The Beresford Hotel: $5 pints and $10 cocktails, Surry Hills (13 Feb 2011)

354 Bourke Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010

http://www.theberesford.com.au

http://www.merivale.com

Everyday happy hour

Drinks can be expensive in Sydney but generally there's Happy Hour specials in most pubs as long as you're there at the right time. The Beresford Hotel offers $5 Pints, Wines and Basic Spirits between 5 – 7 pm which I think is pretty good value considering the area and the nice decor and seating available to chill out. Today they had some reasonably priced cocktails for $10 which were all carefully made by the bar staff and didn't seem to skimp on alcohol content. The Negroni ($10, usually $14) looks pretty empty in its glass although was pretty much all alcohol, flavours balanced well as a nice stiff aperitif. The Kir Royal ($10) equally good and I'm thinking you'd be hard pressed to find a cheaper version around. The Bloody Mary ($10) was noticeably spiced up with tabasco and pepper and if you like them I think you'll probably like this version — I think the glass was rimmed with paprika. The Margarita ($10) comes in a tumbler rather than the usual cocktail looking glass and there's no skimping on the Herradura blanco Tequila and Cointreau its shaken with.

Other visits to The Beresford Hotel:

• 13 Feb 2011 - $5 pints, wines and spirits and $10 cocktails

• 4 June 2010 - Justin Hemmes makeover

• 31 Oct 2009 - Halloween drink time

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Nice decor and seating, Reasonably priced drink specials, Large beer garden, Gay Friendly (especially Sundays)

CONS: Can get pretty crowded in the outside area when it's a nice day

MUST TRY: The restaurant one day

—

Negroni ($10), Kir Royal ($10)

Bloody Mary ($10), Margarita ($10)

$10 cocktail menu

Pint of beer ($5 special between 5 – 7 pm)

$5 Pints, Wines and Basic Spirits between 5 – 7 pm

Front bar seating

Outdoor seating

Restaurant seating

View Larger Map

The Beresford Hotel: A new lease of life, Surry Hills (4 June 2010)

354 Bourke Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010

http://www.merivale.com

Homely touches of green

I thought The Beresford Hotel was a pretty slick hotel before Justin Hemmes bought the place for his Merivale empire but after only a month he's managed to transform the hotel into a much more homely and sophisticated place with the addition of hundreds of beautifully green potted plants both inside the bar and restaurant and outside in the beer garden. The simple yet effective inclusion of large Asian lanterns hovering above the beer garden and candles sitting on outdoor wooden tables provide a friendly warmth. The different leveled comfortable seating welcomes the patrons and now reminds me how sterile and unwelcoming the furnishing were previously. Perusing the drinks menu seems to give me confidence that they're much more reasonably priced now than it's predecessor. Even with the wet and cold weather the place seemed more alive and fresh. There's a lot to be said about adding real plants to the decor — it reminds me of the succulent plants I saw at sushi e but on a grand scale.

Other visits to The Beresford Hotel:

• 13 Feb 2011 - $5 pints, wines and spirits and $10 cocktails

• 4 June 2010 - Justin Hemmes makeover

• 31 Oct 2009 - Halloween drink time

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Nice decor and seating refurbishment

CONS: No cover for beer garden during wet weather

MUST TRY: Sampling the drinks and food menu

—

Beer garden courtyard


View Larger Map

Name This Bar: Launch Party & Secret Wars, Darlinghurst (20 Jan 2010)

197 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010

http://www.namethisbar.com.au

Still nameless but open

After 5 weeks of trade, the owners of Name This Bar thought it was about time they had a party. So they decided to invite up to 200 guests to celebrate with free flowing Tiger Beer and homemade dumplings — although it was a challenge getting to the tasty morsels in such a packed bar. Previously some of the walls were open to comments but tonight they were freshly painted white for 8 artists to compete and paint their best pieces. The artists were organised through Secret Wars. The bar still remains nameless and my thoughts are it'll remain 'Name This Bar ?' which seems to be working so far.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Relatively unknown so still a good place to chill out

CONS: Nameless (but could be a pro as well)

MUST TRY: Dumplings

—

Other small bars visited:

• Name This Bar - 16 Dec 2009

• Ching-a-lings - 10 Sept 2009

• Pocket Bar - 18 Aug 2009

• Pocket Bar - 18 June 2009

• Small Bar

Party crowd

Tiger beer

Dim sim canapes

Write your names and ideas for the bar

Blank canvas

Artist at work

View Larger Map

The Local Taphouse: Beer Tasting Paddle, Darlinghurst (31 Oct 2009)

122 Flinders Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010

(Corner of South Dowling and Flinders)
http://www.thelocal.com.au

Beer Degustation

When confronted with too many choices I'm often wanting to try a bit of everything on a menu so a beer tasting paddle is a great way to try a selection of beers on offer at The Local Taphouse. I was thinking of just choosing the five most expensive beers but I decided to let the bar staff decide which ones to try and also place them in the order of drinking. It's a little scary picking up the paddle for the first time and manoeuvring your way back to your table through a busy crowd, but it's all part of the fun of drinking. I find this pub nice and cosy with it's vintage furniture and it's a nice place to sit down and chat over a drink earlier in the night before it gets too busy.

Other visits to The Local Taphouse:

• 31 Oct 2009 - Beer Tasting Paddle

• 13 June 2009 - Drinks

Tasting paddle: Duke Hefeweizen, Maltida Bay Alpha Pale Ale, Mountain Goat Hightail Ale, Mountain Goat Spicy Ducks Nuts, Murray's Pumpkin Ale $13

Beers are numbered in chalk on the wooden paddle

La chouffe 750 ml belgian beer

Opening hours

Beer menu

View Larger Map

The Beresford Hotel: Beer Garden, Surry Hills (31 Oct 2009)

354 Bourke Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010
http://www.theberesford.com.au

Nice Beer Garden

Located at the back of The Beresford Hotel is a large beer garden to enjoy a drink or two on a nice day which is tucked away from the hustle and bustle of nearby Taylor Square. They have free movie nights on Mondays which would be pretty cool and there's a nice looking Italian Trattoria which I've yet to try. My visit coincided with Halloween time so there was a cool looking pumpkin head sitting on the bar. The toilets are located downstairs which have a shared wash up area — boys, make sure you wash you hands, the girls will be watching.

Other visits to The Beresford Hotel:

• 13 Feb 2011 - $5 pints, wines and spirits and $10 cocktails

• 4 June 2010 - Justin Hemmes makeover

• 31 Oct 2009 - Halloween drink time

Halloween pumpkin

Beer Garden

Public Bar

Trattoria

Unisex toilet sinks

View Larger Map