The former tearoom in the Dandenong Ranges where the Bavarian-themed Cuckoo restaurant laid out smorgasbords and steins for more than 65 years is up for sale. The much-loved restaurant at 508 Mount Dandenong Tourist Road closed in 2020 during the pandemic and briefly re-opened last year under new owner Eric Walters. The Cuckoo in the Dandenongs has been a favourite for generations.
Credit: The tearoom was bought in 1958 by Willi and Karin Koeppen, who transformed it into a 450-seat chalet-style restaurant with a strong Alpine theme. It is also the scene of a genuine local cold case. In February 1976, the Berlin-born Willi disappeared after a fractious night at the restaurant.
Records show the Koeppen family sold the building in 2022 for $1.99 million. Colliers agents Lucas Soccio, and James Zhuang with Bell Real Estate’s Elliot Bell are handling enquiries, and expect more than $4 million for the vacant property.
It’s on a 3.87 hectare parcel of land with parking for more than 400 cars and includes a fully functional hospitality fit-out and a caretaker’s cottage. Japanese car manufacturer Toyota has cut another tie with Port Melbourne, moving out of its Bertie Street research and design centre and listing it for sale at around $50 million.
The first Toyota car assembled outside of Japan was built in Port Melbourne in 1963 but manufacturing moved to Altona in 1994 and ceased altogether in Australia in 2017. Sources in Port Melbourne say Toyota moved out of 61 Bertie Stree.
