Kealba Hotel

What Kealba Hotel does

Kealba Hotel is a multi-service hospitality venue located on Sunshine Ave in St Albans/Kealba, Melbourne's western suburbs, Victoria, Australia, operating under the parent group Francis Venues (which also operates The Dingley Hotel, Berwick Springs Hotel, Boronia Hotel, The Summerhill Hotel, Edwardes Lake Hotel, The Watergardens Hotel, and Golden Point Hotel). The company serves local consumer segments including sports fans, families with children, seniors, and walk-in bottleshop customers through an integrated venue that combines a family-friendly bistro, a sports bar marketed as having the biggest screens in Melbourne's west, a TAB & entertainment lounge open daily 10am–4am, an indoor children's playground called Kid's Planet, and an adjacent Thirsty Camel drive-thru bottleshop on Main Road East, St Albans. Revenue is generated across food and beverage (with weekly food specials such as Parma Night, Steak Night, and Surf & Turf plus senior lunch specials), gaming and entertainment (TAB betting, Wednesday APL poker tournaments, and a sports betting lounge), function and event hire (kid's birthday party packages, corporate catering platters), and packaged alcohol retail via the drive-thru bottleshop.

The underlying technology stack is modest but includes two notable components: a facial recognition computer-vision system integrated with the Australian Hotels Association Self Exclusion Program to identify and prevent self-excluded individuals from entering the premises (with images held on secure on-premise servers and predefined expiration), and the Frisbie Rewards mobile loyalty application on iOS and Android, which supports point earning/redemption, stamp cards, table ordering, and future bookings. The website is built on the Wix platform with Google Analytics and reCAPTCHA integrations, and the venue plugs into third-party platforms for delivery (DoorDash, Uber Eats) and reservations (OpenTable).

The go-to-market is direct-to-consumer through a physical venue footprint, supported by a community-led marketing layer (community partner sponsorships including Keilor Park Football Club, Living Legends, Chordata and Ko, and Very Special Kids, plus the Shining Superstar Award for local children's sporting clubs). Pricing follows a unit-pricing model with daily food and beverage promotions, a public-holiday 10% surcharge, and loyalty-member-only pricing such as the $16 Spicy Pine Margarita for Frisbie Rewards members. The company is privately held with no disclosed funding rounds, no M&A activity, and revenue figures not publicly disclosed.

Name

Kealba Hotel

Legal name

Kealba Hotel (operated under Francis Venues)

Website

https://kealbahotel.com.au

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Kealba Hotel is a multi-service hospitality venue in Melbourne's western suburbs operating a bistro, a sports bar with the biggest screens in the west, a TAB & entertainment lounge, a Kid's Planet indoor playground, and a Thirsty Camel drive-thru bottleshop, serving local families, sports fans, and seniors under the Francis Venues group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hospitality Pub & Bar Services

NAICS

Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (722410), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAFAEAI

Lounge Bars & Hotel Bars

Travel & Hospitality/Foodservice & Beverage (Restaurants, Cafes, Bars)/Bars, Pubs & Nightlife Venues

SECONDARYMPAGAIAC

Bars & Pubs (Non-Music)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Live Entertainment & Events (Concerts, Theater, Festivals)/Nightlife & Live Music Venues (Clubs, Bars)

SECONDARYMPAFALAD

Gaming Café/Bar Hybrid Venues (Food & Beverage + Competitive Play)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Gaming & Interactive Entertainment (Video Games, Esports)/Competitive Gaming Venues & LAN Centers

Keywords

• Hospitality venue
• Sports bar dining
• Bistro food service
• Drive-thru bottleshop
• Kids indoor playground

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Food & Beverage Sales: Core revenue from bistro dining, bar sales, and bottleshop operations. Includes weekly food specials (Parma Night, Steak Night, Surf & Turf) and senior lunch specials. Thirsty Camel bottleshop operates as separate drive-thru retail outlet.
2. Gaming & Entertainment: TAB and entertainment lounge operating daily from 10am-4am. Wednesday poker tournaments hosted by APL. Sports betting viewing with big screens.
3. Function & Event Hire: Kids birthday party packages with food and play area access. Corporate event catering with events platters menu. Kids Planet indoor playground available for private bookings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kealba Hotel is a multi-service hospitality venue operating a family-friendly bistro, a large-screen sports bar for live AFL/NRL/cricket viewing, a TAB & Entertainment Lounge for gaming, a Thirsty Camel drive-thru bottleshop for takeaway alcohol, and an indoor children's playground (Kid's Planet). It also runs a mobile loyalty program (Frisbie Rewards) and hosts private events including kids birthday parties and corporate catering.

