Iconic Busselton restaurant The Goose set to re-open after being destroyed by fire in 2021

An iconic South West restaurant is finally re-opening after a horrific fire forced the business to close down for two years. The Goose located on Busselton Foreshore was left unsalvageable after it was engulfed in flames, caused by a clothes dryer which was full of tea towels. The business was demolished shortly after and the team devised a plan to begin the rebuilding process. Two years later, the business hopes to re-open in mid-July. The Goose’s general manger Tim Meikle said he and the team are excited to serve the South West community and re-connect with the locals. “I’ve been so excited for it to come back mainly because the community has shown so much support to us,” Mr Meikle said. While the business was unable to serve from its normal location, it relocated into a food trailer in the car park where staff served coffees, burgers and other treats for the past two years. Mr Meikle said many locals stayed loyal to the business during the tough times, by regularly stopping and purchasing items. “This is a local restaurant and we’re here to serve the bustling community and its visitors when they come,” he said. “We want to be a good representation of Busselton hospitality and that’s what we’re most looking forward to doing.” The rebuild keeps the iconic aesthetic and vibe that locals love, while also becoming a more practical place for the bustling community. “When it was originally built, it was a very low key restaurant and now has become a much more usable space,” Mr Meikle said. “We’ve tried to update the styling with modern furnishings and more thought out in terms of the table plan, while trying to keep the same nostalgic feeling.” Mr Meikle said the restaurant re-build originally experienced some delays, but the team put it together as quickly as they could. “There was some delays early on before we could even start building, just some details to work out with fire hydrants and things like that,” he said. “Then there was some delays with getting different products just because the building industry has pressure at the moment, but the builders have done really well.”