Hotel bars around the globe are trending as the hottest places to raise a glass and the latest hospitality group to join the party is Amora Hotels & Resorts, which has launched the speakeasy-style Brooksy Bar in Sydney.
The management team at Amora has unveiled plans to open hotels in every capital city across Australia and is considering rolling out the Brooksy concept throughout the chain.
Amora operates three hotels in Australia: Amora Hotel Jamison Sydney, Amora Hotel Riverwalk Melbourne and Amora Hotel Brisbane, which made its debut in March 2024 following a comprehensive $25 million rebranding and refurbishment.
Every Amora property in Australia commands a prime CBD location and the company is now pursuing an ambitious strategy that will see it establish a presence in the centre of every state capital within five years.
Brooksy Bar opened its doors in June 2024 at Amora Hotel Jamison Sydney after a $2million renovation. Its glamorous 1920s theme includes parquet floors, marble countertops and deep-pile velvet upholstery.
The hotel bar features a sophisticated cocktail menu crafted by award-winning bartender Brendon Hill, created as an ode to the golden age of travel. Each evokes an exotic global destination, ranging from the Uluru, which mixes green grapes with lemon, Campari, gin and white vermouth in a glass adorned with a eucalyptus leaf, to the Taisho with Yuzu sake, gin, strawberry, calpico, and miso, which aims to transport patrons to the tranquil gardens of Kyoto.
There are also an array of delicious small plates, with standouts including yuzu scallops with ikura and wasabi; duck a l’orange croquettes; and puris filled with salmon, pickled fennel and capers.
The team driving a new era for Amora
Driving Amora’s Australian expansion is Tamer Habib, the former senior executive with Starwood, Rydges and Stamford Hotels & Resorts, who is currently Vice President of Operations.
He recently oversaw the launch of a new regional office in Sydney and has helped to appoint a leadership team to oversee the expansion.
“One of our core strengths is that we are an owner-operator, so we can control every aspect of our experience,” said Habib (above).
“And this will continue as we expand. We are mainly seeking rebrandings and refurbishments, but also potential conversions. Crucially, every Amora property has to be in a prime location, and it has to be operated under our own brand. Our newly-opened regional office in Sydney is making it easier to consolidate our operational processes, which, in turn, is driving our sales, revenue and profitability, and providing a solid platform for our future growth.”
Habib said one of Amora’s key strengths is its comparative small scale compared to major global chains, with just six hotels and resorts – three in Thailand and three in Australia – under a single five-star brand.
“Being smaller, we have the opportunity to create an emotional connection with our guests,” he said. “We are already seeing the results of this; all three of our hotels in Australia are running very healthy occupancy and GOP (gross operating profit), and at Amora Hotel Riverwalk Melbourne, for example, almost 60% of our clientele is repeat business.”
Supporting Habib is Narej Farik, Group Director for Commercial & Business Development, who has more than 25 years of experience with some of the world’s leading five-star hotel chains, including Marriott, Oberoi and Banyan Tree, and has been a consultant for over 20 hotels and resorts in Asia and Australia.
On the creative side, Hemant Dadlani has been appointed as Amora’s Group Executive Chef. Dadlani has two decades of experience in luxury hotels and resorts across seven countries and has cooked for global celebrities including Sir Richard Branson, Morgan Freeman and Sir Paul McCartney.
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