Tonic By The Bay — Restaurant in Western Australia

As a frequent visitor to Busselton, WA - now retired though, spent almost a lifetime in the hospitality industry across much of the country, with many comrades around the world in varying types of establishments. I feel compelled to leave a review for the very first time, careful not to tarnish or reflect on a business negatively.

Tonic By the Bay is our "go to" for everything from morning coffee to lunch or evening meal. The scene and location is unarguably ideal and the potential for a humming business is something I only wish we found in our Hotelier days.

Most notably is one particular staff member. I almost feel embarassed not knowing her name (Melissa? Merissa?). We don't stay long in our frequent visits HOWEVER, to the tall, long haired, blonde lass whom I think is the Manager and seems to be there all the time - We see you. We see many of (not all) the other staff, on their mobile telephones, talking amongst each other, disappearing where we think perhaps you're left on your own in busy times. If back in our day we had you on our staff, we would never have let you go.

To Tonic Management,  your venue is great and holds much potential but, I'm sure you know,  you'll only be as good as your staff and as far as we can see, each time we visit many of your staff are indeed not necessarily up to standard when they need to be.

If the tall, blonde , manager lass ever reads this - next time we see you we will be sure to introduce ourselves and assure you...

I booked a function room through Broadwater Resort Busselton & stayed 2 night. The bar/beer garden/function space was amazing & is called Tonic By The Bay. Such a fab set up with ample inside & outside seating. Dog friendly as is the Resort. Very casual feel. Great coffee!! Lorissa was fun, bubbly & friendly. Angus that set up the function for us asked lots of questions about what we wanted & continued to check in on us throughout the day. All round good staff service. Wine list is good & supports the local wineries & beer is aplenty, cocktails are also available. Water station set up. 100m from the beach. Not in sight due to dunes but a beautiful beach 🏝️ there that’s for sure. I was there’s Tuesdays night to a Thursday night: kitchen closed till Thursday. The option is a cool food truck with bao buns, spring rolls & dumplings were available Wednesday night, so delish. Thursday night in at the bar, I ordered the steak $45. Steak can with duck fat potatoes & a few green beans. Cooked to my liking but $45 was a stretch. No side salad or steamed veg on the menu & I found that disappointing as I was happy to pay for a side of the option was available. I grabbed a bowl of salad from my apartment room to solve the problem. I did ask but was told no & was happy to pay. This by no means over shadows this great place to chill with a drink & your fur friend....

The owners of Tonic by the Bay made a very head strong investment with this business.

The location is second to none, tucked strategically far enough out of town to give it that 5-star resort feel, that locals love to frequent and tourists come from far and wide to experience.

The new menu satiates the palate, with a range of dishes to keep the whole family happy and are of great value; leaving money to divulge oneself in a cocktail (or several if you're planning on staying the night at the stellar resort!)

What really ties this place together are the staff. Hand selected with precision by the looks, all masters of their craft. One fella I had the absolute delight of becoming acquainted with is Fraser, a legend by all accounts. His product knowledge is second to none, and he took my cohort and I on a journey of the senses ranging from the locally brewed and beautifully hoppy beers, to the new to the shelves and utterly addictive Howler Head Whiskey.

Evidently, my experience of Tonic by the Bay was top class. But it's only due to the clear time, passion and effort that employees such as Fraser put into their work that warrant composing a review such as this. When management look after their staff, their staff looking after the business. I cannot stress this point again.

Keep up the...