Well, one Wagga motel is waiving all those hurdles in the hopes of a passionate chef taking up residence.

Tammy McManus, owner and operator of the Australian Homestead Motor Lodge, said she and her husband took over the business in September last year and went about finding someone to set up in The Rivergum Restaurant.

A keen restaurant operator moved in at the beginning of the year, but then COVID hit shattering the hospitality industry.

Mrs McManus said the renters decided to pull the plug, leaving the Australian Homestead without an eatery.

So, the McManus duo decided to come up with a 'unique opportunity' to try and entice a new operator into the space.

"We have put it out for free because we need it to help with the success of our motel," Mrs McManus said.

"It is a significant outlay when you start up a business, to buy the equipment and pay rent every week.

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"We think, especially in COVID times, that it would really help. The opportunity here is really what you make of it, and anyone could take it over."

Michael McManus used to work for the part owners of the Australian Homestead when he lived in Port Macquarie.

"That's how we found out about it," Mrs McManus said.

"We had only been here six months when COVID hit, so we did not qualify for Job Keeper and a lot of other benefits, so we had to let a lot of our staff go. That was really hard."

The pair are now looking to the future as NSW slowly returns to some form of normality.

"Having a restaurant that is known for good food is really important for our business," Mrs McManus said.

"People like to come have a drink, have something to eat and then just walk back to their room.

"We are seeing an uptick in bookings now that restrictions have eased in the last couple of weeks."

Mrs McManus said the potential operator would need to target Forest Hills as the motel is a bit out of town, and would also need to utilise social media to help get the word out.