JUSTIN TIME FOR SUMMER

Double the space, double the beach views and an allnew cafe — this Burleigh Heads institution is about to raise the bar, writes Amber Macpherson

MANY restaurants only dream of the success Burleigh Heads eatery Justin Lane has found.

Since opening in 2011, the Italian restaurant has quadrupled in size, becoming the go to spot for locals to relax over a pizza or loosen up with a round of cocktails.

This week, the highly anticipated extended rooftop area will open after months of renovations, described as a “natural progression” for the establishment that pioneered rooftop dining in Burleigh.

“The new owners took over on April 20,” general manager Brodie Millwood says. “They realised that Justin Lane was at a point where it was a large and very busy restaurant, but it needed to shift gears.

“What we have done is almost doubled the size of our rooftop bar and dining area.

“The rooftop bar, which used to take up half the frontage, will now front the whole width of the building, doubling the views of Burleigh Beach.

“We’ve doubled the amount of space to dine and drink and we’ve upgraded the bar itself, which means faster service.”

It was never expected to be a simple expansion —and it wasn’t — but Brodie says it was necessary to cement the restaurant’s future.

“Having been there for six years, I had some crazy ideas,” Brodie says.

“There’s two halves to the Justin Lane building. The half we planned to move over to, we already had a lease on. It was just being used for storage. We were thinking of building a bridge between the two halves of the building. Being a 60-yearold building, there was a lot of engineering that needed to be completed, but we got that approved and we’ve bridged the gap between the two buildings.

“We’ve invested a lot of money to future proof the venue. We’ve upgraded equipment and installed an eight-tap beer system, partnering with Stone and Wood, Balter and Black Hops.”

Brodie says the union of the two areas will be seamless, with corresponding crisp white decor and wrap-around hanging plants giving the appearance the space was always there. With the owner a strong supporter of the current fare, Brodie says the menu will stay the same, except for a few new refreshment options as the weather heats up.

There is also another exciting venture close to opening downstairs — a cafe that will serve coffee and breakfast from 7am.

“As far as Burleigh Heads goes, there’s one other little sneaky thing — Justin’s Coffee,” Brodie says.

“The opening is yet to be determined, but that’s going to be a 7 to 11 (am) offering.

“Our downstairs takeaway shop is going to undergo a transformation in the morning, with locally roasted coffee from Supreme Roasters.”

Breakfast, lunch and dinner, Justin Lane is out to prove its grand intentions of longevity.

“Justin Lane, one of the reasons it’s so popular is it offers such a diverse experience,” Brodie says. “You can go there for lunch with family, it’s kid friendly, but then you can see it right through until Friday, Saturday night on the rooftop, listening to a DJ. A lot of people drinking on the rooftop makes the venue good money, but you can’t open the doors on that.

“Your bread and butter is your families, your locals. That’s what makes Justin Lane — it’s a locals’ hang out.”