Historically, Breakfast Point was the site of the Mortlake Gas (part of AGL) who’d been there since 1883.
Like a lot of historic commercial business, AGL located the site on the Parramatta River as the river provided access for colliers to bring coal to the site, and there was plenty of room for any future expansion.
The gas works were there until the 1990s when urban redevelopment began.
After a heap of initial soils rehabilitation, it’s been full steam ahead on this site ever since.
So it’s no surprise that there was a local pub for all of those workers.
The Palace has retained much of its historical character – the beautiful floors and architecture are a glimpse into the past.
A dog-friendly beer garden at the back is pleasant enough, but is well overdue for a refurbishment. If it was a house I’d say it has “good bones” – that is, the basic space and structure is there (including a remnant wall from a bygone era).
It may have been “good enough” back in the day, but patrons expect from their local these days; if it’s going to try to keep pace with what’s provided (and expected) elsewhere, a bit of money needs to be spent in the beer garden.