5 August 2010

Closure of the Hub Asian grocery in Belconnen. Any reason why?

| farnarkler
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Supposedly the Hub has closed in Belconnen.

Anyone have any inside knowledge as to why?

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nanzan said :

Yes, imagine if Waterfront became a cafe/bar or a brewery/cafe … amazing location it has on Yerrabi Pond, and so close to the town centre in Gungahlin.

Close to the town centre? Really? My idea of close would be a maximum 5min slow walk… somewhere close enough to have a few drinks before or after a meal on the main strip. You couldn’t even drive it in 5min.

Yes, imagine if Waterfront became a cafe/bar or a brewery/cafe – it would be a huge hit and a shot in the arm for the Yerrabi precinct in Gungahlin!

Has anyone else noticed that Waterfront restaurant seems to have been closed more often than it has been open lately – in fact for many months now. A huge shame given the amazing location it has on Yerrabi Pond, and so close to the town centre in Gungahlin.

nanzan said :

Another sensible location would seem to be Yerrabi Pond – where a fabulous Italian cafe/bar/restaurant has recently opened called DaNunzio with fabulous views and plenty of sunshine – and great pizza!

I Agree. Tried out DaNunzio recently and was very impressed. Fantastic service and food. A really great restaurant. The building that has the Waterfront Chinese restaurant would make a fantastic bar/pub. Yerrabi is turning into a really nice area. I hope it continues.

A good point on the site loss Nanzan.

On the topic of a pub, I met the operator of the new hotel between the cop shop and McDs this afternoon and toured the facility. It will be a 4-star accommodation hotel. You may have seen the “Abode” ads in the local papers. When I said that people were expecting a pub he was surprised. I said that a pub was something that many people have been asking for, with only the Harcourt Inn in all of Gungahlin. He said they didn’t yet have a tenant for the commercial tenancy and that it could easily be set up as a wine bar/restaurant/brassiere. So if you have a couple hundred K to invest, there’s a great business opportunity ready and waiting. The site will open late September.

Zierholz Brewery are you reading these posts?! Here could be a great opportunity – move a brewery in to Abode in Gungahlin!

Another sensible location would seem to be Yerrabi Pond – where a fabulous Italian cafe/bar/restaurant has recently opened called DaNunzio with fabulous views and plenty of sunshine – and great pizza!

Interesting. If I had the money and experience, I would definitely open up a pub in Gungahlin. Whoever does so stands to make a fortune. Gungahlin has the youngest average age in population across all of Canberra but we are forced to fork out $40 fares to get home from the city just to have a night out.

Abode doesn’t seem like the place though. It could only be a quiet sort of wine bar. We need a proper pub with live music.

Gungahlin Al8:59 pm 06 Aug 10

nanzan said :

H1NG0 said :

I was at the Gungahlin store on the weekend getting one of their Vietnamese rolls. That place was awesome and lots of ingredients you can’t get at woolies or coles. Recently they were doing an upgrade of their freezer section. I really hope someone takes it over. It will be missed. I guess I’ll have to check out the other one and see how it measures up.

I actually feel as though Gungahlin is quite busier these days. I went to the city on a Sunday recently and it was ghost town. Drove into Gungahlin and it was a hive of activity. Gungahlin is also pretty busy on Friday nights. I think it is screaming out for a pub or a few more more bars (not clubs). The only place like that is Connect Cafe and Bar.

A big thumbs up for another bar/cafe in Gungahlin. We really lost out when Starbucks – with its magnificent corner location, with lots of sun – closed down AND was replaced by a bank! A bank in a location like that where there is heaps and heaps of room for al fresco dining is just plain crazy. Ginger and Spice and Central Cafe are on the other two corners and do very well it seems to me.; the CBA is on the other (always shady) corner – fair enough – but a second bank on the sunny corner is just ludicrous.Perhaps only a bank could afford the rent?

A good point on the site loss Nanzan.

On the topic of a pub, I met the operator of the new hotel between the cop shop and McDs this afternoon and toured the facility. It will be a 4-star accommodation hotel. You may have seen the “Abode” ads in the local papers. When I said that people were expecting a pub he was surprised. I said that a pub was something that many people have been asking for, with only the Harcourt Inn in all of Gungahlin. He said they didn’t yet have a tenant for the commercial tenancy and that it could easily be set up as a wine bar/restaurant/brassiere. So if you have a couple hundred K to invest, there’s a great business opportunity ready and waiting. The site will open late September.

Pommy bastard7:16 pm 06 Aug 10

For some years now we’ve used the Asian Foodstore in Gillots St, Belconnen, it’s a treasure house of the great, the good, the strange and the “interesting”.

sad, sad loss for Canberra…..Hub is awesome and it is shame we are now stuck with other grubby asian grocery stores that have aisles that are 1/2 a metre wide and food on the floor.

H1NG0 said :

I was at the Gungahlin store on the weekend getting one of their Vietnamese rolls. That place was awesome and lots of ingredients you can’t get at woolies or coles. Recently they were doing an upgrade of their freezer section. I really hope someone takes it over. It will be missed. I guess I’ll have to check out the other one and see how it measures up.

I actually feel as though Gungahlin is quite busier these days. I went to the city on a Sunday recently and it was ghost town. Drove into Gungahlin and it was a hive of activity. Gungahlin is also pretty busy on Friday nights. I think it is screaming out for a pub or a few more more bars (not clubs). The only place like that is Connect Cafe and Bar.

A big thumbs up for another bar/cafe in Gungahlin. We really lost out when Starbucks – with its magnificent corner location, with lots of sun – closed down AND was replaced by a bank! A bank in a location like that where there is heaps and heaps of room for al fresco dining is just plain crazy. Ginger and Spice and Central Cafe are on the other two corners and do very well it seems to me.; the CBA is on the other (always shady) corner – fair enough – but a second bank on the sunny corner is just ludicrous.Perhaps only a bank could afford the rent?

