1. FROTH CRAFT BEER MAG 25
FOOD & BEER
Words by Claire Henderson / Pics by Emily Day
166 JOHNSTON ST, FITZROY
Bairn: child
Belter: amazing
Auld: old
Gaffs: places
Burd: girl
Heevin: busy
Braw: great
Bonnie wee lassie:
pretty small girl
Mingin’: horrible
Cannae: can’t
Numpty: silly person
Cowped: tipped
Gubbed: beaten
SCOTTISH – ENGLISH GLOSSARY
From left: Vegetarian pasta; 3 Ravens Dark Smoke Beer; Murray River Lamb with Temple’s Bicycle Beer.
FITZROY TOWN
HALL HOTEL
The Fitzroy Town Hall Hotel
might be one of Johnston
Street’s most historical
venues, but really, it’s just a
bairn. Some might remember
it better as Griff’s Wine Pub,
or the Purple Turtle (belter of
a name), or even McCoppin’s
back in the golden auld days.
Now it’s just plain old Town
Hall Hotel, but what it has to
offer is anything but bland.
Bought over in July last
year by chef Sean Donovan
(the sizzling steak chap
extraordinaire formerly of the
Station Hotel in Footscray
and the Wayside Inn in
South Melbourne), he and
his wife closed the place for
refurbishment and revamping,
stripping it back to its original
style, but with a big splash of
class. In fact, it’s a bit fancy-
pants compared to the gaffs
I usually frequent on a Friday
night, so this slightly scruffy
burd dolled herself up and even
put on a skirt for the occasion.
The old-British aristocratic
décor is cool blue and wood
with a big fireplace adorned
with deer’s antlers, and
(my favourite touch) tartan
lampshades. It’s a spacious
setting with a cosy dining
room, colourful courtyard and
slick bar area, which makes a
nice change from somewhere
that’s so heevin you might as
well be eating with the table of
folk next to you.
And just to make the place
even more appealing, the
restaurant beer list is braw.
My beer-guzzling bonnie
wee lassie Emily Day got fired
straight into the 3 Ravens
Dark Smoke Beer – and aptly
described the taste as “like a
campfire in middle of winter
with friends”. That’ll be a
winner then.
Despite it being one of those
mingin’ Melbourne summer
days where you need a winter
coat, I decided to keep it
summery with a Temple
Bicycle Beer. I closed my eyes,
took a deep swig, and wahey!
Fruity and light, it was just like
a summer’s day again, in my
mouth at least.
Our feast started with a
basket of warm bread and
salty butter – you just cannae
beat it.
Claire Henderson is a perpetually
hungry Scot who goes through life
with her glass at least half-full.
Eton Mess for
dessert, enjoyed
with a 3 Ravens
American Pale Ale.
Em squared up to the
Chocolate Nemesis with
Caramelised Fig – and
guess who won? The running
commentary between bites of
the slab of dense chocolate
cake and homemade vanilla
ice cream was: “This is the
fudgiest situation I’ve ever
been in…It’s not food, it’s a
death sentence.” And at that
the fight was over. Em – 0,
Chocolate Nemesis – 1.
My initial response to the first
spoonful of my ridiculously
large bowl of classic English
dessert Eton’s Mess was “Fuck
off!”– meant in the happiest,
pig-in-shit way ever. In fact, it
was definitely the best Eton
Mess I’ve ever had, and I’ve
had a few in my time. The big
blob of passionfruit sorbet in
the middle was fresh and zingy,
cutting through the obscene
amount of cream, crushed
meringue, strawberries and
mint. Was I defeated? They
may take our lives, but they’ll
never take our appetite! I
basically licked the bowl clean.
We both rolled out the door,
with my skirt about to burst …
but it was worth every bite.
Verdict: Come wi’ the serious
munchies or prepare to be
gubbed!
The meat-heavy menu was
a delight for me, but for vego
Em the options were limited.
However, the cheery waiter
assured us they were more
than happy to accommodate
her and could rustle up a
“vegetarian surprise”, which
was lucky because a) no good
story ever started with a salad
b) salad just ain’t gonna cut it
when drinking beers.
The surprise was revealed
to be a ginormous portion
of roasted vegie pasta with
cheese, and she was more
than happy with her “super
hearty, honest country
food”. My Murray River lamb,
served on a bed of Provencale
veg and salsa verde looked
too pretty to eat – but I did,
of course, get my chops right
round it. The lamb slices were
melt-in-the-mouth tender,
perfectly partnered with the
salsa verde, and the veg was
absolutely scrumptious.
The next round consisted of a
Mountain Goat Surefoot Stout
for Em, which the wee numpty
nearly cowped over me in her
excitement. I was happy with
my 3 Ravens American Pale
Ale, which was surprisingly
flavoursome and hoppy.
By this stage, both of us were
hitting the “pop a button” stage,
but we decided we’d get a
dessert each anyway, because
they all sounded so damn
delicious.
MY INITIAL
RESPONSE WAS
“FUCK OFF!” –
IN THE HAPPIEST,
PIG-IN-SHIT WAY