Maisie's Restaurant

ABOUT THIS ITEM

Alternative NameThe Favourite CaféAdditional Information
Nowham (‘Ted’) and Etore (‘Edith’) Massoud arrived in Australia in 1900 from Lebanon. They moved to Gympie Terrace, Noosaville in 1908, following the birth of their daughter Maisie. The Massouds took up fishing to feed their family and to generate an income but soon established a crew and began mullet fishing with nets on a larger scale. In 1915, Ted bought the boat, Riverlight, and used the vessel for fishing, passenger transport and mail delivery.

In 1920, the Massouds opened the first café on Gympie Terrace. It was called The Favourite Café, but it soon became known as Maisie’s, after the Massoud’s daughter, Maisie, who worked there tirelessly. In the winter of 1942, in the middle of World War Il, the 2/14th Battalion was stationed at
Yandina between stints in the Middle East and then as reinforcements to the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea. Some of battalion were sent to train in new amphibious vehicles, DUKWs or ‘ducks’, on the Noosa River under the command of Lieutenant Stanley Bisset. They were camped at Munna Point but they were fed each night at Maisie’s by the Massoud family who cooked up to 200 kg of fish a day. The family would later joke that this was Australia’s first drive-through restaurant, servicing the army in their ‘ducks’. They would also roll their pianola out onto the street to entertain
the soldiers.Address247, Gympie Terrace, Noosaville

IDENTIFIERS

Subject (Keywords)RestaurantsWorld War II

CONNECTIONS

LocalityNoosavillePlaceGympie TerraceFamilyMassoud family

Menu

Maisie's Restaurant