An Irish pub-style home bar is the standout feature of the Highbury property at 2 Paradise Close.
It’s not hard to find a house with a bar these days – but you’d be hard-pressed to find another like the one inside this Adelaide home.
The Highbury house’s ‘cellar’ resembles a cosy Irish pub, with memorabilia adorning the ceiling and walls and eclectic furnishings making it feel like the real deal.
Below the kitchen and dining room with access through a hidden stairwell, the bar is a highlight of the quirky property at 2 Paradise Close.
It existed when Paul Newman moved into the three-bedroom house, which was once his cousin’s and has been in the family for four decades, about three-and-a-half years ago.
But he made the bar and wine cellar the impressive private pub it is today.
It can be accessed inside the home from a hidden stairwell.
Memorabilia and eclectic furnishings making it feel like the real deal.
It leads outside to a large ‘beer garden’.
The bar can be accessed from inside the home through a hidden cellar door.
“When I moved in, it was pretty shabby,” said Mr Newman, who is an author of two popular children’s books, Grandpa’s Big Adventure and Grandpa’s Space Adventure, and a novel, Fin Rising.
“He (his cousin) had a bit down there but it wasn’t as flash as it is now.
“I spent a couple of months working on the bar, it took a long time to do but it was worth every minute of it.”
Mr Newman collected a lot of the memorabilia displayed in the bar, including coasters and foreign currency on the ceiling beams, while travelling overseas to places like Ireland.
“Every time I’ve gone home, I’ve collected more bits and pieces,” he said.
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Other items were given to him by people who collected them on their own travels.
He said the area had become “an entertainer’s paradise”, particularly for events like St Patrick’s Day and Christmas in July.
“It’s just a really great space to have if you’re having a party,” Mr Newman said.
While he loved the property, which he said was unlike any other in the area and had breathtaking views that stretched as far as the city, Mr Newman said it was too big for him now.
The hidden door really is hidden when closed …
The home has a lot of character.
It also has breathtaking views that stretch as far as the city.
The property will be auctioned on May 9.
“I’m selling reluctantly, it’s just because I want to downsize,” he said.
“Most of the house is not being used. It needs people.”
Mr Newman said wherever he moved to, he would have another bar – a tradition started back in Sydney when his twin children were young.
“I wasn’t getting out as much so I thought, ‘As a hobby I’m going to put this together’,” he said of setting up his first home bar.
It became a “social hub”, Mr Newman said – they socialised with friends in the bar while all their children played together in the backyard.
Selling agent Jarred Stamoulis, of Harris Real Estate, said the prospective buyers who had inspected the home so far were impressed with its uniqueness, particularly the bar.
“It’s the only one I’ve seen like it in Adelaide too,” said Mr Stamoulis, who is selling the property with Naomi Stamoulis.
The home has a price guide of $975,000 and will be auctioned on May 9.
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