FEATURE STORY
A little over a year ago, Sydneysiders Ben Hanson and his wife Emily purchased the Tea Gardens Hotel.
For Ben, a former cameraman working out of Sydney, London and later on hit TV show The Bachelor, making the move from Sydney to take on an iconic venue like the Tea Gardens Hotel has proven life changing for he and his family.
"It's been just over a year and we've already made some big changes to both our lives and the hotel," Ben begins.
"When we came here our number one aim was to create a family-friendly pub that was run by a family - being myself, my wife and our two-year-old son Flynn.
"We've started by trying to make our beer garden more appealing, our food is very important, and we put in our own veggie garden."
While a nice beer garden, enjoyable food and a cute veggie garden might sound well and good, it is a description far too modest for what is actually taking place at the hotel.
While a nice beer garden, enjoyable food and a cute veggie garden might sound well and good, it is a description far too modest for what is actually taking place at the hotel.
Inspired by Sydney's Grounds of Alexandria, Ben and Emily are together creating a welcoming, sanctuary-style space that brings people together through a shared love of local food, rich coffee, urban gardens and community spirit.
In less than a year, Ben and Emily have already remodeled part of the hotel to create a cafe, complete with Sydney-standard coffee, weekend breakfasts overlooking the river, and the kind of decorative charm that would please any eclectic minded hipster - or admirer of local history.
Ben and Emily are together creating a welcoming, sanctuary-style space that brings people together through a shared love of local food, rich coffee, urban gardens and community spirit.
"We wanted to create a room with a warm feeling, great coffee, and breakfasts for our overnight guests, tourists and locals alike," he explains.