Print Hall stamps name on awards

A central Perth bar and restaurant has taken out the Australian Hotels Association WA's top award for the first time, cementing the city's rise as an eating and drinking precinct.

Print Hall was named WA's best hospitality venue of the year at last night's awards presentation.

It is the first time an inner-city venue has won the award since it was introduced in 2010.

Previous winners include Rockpool Bar & Grill and The Breakwater.

Print Hall, which opened late last year, as the keystone tenant of the much-feted Brookfield Place development, picked up a slew of awards, including best wine list, best sommelier and best new venue.

Its neighbour Bar Lafayette was also a winner after seeing off tough competition from Mechanics Institute and Varnish on King - among others - to be named best small bar.

AHA (WA) chief executive Bradley Woods said many new venues opened in the past year but Print Hall and Bar Lafayette were among the stand-outs.

"What stood out for both of those venues was commitment to service," he said.

Other inner-city winners included jazz bar The Laneway Lounge for best themed venue and Universal Bar on William Street for best late night venue.

The awards are judged by an anonymous team of industry figures, a factor Mr Woods said was important to ensure they remained credible.

"If a venue knows that a judge is coming in, they're going to play up for that person," he said.

"We've learnt over time - because we've done it both ways - that the best way of getting a true indication of how a venue is performing is when a judge hasn't announced who they are or that they're visiting."

More than 40 awards were handed out, and it was not just the new kids on the block who were recognised.

Restaurant Amuse, which opened in 2007, won best premium restaurant from a short list that included Print Hall, Rockpool Bar & Grill and The Heritage Brasserie.

Nor were the winners restricted to the Perth metropolitan area.

Settlers Tavern in Margaret River won the awards for best casual pub dining and best live entertainment venue.

Cheeky Monkey Brewery, also in Margaret River, was named WA's best boutique brewery.

Source: The West Australian, 12 November 2013