Owners of two of the oldest and newest eateries in Lyttleton Terrace are hoping to raise the profile of the precinct and see it develop further.
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Bendigo Wholefoods owner Darren Murphy hoped new energy from some new stores in the terrace would get other traders enthusiastic about working together on the precinct.
"We looked at developing a traders' group (a few years ago), originally called the Lyttle Square," Mr Murphy said.
"Be.Bendigo tried to facilitate that and (we) came up with some good ideas but haven't got anything off the ground yet.
"I think we still have to lift the bar a bit but seeing the guys bringing in Hustler, there's opportunities to continue to improve the retails (in Lytlleton Terrace).
"We just don't know how to work well as a cluster just yet. We (did) had some success a few years ago with little festival-type events."
Hustler, Lyttleton Terrace's newest eatery, is putting out burgers and is run by Justin McPhail and Nick Horgan who also run Flight Bar.
The pair opened last week with their first few days of trade exceeding expectations.
"We did a soft launch last Thursday and Friday just with one Facebook post," Mr McPhail said. "We had lines out the door and tables always full, we weren't expecting it.
"This opportunity came up and we had always wanted a good burger joint that wasn't fried chicken. There's never been one in Bendigo to the style we expect."
Mr McPhail said he wanted the store to be in the CBD and that it was a bonus they had set up in Lyttleton Terrace.
"We definitely need to be in this precinct," he said. "There's lots of parking around and the foot traffic between here and Queen Street is amazing.
"Being in this precinct, there's a lot of good retailers like Wholefoods, Lyttle Asia has just popped up and Crooked Kitchen."
Mr McPhail said the idea of a hospitality precinct had a lot of potential.
"(It's about) keeping the quality up and raising the profile (of the precinct), which is something we like to think we're good at, letting people know we're here.
"Maybe we can do some cross promotion with others when we're settled in."
Mr Murphy said he hoped the trader's group would consider modelling itself after the South Melbourne Markets.
"South Melbourne Markets as a model have food and groceries in there as well as offshoot businesses," he said.
"We've got Erindale Farm butchers, Bakers Delight, Johnny's fruit and vegetables, a Lebanese-Turkish takeaway, Crooked does good wholesome food, there's a pizza place, Gillies is on the corner, and on the edges are Mason's of Bendigo and the Epicurean."
He said there could be two ways the precinct develops over time.
"One is supported by local, state or federal funding and that can take forever," he said. "The other is getting a maverick collective having a crack.
"But (it's about) whether we have the collective vision and willingness to work together congruently to push it through.
"When you get some guys in town who always enthusiastic and have a crack, which (the boys at Hustler) do, then (maybe we) say let's try again.
"There's some new energy in the precinct that can get the vibes going."
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