Despite the planned return of Mount Gambier’s iconic Charlie’s all-you-can-eat buffet being tabled due to COVID-19, hope is not all lost for its return to the Western Tavern.
Western Tavern manager Danny Scally told The SE Voice, owners Australian Venue Co. are still in discussions about Charlie’s.
“There is no guarantee that it is going ahead at all, but the way the talks are going between the head office staff is all really positive,” he said.
Mr Scally said locals were excited for the anticipated revival of the crowd favourite.
This was proven by the Western Tavern’s Facebook post announcing the reopening of Charlie’s which went went viral in April 2021 with over 100,000 views, 5000 comments and 1000 new followers within the week.
“Our marketing manager Kylie Moncur was blown away by the interest that post generated,” Mr Scally said.
“Unless you are from Mount Gambier you do not realise what Charlie’s meant to the local community and all the childhood memories it holds.
“It shut down in 2009 so it makes up a lot of memories for locals.
“It was the first Charlie’s out of nine nationwide, so it is also about bringing back the nostalgia of this place where the franchise first began.”
Mr Scally said while they were not waiting for COVID-19 restrictions allowing individuals to serve themselves at a buffet to lift, it would certainly help.
“With the Fringe Festival just around the corner there are talks about lifting restrictions for dancing and things like that,” he said.
“Probably one of the last rules to go is people can serve themselves at a buffet and that is a day where we all rejoice.
“We are not waiting on the final call; we can still go ahead with staff serving food, but it would definitely help.”
The best way to stay updated is to follow the Western Tavern Facebook page with Mr Scally saying he hoped work on the “gamechanger” would begin this year.
“We are about 10% of the way through renovations and if they happen it will not just be Charlie’s, it will be the bar and everything else.
“It is all incorporated, so we are either all in or all out,” he said.
“We look forward to hopefully bringing Charlie’s back to the local community.”
