The Abercrombie

My friend suggested that I check this place out as it is apparently the popular spot for young people and good for a Sunday session. When I first looked it up on the map and saw the exterior I wasn’t too keen on the place as it looked pretty run down, however reviews suggested it was pretty good so I decided to give it a go.
We rocked up around 5pm on Sunday and the place already had a line out the front. The crowd were young, mid-20’s, hipster crew. It was $ 15 to get in which I did think was pretty steep but I was keen on checking out the hype about this place so gave into the fee! The place had a really cool vibe inside, it had a downstairs area with lots of seating and then an upstairs courtyard. The courtyard was absolutely packed when we went there so we decided to sit downstairs for a couple of drinks. The music was really good house music and it seemed like a really fun place to head out with friends. We wished we had heard about it sooner as we weren’t too in the mood for a massive afternoon, rather a few drinks, so next time I come to Sydney I will definitely come here on a Friday or Saturday night as it seems like the place to be!
They did have food options there but we didn’t try any of them out. The menu looked pretty tasty though with an american style food theme. They also had a lot of cheap meal deals during the week.

Looking for a low-​key, pre-​party Saturday night fever fix? The Abercrombie’s got you covered!
A few friends and I rallied around the beer garden’s outdoor heaters, sipped standard-​priced tap cider, and watched the array of young folk strut past us in pursuit of something more «high intensity.» The dj inside definitely wasn’t playing to make your clothes come off, but the tunes were fun enough to groove to and perfect for an evening’s pre-​party; especially considering that there’s no cover to get in!
We didn’t sample any of the food, and we left around midnight, so I can’t comment on tastes, nor whether or not the late-​night nature of the 5 a.m. closing time brings out the tasteless… But for what we were after, a fun venue with energy and music where you can still have a chat, The Abercrombie was right up our Broadway alley!

Went there tonight (20 June 2012). Bouncer happy to boot a customer out because and I quote, he did not like the way I walked and the fact that I was drinking their precious water. Apparently, I’m too intoxicated to be inside the bar, however — upon debating the issue with the bouncer, I was told I did not walk as he expected me to. Pathetic. I write this review a few minutes after the said event. If you would like to be respected, go elsewhere.

Once the drinking hole of Fairfax printers and journos, the Abercrombie Hotel (formerly the Australian Hotel) briefly became an indie paradise in the mid 2000s, famous for hosting Purple Sneakers.
Then the brewery site was bought up by Frasers Property, soon to be developed into luxury apartments with arty features … and the future of the Abercrombie was suddenly in doubt. It stayed closed for a long while, and no one knew whether Frasers was going to turn it into a wine bar, or knock it down, or build a skyscraper on top (we jest). As it happens — heritage listings, Frasers Property’s savvy marketing strategy and Jaime Wirth (who also owns the Flinders & the Norfolk, etc.) converged to reopen the Abercrombie as a hipsters’ paradise.
With its Scottish Tartan theme, yet decidedly American, diner-​style menu, the Abercrombie Hotel might be cool, but it is clearly facing an identity crisis of epic proportions. It’s apparently a «disco diner». Would you like some fried food with your mirrorball, sir?
Is the Abercrombie it trying to be like its edgy big sister, the Norfolk? But the Abercrombie’s clientele is more studenty … so perhaps the food needs to be a little cheaper, and a little greasier? Along these lines, $ 10 Mac & Cheese balls sounded like a good idea (after all, frying something that is already hugely fatty is a very Scottish thing to do), but the serving size of these greasy balls was, frankly, pretty stingy. So, despite the exuberant signage about cheap grits, the food is mostly expensive, tempered by daily specials, like $ 16 Fish in a Bag, which is $ 8 on Mondays, making you never want to order it on any other day. The fish in a bag is apparently very tasteless and unseasoned, but without a doubt only healthy thing on the menu. The best thing to eat, we found, was the tacos: about $ 5.50 each, and loaded up with meat (or mushrooms) — they’ve big enough that you need only eat two (fast, with beer) to reach the edges of a serious food coma. ($ 3 on special taco days)
Has the Abercrombie become a trendier establishment, now that it has Scottish regalia and pictures of Robbie Burns adorning its walls? Really? Tartan does that? It didn’t help for LizAnn McGregor. But wait, doesn’t that corner of the room still have a disconcerting bleachy-​vomit smell? Is that a dance floor or just a vestibule? And while we know the «Rave Juice» cocktail is intended as irony (after all, it’s Red Bull & agwa dished out in a glad bag with a glow stick) — this knowing nod to the days of Purple Sneakers kind of feels like the Abercrombie might be trying a little too hard.
Nice little beer garden for a daytime lunch, though. That’s not to be sniffed at.
And yes, the rumours are true, the Abercrombie serves FRIED Golden Gaytimes. Kudos to that.

