Rockpool Bar & Grill Sydney will reopen for business tomorrow, three weeks after a fire closed the restaurant mid-service.
Neil Perry says the closure has cost the group $1.5 million.
"It was a lot more water-damaged than anything, but all the walls and chamber ceiling had to be cleaned," Perry says of the delay in reopening.
Drying the restaurant proved a huge undertaking. "Massive machines and tubes are running everywhere," Perry says. RB&G has been fitted with new carpets and a replacement ceiling on level one.
It is the latest in a string of expenses for the restaurant since the incident.
The night of the fire was particularly costly at a restaurant where a black-lip abalone meuniere costs $60 and a packed house was in attendance.
"The guests had to leave, so no charge," Perry confirms.
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