Rockpool Dining Group looks to global expansion

The expected sale of Rockpool Dining Group has been temporarily sidelined, with the group set to embark on international expansion.

Earlier this year RDG assessed strategic options for what is now the country's largest restaurant group.

One of those options was the sale of the group, which is currently owned by Quadrant Private Equity.

Chief executive Thomas Pash and Neil Perry met with a number of potential suitors in Asia and North America, and while there was interest Perry says they've decided to act on feedback.

"They said let's see you do a couple of things [overseas] first," the industry veteran explains.

So Rockpool's Bavarian Bier Cafe will start opening sites on the west coast of the US. Premium brands Sake and Rockpool will follow.

A sale or public float is still part of the plan. "A float would be the first [for a restaurant group] in Australia," Perry says.

This month RDG announced it will open its first New Zealand restaurant, The Bavarian, in Auckland in October, with plans to open up to seven restaurants in New Zealand in the next two years.

Despite tougher trading conditions for restaurants, it hasn't quelled the big end of town investing.

A spokesperson for Seagrass Boutique Hospitality Group, which operates Butcher and the Farmer and the newly opened 6Head at The Rocks, confirmed Sydney-based Crescent Capital Partners has taken a minority stake in the group.

Reports suggest a $100-million deal, which will help the roll-out of new restaurants locally.

Seagrass is also believed to be strongly linked with a possible Middle-Eastern restaurant start-up in Los Angeles.