Moon Dog Wild West Will Finally Open After a Wild Ride With the Council

Moon Dog Wild West is finally ready to launch a week after an opening party for 600 guests was cancelled at the last minute.

The sprawling, three-level venue featuring a mechanical bull and a Tex-Mex menu will be open for business from 11.30am on Friday April 26.

The pin was controversially pulled on the launch 10 minutes before it began last Thursday night, with an incorrectly located fire hydrant apparently to blame. (The fire hydrant has since been moved.)

While Moon Dog owners initially blamed Maribyrnong City Council for the shutdown, the council swiftly returned serve, stating that “[t]he decision to not issue an occupancy certificate is a matter between Moon Dog and their private building surveyor”.

The 800-person, 1000-square-metre mega pub has faced several setbacks on the long road to opening, with the council rejecting and then finally approving the brewery’s plan to take over the iconic Franco Cozzo building.

The new western-themed venue features a rooftop bar, horseshoe booths, a 10-seat private dining room and a “kids’ ranch” with a playground and old-school arcade games. It follows Moon Dog OG and Moon Dog World, the brewery’s 725-capacity Preston HQ, which has an indoor lagoon and a tiki bar.

Moon Dog Wild West opens at 11.30am on Friday April 26.

@MoonDogWildWest