The hospitality team at Shepparton Art Museum is about to get a makeover, with the cafe and upstairs function area and bar set to have new operators next month.
Alaina Tuckett, Jonathan Chan and Ricardo Vilsson will take on the operation of the hospitality side of the business from March 22, with all three currently working at SAM.
SAM chief executive Melinda Martin said it was exciting to have three people living and working locally taking over.
She said it was about trying to attract new people to SAM and to use the space for more events, including potentially opening the rooftop.
"We’re trying to use some food from the food bowl we live in and trying to make it a bit more of a destination,“ Ms Martin said.
“We’re also looking to do weddings and hospitality packages and grow that level four experience.”
Opening the top floor as a bar or restaurant is still something Ms Martin said SAM was exploring, but needed to take small steps to determine what was “sustainable” — if that just meant the Sunsets at SAM experience continuing once a month or if it could operate on its own on a Friday or Saturday night.
“Coming out of COVID-19 it’s challenging with staffing to try and figure out what you can and can’t do, so we’ll be testing a bit of that,” she said.
The cafe will also open earlier, from 8am, to catch people who are walking around the lake who want a coffee or a bite to eat.
“We’re really excited to work with young people in the community.”
A born and bred local Miss Tuckett was excited to take the reins after years working in hospitality in Melbourne and across music festivals such as Treaty Day Out in Shepparton.
“We’ve got some exciting plans for the space and looking to bring some picnic blankets and beanbags out to the hill for warmer days,” she said.
She said the cafe would also look to get a liquor license and investigate staying open later on Friday and Saturday nights.
Miss Tuckett said the menu was also set to receive a spruce up, with head chef Sean Cameron looking to put together new choices which would highlight different cultures from across the Greater Shepparton region and use food from local producers.
She also was excited to open earlier to cater to people walking around the lake.
“It’s something we do every morning and it’s something we want to offer to people.”