Brunswick Hotel

4.5 Stars Wow, I am into the Chef Specials at the Brunswick Hotel. I have tried two of the Chef specials. Both were seafood, and both were delicious. ( The grain fed rump was good too when I ordered from their standard menu, and they cooked it just the way I asked!!) Today's Fish of the day was a garlic seasoned crusted ( with just the right amount of salt, mwah!) and generous serve of Salmon, served with Char-grilled eggplant, roasted tomatoes, and a potato bake with spinach and seasoned with just enough grain mustard. There were some lovely Chat potatoes perfectly cooked as well. The sauce was seasoned for some bite, and it was presented in what I felt was an artistic tribute to the face of an Atlantic Salmon, or some other worthy creature. Grab your brolly, shorts and havianas ( well, they're the least slippery of my shoes) and enjoy a good value meal at the Brunswick despite the current rain. The drinks are cold, and the service is thoughtful from friendly staff. They have big screens featuring sport, and the layout of their bistro means even when it's crowded noise levels are not unpleasant. There are well-appointed and positioned bathrooms that are always clean. They are observing their Covid rules. The outdoor area near the front bar just of the street could use a rethink on the layout, but I think I am falling in love with this good value local!

FOOD & DRINK The Brunswick is part of the ALH Group, whose stable includes the Indooroopilly Hotel, the Newmarket, the Morrison and many other pubs around Brisbane. We’ve dined at a number of them and always found the standards to be consistently high. We’ve never been disappointed at an ALH Hotel, and the Brunswick was no exception. My wife and I dined on a quiet Sun night. We started with the beer special, a schooner of Great Northern Super Crisp at $6, and a glass of Prosecco ($8). Great way to start the evening. As seniors, we were able to avail ourselves of the discounted seniors menu. For entree, we choose the calamari, with chips, salad, lemon and aioli. It was delicious and chewy, and came with a generous serve of crunchy chips and salad. For our main meals, we both chose the 250g rump steaks with pepper sauce for me and mushroom sauce for my wife. Unbeatable value at just $16. Steaks were beautifully prepared and well cooked just the way we like them, but still tender and full of flavour. Steaks come with a choice of two sides, I chose chips and caesar salad, my wife went for the garden salad and mash. It was all perfect and we thoroughly enjoyed our meals, so thanks to the hardworking chefs. We couldn’t have been happier. For dessert, our all-time fav, the sticky date pud at the reasonable price of $8. The pud was sweet and moist, and came with fresh cream, a dollop of ice cream and finely sliced strawberry to top it off. Perfect way to end a fine meal. AMBIENCE We both loved the relaxed, casual, laid back ambience of this place. The bistro space is large, spacious and airy with stylish, trendy decor and comfy chairs. It’s carpeted throughout with colourful artwork on the walls and low mood lighting to give it a perfect atmosphere. It’s the kind of place that you’ll feel happy to be in. On the night that we dined, it was fairly quiet, just a smattering of other diners, but that added to the calm and unhurried vibe. Acoustics were good and we were easily able to converse. SERVICE Our server, Morgan, was neatly turned out in a smart white serving jacket. She greeted us warmly and throughout the evening, she was friendly, efficient and attentive. Orders were promptly taken and drinks came out quickly, followed by the entrees and shortly after that, the main courses and then dessert. We arrived at around 6.00pm, by 7.30pm we were done, and that’s just how we like it. There’s also the option for electronic ordering, using a barcode affixed to a little disc on your table, but being a quiet eve, we found ordering with the waitress the easier way to go. TOILETS The toilets are sparkling clean, modern and well provisioned. They look pretty new too, or recently renovated, with ample male and female cubicles, strong lighting, rows of shiny basins and fast hand dryers. They’re well signposted and easy to find just behind the bistro. COST Taking advantage of the seniors' menu, we paid a modest $74 for two glasses of wine, a schooner of beer, an entree, two main courses and dessert. That’s outstanding value for money when you think that a humble cup of coffee now sets you back almost 5 pesos, so thanks to the ALH Hotel Group for this generous initiative to help out long suffering seniors. PARKING We found easy street parking on Brunswick St, opposite the hotel, where there were no weekend or after hours restrictions. The hotel also has its own car park, which you can access via Brunswick or Kent Streets. SUMMARY We had a fab evening and everything ran smoothly. Food was outstanding and served in generous portions. The cool ambience is perfect for a relaxing meal with family and friends. Service was efficient and polite. Add to that, clean and modern toilets, free parking and modest prices and you have an ideal evening out. They have poker machines too, if you want to have a little flutter after your meal. Thanks guys, we will definitely be back!

Popped in tonight for a late night drink and was surprised to find what a great venue the Brunswick has become. There is certainly lots of space with a couple of different bars and really friendly staff. We really enjoyed the outdoor venue with a bit of greenery. They is also a small area with a streetscape, then upstairs there was another terrific indoor bar area with stools and tables. And yes worth a mention, some really great toilet facilities! There is also poker poker machine faculties. The downstairs bar featured shelves loaded with bottles of gin, vodka, various whiskies and even some Japanese style unique bottles of spirits. It's a really great atmosphere at this hotel with lots of different areas to spend time enjoying depending on whether you're just a couple or a group of friends. There are some great old paintings and photographs of the Brisbane area and the hotel on the walls which really add to the feeling of nostalgia in the venue. See photos. The decor is modern and fits the Brisbane/ New Farm vibe. Open until 11.30pm on a Thursday, so if you're out and about when other venues in New Farm are closed, this is the place!.... we will return.