Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria is seeking expressions of interest for a retail food and catering partner for the Terrace. This is a rare opportunity to join a short list of other food and hospitality partners at the Royal Botanic Gardens. 

The Terrace includes the opportunity to run a modern Melbourne style cafe with internal seating space of 348.8m2 with bi-fold doors opening onto a 202m² deck. There is an existing F&B servery counter that has direct access to the 112m² kitchen. The space is also flexible to cater for weddings, functions and events seating up to 180pax & 300pax for a stand-up function. There is a kiosk outlet (28.3 m²) for a quick service offer and busy coffee window overlooking an external seating area (158.4m2) at the edge of Ornamental Lake.

There will also be an opportunity to potentially provide two pop up outlets at Entry Gate A and D, subject to negotiation with an appropriate concept that will be approved by RBGV management.

Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria is looking for professional and highly capable partners who have a proven track record within in F&B retail and catering. The successful respondents will have the ability to provide a ‘best in class’, quality, customer-centric and contemporary food and beverage offering that caters for all budgets and will exceed RBGV visitor expectation providing a genuine Melbourne café experience and benchmark catering. The RBGV values emphasis the customer experience they want their F&B partners to emulate:

Creative
We are inventive and enthusiastic

Open
We make time to listen, learn and be clear

Brave
We have the courage to change things

Remarkable
We leave a lasting impression

With a proactive board and executive management team, RBGV’s long-term vision is to drive a new Food and Hospitality vision that is complementary to the RBGV experience with further opportunities for all partners to come in the future as RBGV seek to increase visitation to the Gardens.

Delivering a diverse, approachable and modern food and beverage offering is vital to attracting the demographic market segments that RBGV attract. The respondents are encouraged to present their expertise, motivations and their contemporary approach to hospitality and food service with a true desire to redefine the food and hospitality retail and catering offer.

Applications have now closed

This precinct is due to open at the start of 2024