A VISIT TO THE BANANA BENDER'S PUB - SUNSHINE COAST....

 It was only an overnight visit to Brisbane.  Sarah and Colin were heading to Toowoomba to visit friends first thing Saturday morning so after a visit to the Chiropractor (my back has been the worst it has been for many many months) we packed and were headed for home...

We had to drop off at Dan and Chloe's to drop off Dan's post hole shovel and a clamp but really didn't expect them to be home and were surprised to find Dan at home along with their guests Patrick and Jess from Newcastle...

Chloe was at the Vets with Mia who had developed an ear infection.  Dogs are not cheap.. $200 later she was armed with antibiotics and ear drops.

We had a cuppa with them and were back on the road around 10.30am headed home.. 

Just before we got to the Caloundra turnoff, I suggested to Steve that perhaps we could have an early lunch and drop in and check out the new Banana Bender's Pub.  It is another of those attractions we pass all the time and comment that one day we must check it out....

There is a real story behind the new Banana Bender's Pub.  Once upon a time it looked like this and was called the Ettamogah Pub...

The famous Ettamogah pubs were inspired by the madcap antics in Kenneth Maynard’s popular cartoon series The Ettamogah Pub Mob, from the former Australian Post magazine, incorporating very distinctive angled exterior walls and a tin roof sagging in the middle, seemingly due to the vintage truck parked on it.

The first pub was in Table Top, outside of Albury, opening in 1987, followed two years later by the Sunshine Coast location within Aussie World.   Cunderin in Western Australia opened in 2001, and then Rouse Hill in 2003.

Southern Equity, owned by Leigh O’Brien, purchased the Ettamogah brand and concept in 1994.

After years of trading under the Ettamogah name, a dispute between Southern Equity and Timevale, owners of Aussie World, ended in a court battle and the two entities parting ways.  In 2014 Timevale agreed to remove the Ettamogah name for design and trading purposes.

 A year later O’Brien was was not satisfied this had been done, with the only clear changes being the removal of the name Ettamogah and the truck from the roof. He pursued further court action against Timevale, and vowed to soon reopen the original Table Top venue, which had closed in 2011.

In 2015, parent company Timevale was taken to the Federal Court after being accused of intellectual property breaches against the author of cartoon series the Ettamogah Pub Mob, created in the 1950s.

Because the tourist icon was constructed in 1988 to look like the titular pub, it was claimed it breached the copyright of the author, Kenneth Maynard.

When legal disputes were finally settled, the Sunshine Coast pub underwent some major renovations and changes and then in early 2019, it finally shed its shrouded scaffolding, unveiling a distinctly different look inspired by the tropics, with its own waterfall, twice the capacity, and strictly vertical walls.

Aussie World kept it's trading throughout the structurally-challenging multimillion-dollar make-over, which includes over 500sqm of new decking at the front and sides, for drinking and dining.

The new owners have obviously spend  millions of dollars on this pub and it's amazing ... you could spend an hour just looking at the decor ... chandeliers made out of spirit bottles, a two story vertical garden with a waterfall ... a giant wave sculpture with a kangaroo surfing on it ... crazy.

 

It was renamed "The Banana Bender's Pub".  Why Banana Bender's, well this term is ïconically Queensland".  According to the Australian National University, the term banana bender traditionally refers to a Queenslander and is derived from the joking notion that Queenslanders spend their time putting bends in bananas.  Quite a fitting name of an iconic Queensland pub.

Appartently though this name upset a lot of the locals, and I did read somewhere that there was a petition going around to have the name changed... Because of it quirky nature, I really think that the name quite suits the Pub...

 Although some people don't like the name, the decor is eclectic- from slight colonial look to beach to bush and colours assaulting your senses everywhere!  The outside was impressive enough, but the inside was full of irresistibly brightly coloured eye candy and it reminded up of the Marchfeldoff Restaurant that we visited in Vienna when we were there back in 2016.  This was way more colourful but quirky and eclectic as well.

Yes, the Banana Bender Pub  is a bit tacky but in a crazy interesting way it definitely gives you lots to look at. The building has 3 stories and each is a large open area with plenty of space. 

It certainly had a Queensland and Aussie theme and I would imagine it would be a huge hit with our international tourists.  It was a big enough hit with this Aussie...

 

From here you are welcomed into the downstair's Bar area and your eye's are assaulted by the rather over the top displays of colour all based around the Aussie local area... You have kangaroos and koalas surfing the big wave,  Totem poles with snakes and Aussie bird life,  Cows and flying pigs etc....

Welcomed by a large colourful sign as you walk in off the verandah...

Although there is a toilet on the next level, the main toilets are on the ground floor and are well decked out with a beach theme.  We were pretty impressed with them...

Entrance to the toilets looks like little beach shacks on the beach...

Old plastic milk crates as light shades leading into the toilets...

Definitely a beach theme in the toilets

Not too many toilets are worth photographing, but these ones were pretty fancy and deserved to be documented...

The Bar area on the ground floor was equally impressive with amazing chandeliers made out of beer bottles and other bits and pieces...

Amazing chandeliers in the main ground floor bar....

Another of the amazing chandeliers in the ground floor Bar...

