Andrew Ross and the team who've built Australia's first commercial wavepool.
An Update On Australia's First Wavepool (And Their New Food & Beverage Hook Up)
The lagoon floor is done, the pool is about to be filled, and URBNSURF just announced their partnership with the boys from Three Blue Ducks.
Australia's first commercial wavepool is only a few months around the bend. URBNSURF Melbourne has finished their lagoon floor, completed the 'dry commissioning' of the wave generator, and are currently preparing to fill the pool – which will be pushing waves before the southern hemi's winter is out. Folks like you and I won't be able to surf it until late 2019 for the public opening, but we're told a lucky few will be test surfing within the next couple of months.
Of course, all the pool details are what we're interested in, but there's more to excite you than mere 'surf' at a wavepool. Be real, you're not going to surf the thing all day, you'll probably end up at the bar after a couple of hours drinking whatever you fancy and eating whatever is good while you talk up your wave of the day.
Thankfully, the food at Melbourne's first surf park is going to be good.
If you're (un)fortunate enough to live in Sydney's east, you've probably stumbled upon Three Blue Ducks in Bronte. It's a cafe-come-restaurant which opened up nine years ago and has grown exponentially popular since. It was started by a bunch of surfers from Sydney who also had a passion for good food, which they could also cook – which helps when you're starting a restaurant.
Andrew Ross and the boys from Three Blue Ducks – Darren Robertson, Andy Allen and Mark
LaBrooy.
Since starting in Bronte, Three Blue Ducks have opened up three more restaurants in Rosebery, Brisbane, and Byron, all of which embody their ethos of making damn good, ethically sourced and sustainable grub. The restaurant opening at URBNSURF in Tullamarine (right next to the airport) will be their first Melbourne biz venture. And don't worry, they're not just outsourcing their name either; the co-founders and head chefs Darren Robertson, Andy Allen and Mark LaBrooy will be heading up the surf park operation and are rumoured to already be scouting the region for produce – which I'll assume just means surfing in Vicco and drinking nice wines.
“We’re beyond excited about this new venue and bringing our brand to Melbourne to showcase our passion for good and honest food. This partnership is close to our heart – after all, we are a bunch of guys who love good food, the ocean and surfing,” Darren said about the upcoming project.
With Andrew Ross, URBNSURF's founder, having this to add about the partnership. "As we gear up for our public opening later this year, we couldn’t be more stoked to welcome Three Blue Ducks on board as our food and beverage partner for URBNSURF Melbourne.
“The Ducks’ passion for surfing, food, sustainability and community is what brought them together, and has driven their success – and this is closely aligned with our approach in creating the world’s best urban surfing locations, starting right here in Tullamarine.”
This'll do for the next couple months.
I'm also told there will be good booze, which the media release states as "a strong list of wines, beers and spirits, locally sourced from across Victoria, as well as coffee from long-standing Ducks partner Single O. Serving water, kombucha, wine and beer on tap." So if you like nice alcohol, you're covered, and I'm assuming they also have Carlton on tap for the layman.
We'll keep you posted on the opening dates as the pool gets finalised and the dates surrounding opening get a little more granular. In the meantime, you can read more about the Ducks at URBNSURF, here.
Oh yeah, it'll be open for night surfing too.
