The building that houses Rockpool restaurant in Sydney's CBD is on the market for a sizzling $40 million

The space is owned by Spanish company Allegra European Holdings, which bought it in 2016 for $30 million, and is now looking to offload it for about $40 million.

Agent Anthony Malek, of Blueprint Property, who is selling the property with his colleague Manuel Pavia, said proximity to the upcoming Martin Place metro station, as well as a strong CBD market, had boosted the property’s value.

“As well as the beauty and uniqueness of the building itself, the location is very attractive – in the heart of the most important financial district in the country,” he said.

“It’s a high-end retail spot being offered to the market, and it’s one of the safest investments you could make. It has a guaranteed 4 per cent yearly rental increase and earns over $2 million in net revenue.”

The restaurants occupy the ground and basement of the City Mutual Life Assurance Building, built in 1936, as one of Sydney’s grandest and most expensive buildings at the time.

The head office of the City Mutual Life Assurance Society Limited had been situated on the eastern corner of Hunter and Bligh streets since 1891, but designs were submitted for a new building, in the 1930s, and a prize was awarded.

The board of directors decided, somewhat controversially, to proceed with the design of Emil Sodersteen, who became well known for designing the Australian War Memorial in Canberra in 1927.

Sodersteen was inspired by the American art deco skyscrapers of the time, although the budget limited his to a much smaller scale.

According to the State Heritage Register, the ground-floor chamber is the largest and most intact art deco commercial chamber in Sydney.

“[It] is one of the foremost examples of high-quality and well-designed commercial art deco architecture in Sydney’s CBD and represents the culmination of the work of one of Australia’s foremost proponents of this style, Emil Sodersteen.

“As a largely intact and well-maintained late 1930s structure, the building demonstrates through its powerful exterior elevations and dramatic interior spaces the aesthetic and commercial aspects of art deco architecture in Australia,” the listing reads.

The large chambers boast gold-panelled elevators, Scagliola wall and column surfacing, bronze window frames and detailed plasterwork.

Allegra European Holdings sold another of its CBD investments, the Bvlgari flagship store at 64-68 Castlereagh Street, for about $56 million in December.

Nearby on the corner of King and Castlereagh streets, Hermes has recently purchased a stake in the Trust Building for $100 million.