Oh no! I loved Hub at Gungahlin. Although I did notice that they had been reducing their range (or perhaps just not restocking) in the last few months.

I’ll second H1NGO on the vote for Connect Cafe. Really good food! Slightly disorganised service, but I think they will iron out the kinks if they survive long enough

A new Asian grocer has opened up in Kippax, just down from Kingsleys. I haven’t been in there yet but it seems to be a bit of a cafe as well, they had a blackboard out the front advertising tea tastings for $1 the other day. They don’t appear to have much stock though.

Random said:

Four others. Angkorwhat in the mall, the one at the markets, the one near St. Vinnies, and Ming’s in Oatley Ct. Five if you also count the Indian one down the road from Ming’s.

– Correction 5/6 since you forgot about the one next to Repco, Oriental Groceries is the name.

Did they sell cat?

trix said :

Actually, in terms of decent Japanese supplies, it is a bit of a loss. The Korean shops have some Japanese stuff, but not really much to write home about.

Hmmmm… The best Japanese food supplies on the Inner North side AFAIK is the Korean place in Civic, near King O’Malley’s.

But please keep that to yourself as I don’t want to compete with other Japanese food lovers… 🙂

silvernitrate6:30 pm 05 Aug 10

I guess most of you haven’t been to the Hyperdome Lately. The amount of closed stores is very startling. Each month around 2 close. There are now close to or more than 20 empty shops there. Its such a shame. I rely on the hyperdome alot and i don’t like seeing it in such a state. it was doing so well a couple of years ago.

Hub @ tuggers has been closed for a while now and was recently replaced by hot dollar 2.0 (they renovated recently, but its the same type of store like home base) to extend the range of the cheapo stores that now seem to be the only shops surviving at tuggeranong; Go-Lo, Hot Dollar, The Reject shop and now this store.

But at least Fresh life has opened at Tuggers 😀 Its filled part of the void here and its heaps better than the basement that was called Mother Natures

I was at the Gungahlin store on the weekend getting one of their Vietnamese rolls. That place was awesome and lots of ingredients you can’t get at woolies or coles. Recently they were doing an upgrade of their freezer section. I really hope someone takes it over. It will be missed. I guess I’ll have to check out the other one and see how it measures up.

I actually feel as though Gungahlin is quite busier these days. I went to the city on a Sunday recently and it was ghost town. Drove into Gungahlin and it was a hive of activity. Gungahlin is also pretty busy on Friday nights. I think it is screaming out for a pub or a few more more bars (not clubs). The only place like that is Connect Cafe and Bar.

Now Hub at Gungahlin really was a hub. It’s loss will be sorely felt by all in Gungahlin I think. It had a good location – very central and good exposure. It is sad to see so many businesses still struggling in a town centre location. Every week in Gungahlin there seems to be another closure. If this is what’s happening in the town centre in Gungahlin – what’s happening in the suburbs in Gungahlin, and elsewhere?

The lack of federal government employment in Gungahlin is a real problem and something Kate Lundy and Bob McMullen should be ashamed of. We do not live at the airport – why is there so much federal government employment there?!

Gungahlin Al3:04 pm 05 Aug 10

Mothy said :

Apparently Gungahlin shut now also.

A shame. There is another one near the bike shop now, so maybe the competition made it harder?

But the skyhigh rents and lack of a daytime trade are hurting almost every business in the Gungahlin town centre. (On that topic, I met with David Dawes on Tuesday about accelerating release of commercial land in the town centre.)

Actually, in terms of decent Japanese supplies, it is a bit of a loss. The Korean shops have some Japanese stuff, but not really much to write home about.

I didn’t buy too many groceries at Hub, but really liked their Vietnamese pork, pate and salad rolls.

Does anyone know of anywhere else to get a decent one?

I’ve tried the ones from the bakery at the Fyshwick markets and didn’t like them. They where made at the start of the day and then wrapped in glad wrap and where pretty soggy by lunchtime

What I’m after is one made fresh to order, like the hub did.

Any ideas?

nanzan said :

There are two other – or is it three – good Asian grocery stores in Belconnen already, on the western side of the mall, around Rae Street. And another one at Belconnen Markets.

Four others. Angkorwhat in the mall, the one at the markets, the one near St. Vinnies, and Ming’s in Oatley Ct. Five if you also count the Indian one down the road from Ming’s.

The Hub had a lot more junk food and imported frozen stuff but otherwise I don’t think it’s a huge loss.

Apparently Gungahlin shut now also.

Oh no!! HUB is a great supermarket.

And The Hub at Belco hasn’t been there that long. And they added a bakery even more recently. Very strange.

There are two other – or is it three – good Asian grocery stores in Belconnen already, on the western side of the mall, around Rae Street. And another one at Belconnen Markets.

Noooooo, I also noted the low stock, this is very bad news

Hub used to have a wider (relatively speaking) variety of food compared to other small Asian grocery shops. But since two months ago their stock has definitely been depleting, at least in Gungahlin.

Guess I’ll just have to settle for the two Korean ones in Civic, and the three Chinese ones in Dickson.

What a bummer. It used to be a really good one-stop shop for all the bits and pieces I wanted. I guess the rent was too high. 🙁

There was an administrators notice in the paper the other week for both stores.

I cannot tell you why because I do not know, but interestingly the Hub at Tuggernanong also closed its doors recently 🙁

Not sure about the Belco’ one, but the one in Gungahlin was very low in stock when I was in there a week or so ago. Financial difficulties maybe? I wonder about the one in Tuggeranong?

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