pizza kitchen and a rotisserie are new, according to Oscars Hotels General Manager for the pub portfolio Carlie Carroll.
"For sporting lovers the TBH sports bar has been given a viewing upgrade with the addition of a 18 panel multimedia screen, along with a secondary viewing nine panel screen," she said.
"For those asking about the Go-Go cages, these have remained as a reminder of the live music history from the decades."
The popular band room Waves will resume holding gigs at the end of November as part of a government initiative.
Ms Carroll said music events would "look a little different" due to pandemic restrictions, but was "definitely excited to bring live music back to the Illawarra".
The fish tanks have been freshened up,and a "three-meter submarine" added for the kids, while the park and beer garden are also still there.
The reopening is also a win for many hospitality workers who will make their return to the bar floor from next week.
"The government injection of JobKeeper allowed us to bring back many of the previous staff, to be actively involved in the refurbishment of the venue," Ms Carroll said.
"This has created a great culture for the venue and the team.
"Due to the size of the venue we will continue to recruit and are looking for more hospitality superstars to join the team. We encourage anyone looking for a role to send their resumes to [us]."
Recently the Oscars Group recently gave the Cringila Hotel a complete makeover to now the family-friendly Five Islands Hotel.
Meantime, it comes as outdoor venues in NSW will be able to host double the number patrons later this week, as the government relaxes some of its COVID-19 restrictions.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on Tuesday that outdoor venues will be able to use the "two square metres rule", instead of the current four square metres, to calculate their patron numbers outside as long as the business has an electronic QR code.
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