Bannisters Port Stephens features 80 rooms, including four luxury suites and a penthouse, with fifty of the room having bay views over the Karuah River.

The hotel has been designed to make the most of its position and unimpeded views. The lofty, double-height lobby opens onto a huge infinity pool with pool bar. The food offerings will include a pub for casual dining and pizzas as well as a signature restaurant by celebrated chef and TV presenter, Rick Stein.

Bannisters by the Sea and its sister property Bannisters Pavilion, both in Mollymook on the NSW South Coast, have become favourite destinations for Sydneysiders, Canberrans and international visitors, many of whom are drawn to the barefoot luxury on offer and Rick Stein’s cuisine.

Pete Bacon, general manager, says the Port Stephens expansion was a no brainer. “There is so much potential in the Port Stephens area and it is a natural progression for us to take a formula that works and replicate it.”

The design team for the Mollymook properties, including architect Tony Freeman, interior designer Romy Alwill and landscape designer Will Dangar, will once again be weaving their creative magic at Bannisters Port Stephens.

Rick Stein is excited to be bringing a new Bannisters to life. “It’s another beautiful stretch of New South Wales coastline, like Mollymook, and we can’t wait to be working again with General Manager Peter Bacon and Commercial Director, Alice O’Hara. My wife Sas has long been a lover of the Port Stephens area, and even stayed in the old Salamander Shores hotel when she was 19. When we saw the landscape from the lookout above Nelson Bay we were filled with a sense of excitement to see an almost continuous vista of bays, headlands, peninsula and the open sea beyond.”

Stein is particularly excited about the local produce the restaurant will use. “The abundance of top quality seafood is a massive attraction as is the proximity to the Hunter Valley’s wineries. I will be working closely with Head Chef, Mitchell Turner designing a menu featuring local king prawns, Yellow fin bream, flathead, calamari and school whiting, not to mention the fabulous oysters.”

Click here to view the Bannisters Port Stephens official website.

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