Overview
Anyone that's spent time at Kirra has fond memories of Kirra Beach Hotel. Just in time for summer, the Gold Coast pub wants you to make new ones. Three years after closing down, including being demolished in 2021, the water-adjacent watering hole is back pouring drinks by the surf as part of the new Kirra Point Precinct.
Eleven years in the making, the beachside spot is making this stretch of Kirra look rather different. Residential and vacation apartments are on the way, with a 116-unit tower dedicated to folks living the beach life year-round. If you're not residing or staying onsite, you can still look forward to hitting the shops, plus gaining a new excuse to sip and snack while feeling the coastal breeze. As announced earlier in 2023, one of development's big drawcards is its seafront perch. Another: the return of Kirra Beach Hotel, complete with killer ocean vistas.
Reopening its doors on Monday, November 27, Kirra Beach Hotel is aiming to level up the classic beachside pub concept. A watering hole has stood onsite since 1956, but this current iteration is all new. Designed to be breezy and casual — think: a sunny beer garden opposite the surf, five-metre-high ceilings and windows letting the fresh air in — it sprawls across 1300 square metres on the corner of Marine Parade and Miles Street, and is filled with surfing memorabilia heroing the sport's famous names like Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson.
Attracting all kinds of beachgoers is another big focus. So, Kirra Beach Hotel includes a family-friendly bistro, a public bar and a sports bar filled with hefty TVs. For a tipple to take home, there's also a bottle-o that champions homegrown fare. And, for anyone heading by straight from the beach, there's a tub of thongs for folks who don't have shoes with them.
Greg Hodge is back as Kirra Beach Hotel's publican, after overseeing the bar for eight years in its last incarnation. "The team have done a great job on the new fitout and I know the locals are going to love it. It still feels like home and has that nostalgic, old-school pub charm to it," he said.
"The Kirra Beach Hotel has always been more than just a pub for our guests and it's a place where anyone is welcome. It's a second home, a place where you can relax and be on a first name basis with our staff, a place where you can pop in after a surf and grab a bite to eat, and perch up with a beer in hand and watch the waves and magic of Kirra roll in."
Open daily from 10am, the pub is also welcoming back Venue Manager Julie Craig, Head Chef Richard Whiting and Cellar Manager Kris Flint, along with other core staff.
If you're dropping by for something to eat, pub favourites such as fish and chips (of course), schnitzels and beef rissoles with mash return, sitting on the menu alongside burgers, meats from the grill, salads and raw seafood. Local produce is firmly in the spotlight, as are trawler-fresh weekly seafood specials. Think: oysters both natural and kilpatrick, bugs and prawns by the half kilo, tempura-battered bug tails in toasted brioche rolls and stacked platters.
Brews-wise, expect to sip local names like Balter and Burleigh Brewing on the beer side, and Brookie's Gin for spirits. Australian wines help round out the drinks selection — which is just one of the new Kirra Beach Hotel's many things to say cheers to.
Also on the way: newcomer Kirra Beach House, which will open in December on the precinct's second level. Here, patrons will find a 1200-square-metre venue by SITE Hospitality's Dave Galvin (Kōst, Mozza Mozza) — and a spot that again boasts a number of spaces within its one big space. There'll be a wine bar, two cocktail bars (one, Preston's, is for intimate soirées), indoor spots to drink, outdoor places to settle in, and room for events such as weddings and shindigs.
Kirra Beach Hotel and Kirra Beach House form part of Kirra Point Precinct's first stage. When stage two arrives, it'll add to the places to stay, shop, and eat and drink. On the cards: a boutique hotel, laneway retailers, a village square, a fresh food marketplace, another residential apartment tower, a gelateria and more.
Kirra Beach Hotel reopens at 2 Marine Parade, Coolangatta from Monday, November 27, operating from 10am–late seven days a week.