The East Brunswick Hotel

Wow, the customer service in this place was amazing, and I only came here for a single beer. No wonder my friends have recommended this place (though I have yet to have the opportunity to come here for a meal with them). When I first came to the door the bouncer was one of the freindliest and politest I have ever met (and I’ve never been a big fan of them, though the ones in Melbourne don’t seem all that bad). It wasn’t just that but they are also incredibly helpful, and if a room has been booked out they were politely direct you to where you can sit, showing manners all the while. It is a shame that this pub is a little out of my way because I would come here more often. At least my friends recommend the place.

Super high potential location and building loses it’s appeal due to: tacky décor (chandeliers AND down lights? Franco Cozzo represent), visibly unhappy manager/​s and an inaccessible ‘top shelf’ that sees staff stand on the prep counter to get bottles (was this place designed by someone who has never run a bar before?!?).
All in all it’s a bogan-​ish outer suburbs pub trying to make it in the inner city. C’mon, we’re in Brunswick, anywhere with cover bands is going to sink like a stone!
Managers should look at what the plethora of successful bars in the inner North are doing and follow suit. It’s a proven model for mi££ion$.
Life expectancy (unless drastic changes are made) 18 – 24 months.

Shows some promise but a long way from its heyday before it closed. I’ll head back in 12 months once the owner has worked out what he is trying to do and has gotten rid of the uncomfortable chairs.

We’ve all been waiting a long time for the East Brunswick to re-​open and what a disappointment it is. The staff are friendly but for some strange reason they seem nervous. The new owner has changed the positioning of the downstairs bar. The bar itself is nice but overly lit. There doesn’t seem to be enough tables down stairs this is probably because they have a few random high tables with high stools that don’t go with the other tables. There’s a few booths on the side and they look comfortable but again don’t match with any of the other furniture. There is a window bench/​table but the high stools aren’t high enough and the bench only reaches your shoulders, so it’s impossible to eat off (I’m 5’8″). So we moved to the upstairs area, having a separate area is a great idea, but when we got up there we were even more confused then when we were down stairs. The bar is a type of white n grey marble, and the walls are white. There are a number of large tacky chandeliers and they are extremely bright, I felt like I was walking into a hospital waiting room. There is no art on the stark white walls, just a large silver framed mirror that enhances the hideous chandeliers. This is suppose to be a lounge area, although there are several of the same high tables and chairs up here that were also down stairs. The lounges a narrow and uncomfortable looking. While we were waiting for our meals, there were three groups that sat in the ‘lounge area’ they all looked unsettled and only stayed for one drink. A lot of people walked in, looked around and then left. Then I discovered why the staff were nervous, the owner entered the room and he was nervous and unsure of what he was doing, this of course reflex everything that was happening in the building. The food is good, tasty, fresh and arrived in good time, but very expensive for a pub. They have a large selection of red meat dishes but they are from $ 35 and up. The chicken parma is enormous, it covers the whole plate, and comes with good fries but a poor excuse for a salad — hint, halve the size of the parma and give us an awesome salad — I don’t want to feel like I’m in an eating comp. The place was so uncomfortable that we left immediately after we had finished eating just like all the other people who only stayed for one drink. As we left I took notice of the other patrons and everyone looked dazed and confused. I have no idea what the new owner is trying to do here. It needs a whole new make over for me and my friends to return. I have spoken to other people and they didn’t even get as far as us, they left after walking in and seeing what a mess the place is. Lastly, what happened to the awesome beer garden? Spring is here and we have lost our most favourite beer garden — extremely disappointing. We won’t be back until it changes.