Fire Causes Temporary Ding Dong Closure

A fire in the wee hours of Wednesday morning in the German Hofbrauhaus restaurant in Market Lane in Melbourne’s CBD has led to the temporary closure of Tone Deaf’s Rock n’ Roll HQ, iconic Melbourne live music venue The Ding Dong Lounge.

It is believed that an electrical fault caused the fire in the restaurant which led to smoke damage upstairs at the Ding Dong Lounge. Gigs are temporarily on hold while promoters ascertain what action to take. In the meantime, we can confirm that the show scheduled for next Friday 8^th July featuring Steve Kilbey of The Church and Ricky Maymi of the Brian Jonestown Massacre with special guests Jill & Alsy of The Triffids has been moved to Cherry bar in AC/DC Lane on the same date.

A press release posted on the Ding Dong website reads:

Friends Of Ding Dong,

Around 2.15am on Wednesday 29th June 2011 our favourite German restaurant and neighbor in Market Lane, Hofbrauhaus, caught fire as a result of what appears to be an electrical fault.

Although fire crews were quick to respond, the fire and resulting smoke had already caused some minor damage to Ding Dong. After inspecting the bar later that day it became apparent that we were not going to be able to resume trading until the damage had been repaired.

All gigs have been cancelled until further notice, except for Steve Kilbey (The Church) & Ricky Maymi (Brian Jonestown Massacre) which has been moved to our sister bar, Cherry in AC/DC Lane, on the same date Friday 8th July 2011. Tickets purchased for this gig will be valid at Cherry. You should seek refunds for all other gigs from the point of purchase.

We wish our friends at Hofbrauhaus a speedy recovery and look forward to enjoying their fantastic smoked sausages in the future (although not too smoky). We also hope you all will return to see the new and improved Ding Dong when we reopen our doors soon. In the words of AC/DC – Let There Be Rock!