Good George Napier: New partners sought after bar and restaurant’s sudden closure

The Napier site of Good George, which has temporarily closed after the voluntary liquidation of the operators. Photo / Doug Laing

Craft beer bar and restaurant brand Good George hopes the brand will be back in business at its high-profile Napier site after a sudden closure amid the collapse of the former partners.

Good George Napier Taphouse bar and restaurant has been on the corner of Tennyson St and Milton Rd overlooking Memorial and Clive squares in the fringes of the Napier CBD since 2023.

It was one of 14 venues affiliated to growing Hamilton enterprise Good George Brewing and Distilling and mainly run by separate owner-operators.

On-premise and hospitality director Darrel Hadley confirmed the closure, saying: “Unfortunately we have parted ways with the most recent operators in the Napier Taphouse and the original plan of the venue returning to the original ownership has fallen through.”

“We are now working alongside the landlord to find a new owner-operator to continue in the location in the current format or an updated concept,” he said.

“The temporary closure is a shame because the site has a great fit-out, is well located and the venue has shown good potential in the past.”

“I’d encourage any interested parties to get in touch,” he said, adding: “Any new operator will have to apply for a new liquor licence so the reopening may be several weeks away.”

One of 14 Good George sites, mainly in Hamilton and Auckland, the Napier business opened in 2023 and had been owned by Auckland-based Semper Fidelis Brothers Ltd since April last year.

It went into voluntary liquidation on April 29 this year, a first report by Auckland insolvency specialists Daran Nair and Heiko Draht on May 2 stating directors indicated there were no assets.

The report said the company traded as a restaurant and bar under the name “Good George Napier” in Napier, following the acquisition of the business in April 2024, but experienced a decline in sales, and income became insufficient to meet operating expenses.

The shareholders injected additional funds in an effort to support ongoing trading, but the business performance did not improve, and the shareholders resolved to put it into liquidation, it said.

Creditors have until June 15 to register their claims.

The site was once that of what has been recorded as Napier’s first public school – the Napier District School, which opened in 1879.

In more recent times it had been the site of an all-you-can-eat Valentines buffet restaurant, which did not reopen after a fire in 2008.

It then became Breakers Cafe and Bar, part of a chain started by business couple Mark and Penny Burt in Napier’s Masonic Hotel in 1997.

The Good George chain stems from a craft brewing dream founded in an old church (St George’s) in Frankton, Hamilton, in 2011.

In March 2020 it also started making hand sanitiser to meet demand in the first Covid lockdown.

Doug Laing is a senior reporter based in Napier with Hawke’s Bay Today, and has 52 years of journalism experience, 42 of them in Hawke’s Bay, in news gathering, including breaking news, sports, local events, issues, and personalities.