We were at the Railway hotel to see a show and the attached bistro was the easiest place to eat beforehand. The bistro at the Railway used to be quite highly regarded locally, and the missus ate there a few times for school events. It changed chefs some time ago and went down hill so we avoided the place for years. Apparently the old chef is back running the place now so we were hopeful that it was back to its best.
This is more upmarket than your traditional pub eatery. No parmas. No burgers. There are your usual suspects - battered fish, schnitzel, steaks but with an upmarket twist. We both opted for something off the specials menu. I had the rib eye with mash and onion rings. That was nice. Well cooked (rare... They can actually cook a rare steak and have it come out rare which is a rarity in a pub bistro) with a nice red wine jus. The missus had the barramundi with wilted spinach and a really nice corn puree. It was all presented nicely and served quickly. When we told them we were there for the show, they really pulled out all stops to make sure we got everything in time. Service was excellent. Drinks were of course from the bar at pub prices.
Price wise this isn't a cheap pub meal. It's in that uncomfortable territory between fine dining (which you expect to have a hefty price tag attached) and a pub meal (which you don't) so it feels like an expensive pub dinner. The whole order at the counter, pay up front and take a number vibe detracts from the fine dining aspect. Likewise ordering and paying for drinks separately at the bar.
It's not the sort of place you would go for a nice night out and it's not the sort of place you go for a cheap pub meal. Definitely nicer than your usual pub meal but not quite good enough to tun it into a destination or gastropub. Its a hard formula to get right. Actually, if they just had someone come to the table and take your order it would probably feel a lot more like fine dining. The beer and wine selection would need to be a whole lot better to move this into gastropub territory. The Railway Hotel's beer selection hasn't changed since the 80s. The food is good enough but the drink selection...not so much.
Definitly good food but probably not the sort of place we will go to often. They should choose whether they are a bistro or a restaurant and focus on that rather than trying to be both. Having said that, the place was packed, so clearly there are many who think very highly of it. read more