the austral hotel

i went for a quiz night with work (which we nearly dominated btw) to the perpetually busy austral hotel.  the front bar & outside seating nearly always full at most times of the year, i did expect it to be busy, but it was incredible for a wednesday night.

luckily we had booked because there was no where free to sit, but people still did. personally, that is not my favourite thing, i like my space!  we were eating while we dominated our quiz game, and i ordered the osso bucco.

theservicefelt really rushed (obvs because it was so busy) but we ordered and sat down.  service was fairly quick for how busy it was & the osso bucco was as tender as it should be, but the sauce was pretty bland. i also lucked out on getting any bone or marrow.   it was nice, but just a bit bland (salt that baby up!)

the atmosphere is pretty energetic, but that's not always 100% my game.  i'm a bit of a premature granny tbh.

a little bit good and a little bit bad. went to the austral on monday for lunch with friends. there weren't very many people there as it was a monday so i assume most people need to be at work, so, retrospectively theservicewas great! the pub was very clean and, i've been there in the past for drinks with friends and the atmosphere is always good. i ordered the entree size calamari, another one of my friends ordered the vegetarian club sandwich and the other 2 got the chicken salad. the calamari i hadwasn't very nice, i don't think they were fresh as i couldn't actually bite through some of them and i know it's not a problem with my teeth. the chips were good though, can't complain about the chips. my friends all had good experiences though with their meals so i think it was just my bad luck. i would definitely go there again but perhaps hold off on the calamari, or ask how fresh they are if i'm tempted to go down the seafood path again.

best so called 'pub food' i've ever had! far better than any pub i've eaten at. the gnocchi was perfection, the steak was beautiful & theservicewas very friendly and fast. would definitely go back!

couldn't fault theserviceon a beautiful adelaide winters night. had pork cracking, chips, squid and haloumi as entrees. not fine dining, but more than adequate pub grub.

celebrated a recent hen's dinner here with a group of ten in the bunker. restaurant was full and crowded with people, it was a struggle in the heat. fans were on and windows open but with a hot, still evening, it made for an uncomfortable experience. meals looked great across the board, everyone was happy with their meal. my chicken and chorizo salad was nice but would have liked to see some more salad items added to balance out all the meat. good value for size and quality of meals and we saved quite a bit using entertainment book vouchers.servicewas a little ordinary but it may have been due to the full restaurant and heat. would return but probably not on a warm evening. also keep in mind that as the night gets later, noise from the front bar increases, so an early meal is preferable if you'd like to be able to hear any dinner convo.

excellent value. my wife had her birthday party there thursday 29th october in the corner bar i think it was called. the menu was certainly unexpected for a pub however for me anyway it was a nice surprise! there were 2 in our party who's noses were initially out of joint because there was no schnitzel however they quickly shaped up after looking at the menu. the menu seems to be more 'gastro pub' than pub which suited me just fine. as we were in the corner bar there was no tableserviceas there is in the bunka which again suited us as we didnt want all the fuss anyway. ill give a quick rundown of food without going into too much detail.... snapper - fresh local caught pink snapper, 2 huge chunks of thick fresh fish in a crispy light batter, mushy peas, fresh tartare sauce and handcut chips my wife had this it was the best fish & chips either of us have had. ribeye steak with cafe de paris butter - my choice, i have not had better even in some of sydney's 3 hat restaurants. quesadilla - an entree crispy spanish style with goats cheese and spinach yum! - steak & ale pie - didnt get to try but james said it was awesome and refused to share, clearly home made. hot pig - a standout dish using pork belly, 5 thick slices of pork belly, crispy crackling on top with apple sauce and perfectly cooked spring veggies i did try this one and it was fantastic at $26
there was more but i'll wrap it up. the food basically is restaurant standard at honest prices i mean local sa snapper at $27???? for a portion size bigger than you would get at a posh restaurant and pay $40!!! all in all a fantastic meal with great service, food and value.
n.b went to the austral again yesterday and had a medium rare cheeseburger - best burger i have ever eaten, the nice girl behind the bar told me they mince their own grain fed rump steaks which means you can order your burger as you would a steak. it shows, have never had better!

the bunker restaurant at the austral is a well kept secret. our party of three on 31 oct received excellent service. our selection of starters of prawns, steak tartare, and chicken liver parfait were full of flavour. we had 32oz rib eye steaks served rare and these were cooked just as ordered. in all, we would heartily recommend the place for the food,serviceand value.

we were originally going to the stag and then decided at the last minute to give the bunker restaurant at the austral a go. we were surprised that the restaurant was empty on a friday night, but it soon became apparent why. the fish and chips and pork belly were absolute let downs - for the price charged the portion sizes were miniscule. plus, the snapper had been poorly trimmed and half the dish was blood line which is inedible. if you are going to eat here stick with the burgers and pies - whilst not best i've ever had, it is a decent serve for the price. the upside of the meal was the service. both staff members were extremely friendly and when the snapper blood line issue was pointed out it was dealt with in a professional manner and the dish immediately removed from the bill. however, rundle street is a competitive strip so the austral is not going to be able to rely on goodservicealone.