builders arms hotel bar and bistro

absolute delight!. love this place! thefishpie and the pork shoulder are amazing! however make sure you have at least 4 people for pork - advertised for 2, but it is huge!!!!

pub quality food at fine dining prices. thefishpie was extremely disappointing; a few small pieces offishand a prawn in a very runny sauce for $35. the steak of the day special was also quite ordinary and over priced. the highlight was the bread with cod roe. unfortunately the service was slow; we were at the table for 15 minutes before any one came to take our drinks order. definitely did not represent value for money so we unfortunately will not be back.

was excited on getting some decent pub food and builders arms looked great, pub vibes without feeling too dingy. crowd and staff were nice if not overworked, but thats where it ends. the food was shockingly average.fishpie with decent but overdone pastry - clearly filled with frozen produce. everything tasted like old seafood. one prawn. for a high price of $35. the scotch eggs tasted like cheap sausage and the pasta was edible. usually im pretty easy with food but huge disappointment when the bread is the best part of the meal.

i enjoyed a variety of small plates in the courtyard on one of those “lovely” hard concrete banquettes, but under the shady trees. we shared some lovely fresh oysters as i continue to wean myself on them. as per many other positive reviews, the whipped cod roe was a winner: creamy, light and well seasoned served with crisp dipping fingers. i would have loved thefishpie as i am such a fan of this nz perennial but i checked with the kitchen and the sauce is still runny. no thanks. we also shared the cured salmon which was very subtle, fresh and light. the cheese on our heirloom tomatoes had already gone hard and rubbery by the time it got to the table. i didn’t even recognise that it was cheese. it was really difficult to cut through. it must have been sitting on the pass for a while. not a great result. the presence of the anchovies was a bit to subtle for me, but that’s because i can literally eat them out of the jar, and am not adverse to their intense flavour.
the builders arms is a really nice pub, particularly for mid week lunch when it’s quiet. service was excellent- really friendly. it’s definitely worth a return visit and is a great local pub.
tip: cushions for the concrete benches?

i came to the builders arms with work for a small xmas lunch/ afternoon. i wasn’t actually sure what to expect but we had a delicious fine dining style meal with great wine and plenty of atmosphere. we close the set sharing menu and where not disappointed, the cod dip was smooth and creamy, the oysters seriously fresh, those that had the slow cooked meat said it fell of the bone and myfishwas exquisite. we all had panacotta for dessert that wobbled well, a lovely vanilla flavour.
kd

we visited the bar for an early saturday dinner. staff were doing their best, but the bar was understaffed and there was a long wait to order. the stand out dish was the whipped roe. fishpie was good, albeit the sauce very runny.

mixed feelings about this pub. main menu is limited. meat eaters were disappointed: $50 steak was over cooked and rump cap roast was tough and chewy. the snapper was very nice but a small serving (3 small slices of fish), thefishpie was also tasty. cod roe did is always good and the sides were very nice. desserts were ok- sussex pond pudding was stodgy and i probably wouldn’t reorder it. chocolate dessert was nice but again nothing special...we should’ve walked up to marion and had their chocolate tart!

we came here for lunch on a friday at midday. we decided to order the whipped cod roe to share, thefishpie and the porterhouse steak with a side of onion rings. the whipped cod roe was to die for! thefishpie was nice but i wished that there was more filling in the pie as the seafood was abit scant. the porterhouse steak was also cooked to perfection and well rested. i would recommend this place to anyone.

builders arms hotel epitomises the sophisticated modern australian pub fare. the highlight of my experiences here was the whole roasted rainbow trout. the fleshyfishwas fresh and had a lovely hint of french (i suspected it was the burnt butter). the roast pork with "best ever" crackling is also a must-have to share between few people, albeit some parts of the meat was slightly dry and required mustard for enhanced taste. the fried cauliflower starter was also quite cumulus-esque which i really enjoyed. though i really liked the freshness of the mussels, i wasn't the biggest fan of the curry taste in its sauce. otherwise, the sides at builders arms were very quality too, along with an extensive wine list! overall, i've enjoyed my dining experiences at builders arms. it's perfectly wrapped up with the divine dark chocolate and orange truffle. the price you pay for the quality of meals here is very justified. however, i've rated this place lower than i'd liked due to slow, uncoordinated, and unfriendly service. the inattentive staff here seemed to have thrown decorum out the window and wasn't very hospitable especially when it came to moving tables (we were rushed out due to a two hour booking slot), and getting the bill. but when it comes to food and wine, you can't go wrong with anything related to andrew mcconnell so i definitely won't hesitate to come back for the food in hopes that service would improve.

a little good and a little bad. went there expecting great things as i've read plenty of top reviews. i'll start with the good- our staff were keen and happy. attentive and lovely. the food was pretty good. we ordered most all of the appetisers and they were smashing. the jamon balls were spot on. i ordered thefishpie and my wife had the parmigiana. both were delicious. but we simply couldn't find a good wine on the menu. we tried one by the glass which tasted flat, almost like it had been opened over night. we ordered a bottle but there was nothing which really moved us. the bottle we settled on was the best of a bad bunch of shiraz. mixed review.

some of the best pub food in melbourne, top 3 for me.  standout dishes for me were the whipped cod roe, and thefishpie. everything we had was really good, with exception of the chips with aoli, which were below average. they have a nice selection of craft beers, and had one in particular(a rye pale ale by bridge road brewers) i liked so much i asked where else i could find it. turns out it was a special run, and this venue have the only 40 odd kegs!

located on gertrude st in fitzroy, it is another venture of andrew o'connell. pitched at as sophisticated pub style dining where it is split into a dining room by the name of moon under water and the bistro. as we were only here for a casual affair we decided on the bistro. this is not the first time d and i have dined here. last time we were here, it was for a surprise birthday dinner for d. so it bought back good memories. to start we got the pot of curried mussels to share. the last time i had a pot of mussels was in paris so a small part of me was hoping for something similar. when it arrived it was nothing like i expected. the serving i found a bit on the small side as we were advise it's something that's to be share and quite big. however that was compensated with the creamy curry flavours. the frito mistro was done better compared to what i have eaten in the past. i liked the variety of seafood and the garlic mayo was just right. as a main i had to try thefishpie. baked in the

we visited for a group lunch yesterday and had the set menu. the meal was lovely with highlights being main ( eye fillet orfishpot pie) and magic dessert. service was subtle but attentive. drinks by the glass are expensive and the prosecco serves are small. however, a great lazy long saturday lunch!

classy pub grub!. stopped by for dinner with visiting relatives -fishpie had a delicious sauce eagerly mopped up with beautifully flaky crust. excellent hot chips. great rump steaks. great wine choice. very helpful staff. don't pass the mandarin sorbet and dark chocolate salted caramel cups!

overpriced. disappointing effort on easter monday ... perhaps the top staff were on a day off and the b team were in charge.fishpie was fine, but i've had better batteredfishand chips in the localfishchippery and the pierogis were unpleasant and overcooked. in future i'll stick to the bar.