Dan Andrews’ life in Melbourne turns into a nightmare as he is hit with fresh ban

EXCLUSIVE

One of Melbourne’s hospitality heavyweights says there’s ‘no chance’ he would let Daniel Andrews eat in his buzzing pub – making him the latest in a growing number of hospitality operators to blackball the former Victorian premier list.

Former AFL star Paul Dimattina, who runs popular South Melbourne venue Lamaro’s Hotel, said the former premier was “easily the most hated person” in Victoria after it was revealed several Melbourne restaurant owners had used Andrews and his wife Cath’s service refused.

“I hope Andrews wouldn’t get a place in my pub,” Mr Dimattina told Daily Mail Australia.

“If he came in and sat down…the Lamaro crowd would be disgusted when they saw him…Andrews is hated for his whole anti-business attitude.

“The trail of destruction Andrews left is still palpable: small businesses closed, endless lockdowns, crucial healthcare neglected, children out of school… he helped no one.

“Mental health went downhill and now Andrews has a job in mental health, if you can believe that.”

Mr Dimattina, who owned several venues in Melbourne after his 131-game career for the Western Bulldogs ended in 2003, said Andrews also “absolutely crippled” the hospitality industry.

The former champion AFL midfielder suffered personal hardships during Victoria’s lengthy lockdowns as he and his family fought to keep their hospitality businesses open.

“Business has been decimated, the CBD is a ghost town, once thriving restaurants are boarded up it’s the same on every high street, Chapel St, Lygon St, empty businesses everywhere,” he said.

‘What Andrews did is he didn’t make running a small business easy…he would be better off if he left the state, I’m sure there are still people who still love him, lefties and all , but he is not welcome anywhere and we’ll all be better off without seeing him here.’

Andrews’ latest ban is a negative sign for his hopes of dining out in Melbourne, as Dimattina’s family owns and has owned several restaurants in the city, including along the famous Lygon Street precinct.

Rebel News correspondent Avi Yemini said that ‘many people hate Andrews because they hold him ‘responsible for the current state of Victoria’.

“They are frustrated that he has never been held accountable for his decisions or actions, no matter how reckless or potentially corrupt they may have been,” Yemini said.

“Victorians have endured the longest and toughest lockdowns in the world, with many losing everything.

“Meanwhile, Andrews walked away with a substantial taxpayer-funded pension and a comfortable new job.

“It’s understandable that those who feel wronged would hold a grudge against him.”

Mr Yemini said if he owned a restaurant he wouldn’t give Andrews a booking either.

“I wouldn’t want that thug near my restaurant or club,” he said.

“He’s bad for business.”

The latest pile-up came after it was revealed Andrews and his wife were refused bookings at popular Melbourne restaurants during the Covid pandemic.

It was reported that Andrew’s blacklists were a payback for the city’s hospitality industry during the state’s long and strict lockdown.

Restaurateur Chris Lucas revealed that when Andrews’ wife Cath called to book a table at his Windsor eatery Hawker Hall, located in Melbourne’s once bustling Chapel St precinct, he told her: ‘Sorry, it is not available.’

Mr Lucas revealed that Di Stasio, a famous Melbourne restaurant group not part of his hospitality group, also refused Mr Andrews a booking for his birthday around the same period.

Both Lucas and Di Stasio’s owner Rinaldo Di Stasio have been outspoken critics of Mr Andrews’ tough approach to Covid, which has left Melbourne suffering the world’s longest lockdowns, disrupting the country’s once-famed hospitality industry city ​​was paralyzed.

“He has his own cross to bear, but we’re allowed to disagree, right? We live in a democracy,” Lucas recently told the newspaper Australian Financial Statement.

Lucas Group has a number of dining options in Melbourne, including Grill Americano, Kisumé, Society and Chin Chin.

“To simply come out and demand that these powers be given to him in an unprecedented form just smacks of insensitivity. Frankly, we’re sick of it,” Lucas said of Andrews’ harsh Covid lockdowns.

He later said in 2022: “We are a shadow of the industry we were before Covid.

“Two years of lockdown have caused us so much trauma, not just financially, but emotionally, that it has left many scars in this city.”

The restaurants weren’t the only places where Andrews took the fall following his controversial Covid approach.

Members of Melbourne’s prestigious National Golf Club on the Mornington Peninsula came together last year to block Andrews’ interest in joining.

A letter to the club committee claimed that more than a hundred members had ‘taken a clear position against’ his potential membership.

“I would like to be assured to myself and my fellow members that, should Daniel Andrews express an interest in joining the National Golf Club, his application will undergo the standard membership approval process,” the letter said.

There were also rumors that Andrews wanted to join the exclusive Portsea Golf Club, but was also beaten back.

Andrews was Premier of Victoria for almost nine years before stepping down at the end of 2023 and taking on a new role at mental health organization Orygen.