The Bridge Hotel Richmond

The Sand Hill Road boys, the group of four who own the Richmond Club Hotel, Prahran Hotel, Holliava and Post Office Bar Pizza bought and renovated The Bridge Hotel in Richmond in 2011.

The refurbished 100-year-old building was given a new look by Justin Northrop of Techne Architects and he achieved his brief – a design vision that balanced simplicity and warmth with the exciting and inspiring – by taking creative license with the notion of laneway and working it into the building. The space uses an existing courtyard within the old structure of the building to create its very own laneway. Matt Mullins, one of the Sand Hill Road partners, explains: "The group’s focus is to create pubs for the locals and the community. We are not about high-end, gastro-pub food; we’re about pots, parmas and friendly service." That said, he continues: "We are not naive enough to think that a pub can survive on just the locals, if you’re going to build a pub, you need to build the best pub you can, respecting the community, and if you get it right, people will come from other parts of town.”

On Fridays, they also give a little back to the community with "Karma Kegs" where the staff tap a Keg of Carlton Draught at 5pm, and you pay whatever you feel a pot is worth with all the proceeds going towards funding community projects. With 20 beers on tap (Carlton Draught is still the biggest seller), a simple menu and a family-friendly vibe, there’s community written all over The Bridge.