Went there last night.
Staff were very Polite and quick, music was good got to have a good dance and request some songs!
Crowd was very young and fun!
Will definitely be back!

This place was a lot of fun! Its American diner style food and I went on a Wednesday night for $ 3 tacos. Reminded me of late night taco trucks in NYC. Although the flavours between all the tacos tasted pretty similar. We all decided the fish taco was the best!
The staff were trendy/​hipster looking but pretty damn attentive. Maybe even too fast at clearing out plates and glasses my friend was mid taco when the plate was scooped up.
Biggest downfall was the DJ on the particular night I went. Felt like the music was on repeat and we were desperate for a big night out with a little boogie. But I will def be back to give it another go– maybe the DJ was just having a bad night.
Def a must if you’re in the area!

I had seem many delicious photos of this place online (thanks Twitter) and was curious to try it for myself.
They are going for the American dinner meets taco truck meets gresey junk food type menu (or something like that)… not sure but it looked good. I had the double cheeseburger, which reminded me of Steak ‘n Shake (if you’ve been) and was a pretty big burger. I should have shared, but I’m greedy with my food.
Other things that peaked my interest on the menu included the Philly Cheesesteak, deep fried pizza, and the tacos. Might need to head back to try those.
Apparently they have fun drinks here in bags or jars or whatnot, but didn’t get to those. Just had a few ciders on tap which wasn’t bad either.

The Abercrombie had me at «hot dog.» This newly renovated hotel comes complete with a certain grittiness that only the coolest places can get away with. in fact, it adds to the charm. With a shabby-​chic (okay, maybe just shabby) exterior, you might not expect much, but walk through the doors and you’ll be transported into a Scottish library with an affinity for hipsters. I say Scottish because of the plaid, and library because of, duh, the books.
The booths are cozy, the beer is cold and the food is terrible for you. Ok, the menu does have salads, but how can you overlook the fried pizza? Or the chilli dog? The Abercrombie does some spectacular specials including $ 4 hot dogs on Tuesdays and $ 3 tacos on Wednesdays. And they serve bloody marys out of recycled soup cans. No wonder it’s popular with the student crowd. It’s cheap, it’s cool and it’s got photos of that Scottish crotch purse thing all over the beer garden walls. Cheers to being random.