Product overview

Kealba Hotel is a hospitality venue in Melbourne's west operating as a multi-service establishment. The core offerings include a family-friendly Bistro for dining, a Sports Bar with large screens for live sport viewing, a Thirsty Camel drive-thru bottleshop for takeaway alcohol, and a TAB & Entertainment Lounge for gaming. Additional services include Kid's Planet Playground (indoor play area for children), Kid's Party Packages (birthday celebrations), Frisbie Rewards (loyalty program via mobile app), Senior's Menu, Events Platters catering, and the Shining Superstar Award (community recognition program). The venue integrates with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and OpenTable for delivery and reservations, while operating its own Frisbie Rewards mobile application.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Frisbie Rewards: A loyalty and rewards program offered by Kealba Hotel enabling customers to earn and redeem points, with features including table ordering and booking through a mobile application.
• Kid's Planet
• Shining Superstar Award

Products and services

• Kealba Hotel Bistro Family-friendly pub bistro offering classic pub meals and weekly food specials (Parma Night, Steak Night, Surf & Turf), open for lunch and dinner with all-day dining on weekends.
• Kealba Hotel Sports Bar Sports viewing destination featuring the biggest screens in Melbourne's west for watching AFL, NRL, cricket, and international sporting events, with surround sound and a full bar.
• Thirsty Camel Drive-Thru Bottleshop Standalone drive-thru bottleshop at Main Road East, St Albans, offering beer, wine, spirits, and premix drinks with weekly specials and delivery options.
• TAB & Entertainment Lounge Gaming and entertainment venue operating daily from 10am to 4am, offering TAB betting facilities and Wednesday poker tournaments hosted by APL.
• Kid's Party Packages Birthday party packages for children featuring food, playtime in the Kid's Planet playground, and hosted celebrations.
• Events Platters Catering Catering platter service for functions and corporate events, available as a downloadable PDF menu.

Quantifiable outcome

• Biggest screens in Melbourne's west - claim of market leadership

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Very Special KidsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharitable partnership during July where Kealba Hotel donates $1 from every parma sold to Very Special Kids, a hospice and respite care provider for children with life-limiting conditions.
• Living LegendsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner - horse welfare charity. Living Legends is dedicated to finding loving retirement homes for champion racehorses.
• Keilor Park Football ClubminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor community partner - local sporting club receiving sponsorship support from Kealba Hotel for growth within the community.
• Chordata and KominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner - local arts organisation supported by Kealba Hotel's community sponsorship program.
• APL (Australian Poker League)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAPL hosts Wednesday night poker tournaments at Kealba Hotel, providing regular entertainment and gaming events.
• AHA Self Exclusion ProgramcoreTechnology or IntegrationIntegrated facial recognition system linked to Australian Hotels Association self-exclusion program for responsible gambling compliance, enabling identification and prevention of self-excluded individuals from entering premises.
• Very Special KidsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner - children's hospice and respite care provider. Kealba Hotel supports through charitable donations from food sales.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• ALH Group (Australian Leisure & Hospitality): Operates 300+ hotels, pubs and gaming venues across Australia under Woolworths-backed ownership; broad incumbent competitor for community pub share in western Melbourne.
• Endeavour Group: Owns Dan Murphy's, BWS and a portfolio of hotels/pubs; competes indirectly through its owned bottleshop networks and through owned/partnered pub venues in the same geography.
• Australian Venue Co. Australia's largest pub operator with 150+ venues; competes with Kealba for suburban sports-bar and casual dining occasions but at materially greater scale and marketing reach.
• Merivale: Large Sydney/NSW hospitality group with multi-outlet bar, bistro and events portfolio; useful benchmark for F&B-led pub operations and loyalty marketing even though not a direct geographic competitor.

Direct peers

• The Watergardens Hotel: Francis Venues-operated multi-purpose pub venue in Melbourne's north-west offering comparable dining, TAB and event offerings.
• The Dingley Hotel: Sister property within the Francis Venues group operating a bistro, sports bar, TAB and family facilities in metropolitan Melbourne; most directly comparable venue given shared ownership, brand standards, and operating model.
• Edwardes Lake Hotel: Francis Venues group property combining bistro, bar, TAB and family amenities; highly comparable structure and customer mix to Kealba Hotel.
• Berwick Springs Hotel: Another Francis Venues venue offering multi-outlet pub hospitality (bistro, bar, TAB, gaming) in Melbourne's south-east, providing a near-identical operating template for benchmarking.

Others

• TAB / Tabcorp: National wagering and gaming operator that supplies TAB terminals and poker infrastructure to hotels including Kealba; relevant as upstream partner rather than direct competitor.
• Thirsty Camel: National franchise/brand owner of drive-thru bottle shops including the Kealba-adjacent location; relevant as the network/brand operator behind Kealba's bottleshop channel rather than a competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kealba-hotel

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kealba Hotel