Trung Luu and Shelley Zhao, who have gained approval to establish a cafe in Ted's Butcher Shop at Como. Picture by Murray Trembath

The couple, who have gained approval to establish a cafe in Ted's Butcher Shop at Como, are delighted to be able to bring new life to the 100-year-old building while preserving its heritage.

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Trung Luu and Shelley Zhao, both software engineers, bought the property in Cremona Road in 2023 and have spent the last two years seeking development approval to change the use.

They are extremely grateful to Ted Cary, who still lives nearby and provided a statutory declaration that helped them to establish "existing rights".

The butcher shop (right) was originally one of two shops at the location. Picture source unknown

The couple live with their two-year-old son in a unit behind the shop and have filled the backyard with Asian vegetable gardens.

In April, Sutherland Shire Local Planning Panel unanimously approved the change of use with a condition "requiring sensitive design and retention of the street presentation of the building".

"While the building is not heritage listed, this is considered to contribute positively to the streetscape of the locality," the panel said.

The couple said they were very happy with the decision and condition of approval.

"It would be a waste of history to do anything else," Ms Zhao said.

"The history of this building will provide a lot of inspiration."

Ted's Butcher Shop at Como. Picture by Murray Trembath

Mr Luu said, while it would be a food and beverage business, they had an open mind about what type and how it would operate.

"We put in the DA to expose the options," he said.

"We were not sure it would be approved, so we didn't plan too far ahead.

"We will now sit down, talk to people in the industry and look at what we think will work best."

Mr Luu, a Vietnamese-Australian, came to Australia from Singapore in 2021 to work for an IT company, and met Ms Zhao.

Both were living in inner-City suburbs, but began looking for a place to settle down and raise a family.

The couple fell in love with Como with its natural beauty and friendly residents.

"It's actually more like a destiny," Ms Zhao said.

"The land just spoke to us, everything vibes. It feels safe, perfect for kids.

"The people we talked to at the inspections and others we met were all very nice."

Mr Luu said he had always lived in densely populated areas near his work.

"Como has the best of both worlds - a lot of trees, near the water and with clean air, but you can still travel to the City in 40 minutes," he said.

"Everyone is friendly and calls you by name. It's what I experienced when I was growing up."