$5 pizza at the new Royal Derby Hotel
During 2008 the Royal Derby Hotel on the corner of Brunswick St and Alexandra Parade has been closed for a complete makeover. It opened on 25 October (I was away and unable to attend the opening party) and I went in a few days later to see the interior and to sample the $5 pizzas.
My first impression of the pizza is that it is good with potential to improve. Like Bimbos, the pizzas are not large but are of a good quality. I ordered one with sopressa, tomato and basil. The base pizza with the sopressa (a kind of salami from northern Italy) has been into the oven (the sopressa was deliciously crispy on the edges) and the fresh basil and tomato placed on top afterwards to gently warm them without overly wilting the basil.
The ingredients were very fresh and the result was tasty, but the juiciness of the ripe tomatoes was sufficient to make the centre soggy by the time I was half way through eating it. I think the tomato should have been put on before baking and only the basil put on afterwards.
There are numerous pizza to try including several vegetarian styles so there should be a pizza to suit everyone. There are some good beers on tap including James Squire, and the staff seem happy that locals have embraced the new venue so quickly. The $5 pizzas are available all day every day (this may draw punters on Fridays and Saturdays when Bimbo Deluxe is not as cheap as Sunday to Thursday).
The interior is dark and sombre (above) with touches of colour, and it contains large sofas and different spaces where people can mingle or create semi private spaces. The day bed (below) is an interesting choice for a pub.
One side of the front bar has a disco ball space ideal for dancing.
The other side of the front bar features high tables and stools.
The outdoor beer garden now looks like a deck and will be popular over summer.
An amusing marketing faux-pas is that the new website contains only the opening party information well after the event has passed (I wrote this post on 2 November), while the old website still has not been taken offline. The opening night party organisation was outsourced to a marketing company who seems to have finished their job. The new site does not have anything helpful like opening hours, menu, facilities or contact details.
Because I work in online marketing, I find this kind of error puzzling. It is so simple to get it right that I cannot comprehend how businesses can get it wrong. Coordinating your online and real world marketing is simple. Your site should be live when you open for business. Anything else is likely to lead to customer confusion and dissatisfaction.
Update 20 January 2009: I may be alone in this but I find the fact that the old and new websites for the Royal Derby hotel still exist exactly as I described them two months ago most amusing. This is a definite marketing failure.
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Other posts you may find relevant and interesting
- calamari salad at the Rainbow hotel, 10 April 2009
- lunch at Mark’s Place, Swanston St Carlton, 18 August 2010
- these look familiar, 9 April 2010
- beer and pizza at Joe’s Shoe Store, High St Northcote, 30 September 2009
- beer and pizza at Deco bar, St George’s Rd North Fitzroy, 22 December 2009