Drinking jugs out the back of The Abercrombie Hotel, it feels like all is right in the world again. Well, almost.
Something is definitely different from the Abercrombie of old. The same crowd still hangs about, relishing in the renewed joys of their old friend and the same vibe from the ‘Crombie’s hey day hangs in the air — it’s laid back, it’s cool, it’s grungey and it’s enthused. But something isn’t the same.
The Abercrombie of old has undergone drastic makeovers in its transformation into the Abercrombie of new. A makeover with a distinctly Scottish influence, with different coloured pictures of sporrans stuck on the wall, menu highlights written on cut-​outs of bagpipes, tartan upholstered couches and tartan carpets. Although I’m yet to hear a Glaswegian twang in any of the bar staff.
The new menu at the Abercrombie is heavy. I say that in two senses.
1) Heavy as in good, awesome, brilliant (
). This food ticks the boxes of all the new bar food trends — $ 3 tacos, sliders, hot dogs and toad in the hole.
2) Heavy as in «my arteries are so full of fat that they are sinking their way outside of my body». The menu is weighed down with Glasgow hotwings, mac n cheese-​balls, deep fried pizza with gravy, deep fried twinkie and deep fried gaytimes ($ 7).
The renovations have been done in style and the Abercrombie is now a «chic, hip and happening» hangout (actual quote from a friend on a recent visit). Despite the absense of pool tables, there is a definite billiards room air to the pub’s interior, heightened by the soaring shelves of hardcovers. The back deck is no longer a sticky pulse of people, but a lantern-​lit beer garden with coloured light globes and fairy lights spelling something pretty that my eyesight was too poor to decipher.
In the last mouthfuls of my beer, I realised what wasn’t feeling right about being back here. The Abercrombie is back, and it many ways better than ever, and yet our hearts still long for our lost friend, «Purple Sneakers». But it seems that the Scottish have got everything right here so far, so I live in hope that they’ll finish the job.

Abercrombie stands for awesome.
I must admit, the first time I came back post-​renovation, it felt mighty weird sitting and eating dinner like a civilised human being on the very floor where I’d once danced like a fool and probably spilled gin all over myself (in my younger days, of course), but it was nice to see we’ve both grown up a bit…
The Purple Sneakers may have gone, but the fun atmosphere hasn’t. They’ve now got a couple of bookshelves, some tartan booths and a few pieces of art on the walls, but the beers are still flowing freely and it’s still a great place to hang out. The menu’s pretty cute and quirky — maybe aimed more at uni students with offerings like mac ‘n’ cheese balls and rave juice — but great all the same. The courtyard out the back is the perfect place to kick back with a few drinks and dig into a taco or two.
erfect place to kick back with a few drinks and dig into a taco or two.

From the outside you wouldn’t be blamed for thinking that the Abercrombie hotel had shut down.
The dark windows and array of graffiti sprawled across the faded yellow walls, a sure fire sign that nobody lives there anymore. However, if you were to venture inside, you would discover, and it would be a discovery, that contrary to the dust that covers the windows, the Abercrombie Hotel is very much in business.
It’s Tuesday today and I’m walking past, Melbourne Cup day, and the clientele that I can only dimly see through the shadowed window are dressed to the nines, (Whatever that means) and the place is brimming with life and excitement.
I’ve been in a few times and gotten from it what I have expected, so that’s always a good thing, when you’re scared of the unexpected, not because it’s scary but because it’s unknown. Kind of like aliens.
It’s a pub, a real pub. A hip little joint with a client base of people who hold it in their hearts in a very special place. It has the reputation as a relaxed and comfortable pub where you can wear what you like, drink what you will and everyone will respect you for it. That’s not a bad place to be in my books.

The last time I was at the Abercrombie was for it’s re-​launch, which was surprising, as I wasn’t too familiar of this place before hand (Sorry Purple Sneakers)
It’s had a surprisingly big gutting, and refit out, which much like many other old bars, such as The Norfolk, and The Flinders has been a great success. Gut it out, coat of paint, new carpet, some nice lighting, and random paraphernalia on the wall.
The close proximity to UTS cements this as a college university bar, with special drinks served in plastic bags. The eclectic mix American deep fried Mac & Cheese balls, or Philly steak, Aussie deep fried gay times, and British Welsh rarebit, makes the Abercombie an international legend hustler of cheap indie food great for the midnight munchies.
If the indie oppshop enthusiasts, mix of beard, mo’s, and ho’s, headphone wearing, with jean flaring, muso pop culture die hards, should fancy you; or visa-​versa, head to the Abercombie for an ultimate underground experience.