When a quintessentially classic 70s house in Stanmore hit the market, Elise and Scott (the dynamic duo behind Valentina's and Grumpy Donuts) jumped at the chance to call it home and fell in love with it - just the way it is.
Some properties come with more personality than others. While most buyers might look past a listing covered in timber and dark, 70s style brick walls, Elise and Scott were the opposite.
“It was only our third week of looking that this place came up. We’d honestly been thinking that we’d be looking for a year, at least,” reveals Elise. “At the first inspection, I remember we went outside and hid from the agent behind a wall and kept saying, ‘holy f*ck, this is it!’”
Elise and Scott are no strangers to properties that make a statement. The pair are Founders of Deep Fried Hospo, the hospitality group responsible for Grumpy Donuts and Marrickville’s all-day diner Valentina’s (affectionately known as Tina’s) - which received a highly-sought-after commendation for 'Best Cafe Design' in the Eat Drink Design Awards (2021).
If you’ve ever stopped by Valentinas for an epic, 'American diner-style' breakfast and bottomless filter coffee (highly recommended), you might have spotted Elise and Scott floating around with their two Brussels Griffons, Abbie and Tina, who “don’t do much other than yell at our visitors and steal all our money.”
In fact, it was around a table at Tinas that Elise and Scott began the journey to securing their dream home. “Brendan came in and we all had an open discussion to decide what our budget could be and the range of house prices we could go after. It was super helpful and surprising for us - we had more to work with than we thought,” shares Elise.
With their numbers sorted, the couple engaged a buyer’s agent (Kellie Landrey from Scoutable) which took a huge weight off their shoulders.
“Working with a really good entity like Pure Finance, we trust them entirely. So, we trust them to give us referrals to other people like lawyers and buyer's agents. It is so helpful to work with a team of people who are already good at working with each other - it takes even more stress off your plate,” explains Elise.
It didn’t take long before a classic mid-century home in the heart of Stanmore stole their hearts. “All the walls were a salmon-pink colour… but we were interested because we liked it the way it was, so we didn’t have much (if any) competition, which is really rare.”
The freestanding double-brick home had been owned by the same family for multiple generations. “The mum had lived here since she was 14 with her grandparents,” shares Elise. “They were selling because they didn’t need a big family home anymore and wanted to relocate to live closer to their grandchildren. So it was very bittersweet for them.”
As the saying goes: when you know, you know. “As soon as we saw this place we knew we desperately wanted it,” shares Elise. With a clear vision for what they could do with the space, the couple secured the property prior to auction in what they say was “definitely not the typical [buying] experience.”
“When we put the sold sticker on, the family that lived here were home at the time. The whole process was really emotional and sentimental for them. We came inside and all sat here and cried together.”
If you’ve ever dined at Tina’s, you’ll know that Elise and Scott exude warm, generous hospitality.
With multiple venues under their belt, many of their team have been by their side for years and “everyone that works with us ends up feeling like family.”
From day one, the pair were keen to make their house feel like home. “One of the biggest fun benefits of this place is that it’s a great party house. We’ve had so many house parties since we moved in. We even had a party the night we moved in: the removalists left at 6:20 pm and guests started arriving at 6:30 pm,” shares Elise.
It’s no surprise that one of their favourite features of the house was the show stopping original 70s bar station, covered in timber and black leather armrests. They even found a stack of original mid-century cocktail books left behind, which Scott shares is “one of the best parts of the house.”
Elise and Scott’s top top picks for eating and drinking in their new neighbourhood
Salisbury Hotel - their favourite local pub in Stanmore.
Valentina’s - obviously.
Soulmate - for brekkie and coffee in Newtown.
Brighter Coffee - their go-to cafe on their morning dog walk.
Enmore Hotel - a great no-frills drinking hole.
Fortunate Son - for great drinks and great service.
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