After 32 years of trade, it remains as popular as ever. You have just three months to pay your respects.
For 32 years it’s sat watching over the intersection of Brunswick and Barker Streets while others have come and gone – Alibi Room, Taj Mahal and so many more. But come end of February, Gerties, the enormously popular New Farm bar in the heritage-listed Shops building, will be no more.
Owner Raul Chocop made the decision to close the bar after he couldn’t agree on terms for a new lease with his landlord. Gerties’ last service will be at the end of February.
Speaking to this masthead on Tuesday, Chocop said it was a particularly difficult decision given the bar was still trading strongly.
But a proposed steep hike in rent and a litany of maintenance issues meant the decision was more or less made for him.
“I thought to myself, that’s life just telling me to go, as much as I love the place,” Chocop said. “It was no easy decision, I couldn’t sleep. I had plans for the business and I’m happy because I could provide work for staff and musicians.
“I’ve met so many nice people here. They come back and you feel that love from them. I always made a point of talking to everyone, to make sure they come back.”
Chocop initially started his time at Gerties as an employee, but bought the business in 2015.
“I did it for 10 years how I wanted,” he said, “Not many places can say that, so I’m proud.”
The word beloved gets chucked around too much when talking about popular food and drink venues, but it applies to Gerties. It’s always been a well pitched, service-focused bar, as popular with New Farm locals as it is interlopers.
Any restaurateur or bar owner will tell you it’s not easy taking over an existing venue and keeping its numbers up. But Chocop managed it through sheer personality and attention to service.
“The place has so much character, which I slowly changed over time with little additions here and there,” he said. “Some friends said, ’Why don’t you put QR codes on the tables? I said, ‘No, I don’t want that.’
“People don’t understand. Maybe it saves you money, but then guests don’t get that experience to remember. You lose in the long term.”
Gerties’ final service for the general public is currently set for February 24.
Chocop said he will begin thinking about his next venue over the summer, whether it be a continuation of Gerties in a different location or something else entirely.
“I will take a break to go see my mum [in Guatemala],” he said. “I haven’t seen my mum in years.”
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Matt Shea is Food and Culture Editor at Brisbane Times. He is a former editor and editor-at-large at Broadsheet Brisbane, and has written for Escape, Qantas Magazine, the Guardian, Jetstar Magazine and SilverKris, among many others.
