Adding to four high-end food and beverage venues, three of which opened a year ago along with an ice-cream store, is The Bakehouse, which opens soon.
Northeast of Ayrburn’s heritage-listed buildings, it’s sited by Mill Creek and an outdoor events space, The Dell.
The 868 square metre building features indoor and outdoor dining, including Ayrburn’s first breakfast offering, a bar, a bakery, as the name implies, a huge wood-fired pizza oven, pasta station, large rotisserie chicken, wine store, deli and artisan butchery in an area called R.M Prime Produce.
It’s targeting locals, especially, with its accent on takeaway food and a more affordable price point.
"I’m hoping it becomes where the locals go on an almost daily basis," says Chris Meehan, CEO of development company Winton.
Equally, he says people would also find the venue a good place to hang out.
"I reckon that bottom terrace next to the creek is the best few square metres of Ayrburn.
"We’ve built a little bridge to go across the stream straight to the playground, so it’s a real family place."
Opening daily, 8am till 8pm, The Bakehouse also stands out, along with the smaller Barrel Room, as Ayrburn’s only second new-build.
Local-based Cook Brothers has again been the main contractor, and many of the other crew were also involved with Ayrburn’s first stage.
"All of them are absolutely super-clever," says Meehan, who’s called Ayrburn his passion project.
"It’s a new building but it looks like an old one, which is hard to do."
Reflecting on the 16-month build, Cook Brothers managing director Dave Bulling believes the result’s world-class.
As with the first stage, the architect was Jessie Sutherland, of Cromwell’s SA Studio, and Alexander & Co handled the interior architecture.
Materials include Australian hardwood timber and tiles from Europe.
Sutherland, who’s always had a passion for heritage architecture and has also worked on heritage buildings in Wellington and London, says when it came to the roof, "we actually altered it to exaggerate a curve in the roof".
"It’s been pushed and pulled and layers added to it to make it tie in with the old heritage."
Meehan — who notes the addition’s created about 30 new jobs — says Ayrburn’s next building, flagship restaurant Billy’s, will open next May/June.
He adds the precinct’s had about 450,000 visitors in its first year — "we’re super-happy, that’s about where we thought it would be".
