Prime Eat Street properties light up Parramatta market

These adjoining buildings along Parramatta’s main drag have sold at auction.
These adjoining buildings along Parramatta’s main drag have sold at auction.

A Sydney buyer is licking their lips after snapping up two prime properties along Parramatta’s bustling Eat Street, including the site which houses Australia’s first Criniti’s restaurant.

The adjoining Church St buildings went under the hammer on Thursday and sold for a combined $5.7 million.

A sizzling marketing campaign saw plenty of buyer interest, with agents Anthony Khoury and Jon Race taking inquiries from about 40 groups and handing out about six contracts.

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“We had four people in the auction room and bidding started at $4.5 million. In the end, there were two active bidders, both investors, who became very competitive,” Khoury, of Khoury and Partners, says.

A look inside the Italian restaurant along the suburb’s main drag.

“Two of the Criniti family members were in the room and they were really happy with the result,” he says.

Near the Church St and Phillip St intersection and zones for mixed use, the side-by-side properties at No. 287 and 289 recently hit the market for the first time in 10 years.

They have been held since 2009 by the Criniti family, who opened and have since run their first Italian restaurant out of one building.

Criniti’s founders Cosmo and Rosa with daughter, Kathy, at their Parramatta restaurant earlier this year. Picture: Angelo Velardo

The founders have gone on to build a national chain, opening eateries in Queensland and Melbourne, as well as setting up shop on the Central Coast and, more recently, in Wetherill Park.

While they sold their Parramatta bricks and mortar, the Criniti family told the Parramatta Advertiser they would keep the thriving restaurant’s doors open.

This was confirmed by the selling agent, who says the vendors plan to “stay in the property long-term”.

The second property is tenanted by San Churro — a treat for dessert lovers.

“Both properties have new three-year leases with two, three-year options to extend,” he says.

Next door to Criniti’s, the site is tenanted by San Churro Chocolateria, which has a menu catering for those with a sweet tooth.

The buyer is said to have snapped up the properties with a view to hold onto them for years to come.

This article from the Parramatta Advertiser originally appeared as “Parramatta Eat Street properties sell for tasty price at auction”.