A few months in after its reopening, Gundagai’s iconic 120-year-old Niagara Cafe has won the President’s Prize at the 2023 National Trust (NSW) Heritage Awards.
It follows the restoration of Australia’s longest-running Greek cafe by its newest owners, Luke Walton and Kym Fraser.
“We need to tell stories of the past. The whole point of heritage is that it is about identity, belonging and a sense of place,” said Matt Devine, the chair of the independent jury behind the awards and a lecturer in conservation at Sydney University’s school of architecture.
“It helps create a sense of familiarity and belonging, bringing communities together and connecting us to our shared past, in all its diversity.”
After Walton and Fraser bought the cafe at the start of the pandemic, they started planning a full revamp of the historic regional business, including its famous booths, neon lights and front sign, executing also practical upgrades, updating the kitchen and the bathroom facilities.
The duo bought the cafe from the Loukissas family and reopened it in June 2022.
Nick Loukissas had taken over the venue from the Castrission family in 1983 and continued to operate it until 2020, making it the longest continually owned Greek café in Australia.
A renowned, authentic piece of Australia’s social history, the cafe initially opened in 1902 and has made history over the years for its art deco aesthetics and as a routine stop for the likes of prime ministers and film stars.
It was also the preference of passing army troops during WWII due to its convenient rural location, in between Melbourne and Sydney.
Amongst notable visits was one in 1942 by wartime PM John Curtin and his war cabinet, for a hearty midnight meal of steak and eggs.
“It is essentially, the finest remaining specimen of its kind, a jewel of the period when Greek cafés nourished the nation’s appetite for a good feed after a long country drive, or before or after a night out at the flicks,” historian Leonard Janiszewski commented about the iconic venue.
The story of the Niagara Cafe has been covered extensively in the recently republished book ‘Greek Cafes & Milk Bars of Australia’ from duo Leonard Janiszewski and Effie Alexakis.