This ground section of the Pub seemed to be decorated to represent the Sunshine Coast with lots of reference being made to local coastal landmarks...

Loved the colourful tables and chairs in this downstairs area...

Koala surfing the big one....

And pigs might fly too....

 I can certainly see how they lay claim to being Australia's quirkiest pub because this place offers something totally different and yet it really is uniquely Australian.  From it's playful name which unfortunately has offended some local residents ( there is currently a petition out there wanting the management to change the name).  Personally I love the name and once you see the quirky and eclectic decor, this pub is a place of fun where nobody takes anything too seriously. 

You are really drawn too and are keen to explore the magnificently coloured visual tribute to the fun and lifestyle of the Sunshine Coast.....   and for the photographer, so many fabulous photo opportunities abound... you could surf with a kangaroo or koala as I saw some patrons doing, or like me pose with the chill-laxed roo on the veranda.  We also spent several hours checking out the mammoth range of memorabilia displayed over the three levels of the pub....

From here I wandered out to the side verandah and the outdoor beer garden,   these were both equally impressive with their quirkiness and again I couldn't help capturing it with my phone...

After thoroughly checking out the ground floor we decided to make up way upwards.  There is a lift up to the next level and as my back was still pretty sore I could have been easily tempted to use it, but I really did not want to miss out experiencing first hand all the little treasures that were on display as you made your way up the stairs.  

From this level, we got some stunning views down to the ground floor below.  

The first mezzanine floor level we visited, paid tribute to the life saving movement with lots of memorabilia about the Queensland Lifesavers, and again provided great opportunities for some photo bombing of which we indulged in...

After taking numerous photos here we continued to climb the stairs up to the next level where the "Mango Bar & Grill"which is the Banana Bender Pub's laid-back and welcoming dining destination, showcasing some of the Sunshine Coast's best local produce in a truly innovative and tropically inspired menu.

The lights at the top of the staircase were amazing....  All the lights at the Pub were wonderful, quirky and really out there and there weren't any that didn't impress us both...

Amazing lights at the top of the steps to the top level where the restaurant was....

As we were being allocated a table, suddenly a flash mob broke out and burst into song and dance..

We were very impressed that we managed to arrive just as they started, as they only do this twice a week, on the weekend around lunch time, and we just managed to be there for it...

Once the performance was over, we were then escorted to a table out on the verandah...

The top tier which houses the restaurant has a huge balcony overlooking the highway yet there is so much colourful decor you forget you are next to the highway.

We were given our menu's and decided to order the King Prawn and Smoked Salmon Pizza to share between us.  The food was fine, probably not the best we have had but it tasted good, was hot and it came out promptly even though the place was busy.  Steve was a little disappointed in the amount of seafood on the pizza especially the prawns.  At $26 he thought it should definitely have more seafood...

Our drinks

Our pizza arrived promptly..

It tasted pretty good.....

After our lunch we decided to explore the other two mezzanine floors attached to the top floor of the restaurant. 

The first level we went to was a tribute to the caricature portraits of well known Aussie, politicians, and sports folk.,  Again there were really quirky light fittings up here, along with lots of greenery...

 The decorative ceiling up here was also worth photographing... There was so much up there that it was hard to decide which part of the ceiling we should be photographing...

The last mezzanine floor level to explore was dedicated to Australian music over the years.  This was one of my favourite...  There were hundreds of original LP's and EPs attached up over the walls and onto the ceilings and the lights were brilliant,  a set of drums, and a big round light with piano keys all the way around it.  These two lights cycled through bright fluro colours every few minutes...

 We did meet a lovely couple up enjoying a drink on this level, and we sat and chatted to them for quite some time.  They had come up from Brisbane for the day and were enjoying a quiet drink before they took off for home again.  

Before heading back down stairs again, we decided to go back to the verandah again to see the amazing view that looked down over the motor way and all the work that is going on there.  It was good also to get a good view and perspective of all the shops below....

View of the upgrades to the Bruce Highway.

We didn't have a whole lot more to explore after this level, and because my back was still playing up dreadfully, we decided to take the lift back down to the bottom level where there was even more eye candy which meant even more photos....

More amazing lights...

They even had dining booths to sit at also...

From here we decided to go and check out all the little shops at Aussie World.  We had noticed an ice cream shop when we had parked the car so thought that we would check it out and grab an ice-cream before heading home...

There were a few other quite quirky little shops there as well and Steve enjoyed looking in the Bloke's shop which had lots of car memorabilia as well as some great enamel camping cups.  They were $20 each and we were tempted until we remembered that we are actually going home to downsize, so we really don't want to buy more junk to take home...

Steve found this shop really interesting and it bought back lots of memories of by gone days.  Whilst he was checking this store out, I found another store with some lovely glass wall hangings.  They also sold handmade jewellery and other bits and pieces..

Just as we were ready to leave, we noticed a whole lot of Ford "Mustang"cars parked out the front of the Bloke's shop.  They must have been on a club outing or maybe a rally as there were 7 or 8 car loads of them.  Some were quite old, others pretty new but they were impressive enough that I wanted to photograph a few of them..

For a spare of the moment decision to stop and check out this pub, we had a great time exploring it and I am pretty sure we will be back here again in the near future...

It was mid afternoon before we finally got away and headed for home...