From Munich to Mole Creek

It was raining with the sort of grim enthusiasm that only a Tasmanian winter can truly pull off, and the wind, not wanting to be left out, was doing its best as well.

Entering the front doors of Mole Creek Hotel, the light is welcoming, the fire’s warmth embracing, the Chesterfields deep and inviting, and the walls are dressed in a regal green that makes the room feel like it has always looked exactly this way. Heritage furniture sits alongside a collection of Tasmanian tiger paintings and artifacts that line almost every surface of the Tassie Tiger Bar, close to a hundred pieces in all, and the people behind the counter greet you like they were expecting you. 

That experience is no accident. When Kai Jördens and Yara Kes packed their lives into a shipping container in Munich and landed in a small Tasmanian village with a century-old pub, two young boys and zero experience running a hotel, most people would have called it madness. They call it the adventure they were looking for.

Kai was running a fashion agency in Europe, selling high-end labels at fairs in London, Paris and Florence. Yara was working in corporate finance. Australia had long been on the radar, and when they reached out to friends in Sydney about a potential move, they were expecting to hear about opportunities in Melbourne or Brisbane. Instead, their friends mentioned a pub for sale in Mole Creek, somewhere those friends had been hunting and fishing.

“We’d never been to Tassie, never run a pub,” Kai recalls. “Why should we buy a pub on the other side of the world with no experience at all?” Thirteen months later, they bought it.

Yara admits she needed some convincing. “I said, I’m not moving to the coldest state, not somewhere that’s not on the ocean, to do something that we have no experience in doing.” But a visit in August 2024 changed everything. They saw the potential, fell in love with the area, and trusted their instincts. Shortly after, the family of four arrived in Tasmania.

The menu now leans on fresh, locally sourced produce, with Kai in the kitchen cooking recipes handed down from family in Germany. Apple strudel, German rissoles and pork knuckle sit alongside classic Australian pub food, and a weekly specials board lets the kitchen showcase the backgrounds of whichever chefs are on deck. The aim, Kai says, is quality food that is still affordable for everyone. Local suppliers are central to that, and the couple are actively looking to deepen those relationships further as they settle in.

And speaking of German traditions, Kai has plans. Mole Creek is going to have an Oktoberfest. Details are still coming together, but for a man who grew up near where the original festival is held each year, bringing a version of it to Mole Creek seems a natural fit.

Yara and assistant manager Chrissy scoured second-hand listings and drove across the state tracking down heritage furniture and carefully chosen pieces for each space in the hotel. The old restaurant area has been reimagined as an open lounge. The bar has been dressed with locally collected artwork. Upstairs, the eleven guest rooms now have luxury linen, rugs and floor-to-ceiling curtains. “There’s still a lot to do,” Yara says, “but we get a lot of positive feedback.”

Outside, the beer garden has a new fire pit where guests can roast marshmallows, a creek runs through the property where a family of platypus have taken up residence, and a magnificent Magnolia tree planted in 1915 stands as a reminder of just how long this place has been part of the community. It is a setting that has not gone unnoticed, and Yara and Kai are planning to open the property up for weddings, with the grounds and the character of the old building making it a natural fit.

The hotel has also hosted live music, with more planned as the couple find their footing. The working days still run to 14 or 16 hours, and the building, constructed in 1908, keeps them on their toes. “Something breaks down every single day,” Yara says, though she adds that bringing an old building back to life has its own rewards. There are currently 12 in their team, increasing to 15 in summer. 

The broader vision goes beyond the pub itself. Yara wants to see Mole Creek become a destination in its own right, not just a stopover on the road between Cradle Mountain and the east coast. 

Their boys, aged seven and thirteen, have settled in well. The older one helps with glasses and restocking the bar. The younger one has decided he wants to be a chef and has been practising in the kitchen. Yara admits the family balance is still a work in progress. “There is no balance at the moment,” she says with a laugh. Maybe next year.