It’s a healthy sign for Lorne; young couples are prepared to make commitments to eatery businesses in town.
Jo and Tess have recently bought the Riverbank Café, happy the have a place they can call their own. They are having fun developing and establishing the business and pleased with the support they are receiving from the locals and holidaymakers alike.
Growing up and educated in Melbourne, Jo became a qualified chef at the Gordon in Geelong. He worked at cafes in Melbourne before moving to Lorne in 2005. He came only to help set up Mantra but guess what? He stayed. He then worked for four years at River Teahouse. For the next four years he worked at Pizza Pizza, and now he is back at the Riverbank.
He will be making everything they sell. He enjoys “good old fashioned cooking” so we can expect to see included on the menu, toasted sandwiches with favourite traditional fillings and the famous Riverbank scone varieties for afternoon teas.
Tess grew up in southwestern Queensland on a cattle station but has “moved around a bit”. She finished her education in the Victorian Western District before moving to Melbourne to study Physical Education. Five years ago, she came to Lorne and worked at The Lorne Hotel, continuing to do so part time while she studied. After graduating, she decided to follow her passion for hospitality and returned to work permanently at the hotel. Three years at Moon’s Café followed before the opportunity to buy Riverbank arose. She reads a lot and hopes one day to have a property where she can reconnect with a childhood love of horses.
Jo describes himself as “outdoorsy” and when he has time off, he enjoys fishing and surfing. For time out, Jo and Tess love to get out of town and camp in the Otway region. “There’s a big four wheel drive that is just waiting for an adventure, but all our energy is needed right now establishing this business”.
In summer and during holidays there will be open seven days a week for early breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea. Currently they are closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
