the last jar

the staff here are so friendly and the food was absolutely delicious! the portions aregoodfor an empty stomach and i recommend the pigs ears for starters: they are delicious to snack on. definitely recommend the last jar for dinner and/or a few quiet drinks on the rooftop.

a wintertime favourite!. last year we were looking on urbanspoon for a suitably warming cuisine on a freezing cold and rainy night (it is amazing how many of these such nights happen in melbourne, but i digress). neither of us felt like going further than one train journey and we wanted good, solid, hot winter comfort food. a search for english, irish and scottish food pulled up this option, and we both agreed it sounded perfect. the last jar is a wonderful pub - unpretentious and atmospheric in a homely and welcoming sort of way (code for it hasn't been spoilt by renovation). the guinness is wonderful - expertly poured and fresh. there is also a wonderful selection of irish whiskey. as for the food - it is a perfect balance betweengoodold fashioned favourites, cooked to perfection, with enough modern twists to make them interesting, but without spoiling their essence. the irish stew and dublin coddle are both perfect for a cold winter's night. my partner has had both, and he assured me that the meat in the strew was tender and the vegetables flavoursome. i stick with the vegetarian menu, which also offers some choice with one staple (a baked spud) and one seasonal dish. my only comment here would be that mains tend to come with salads, whereas mash and / or baked vegetables would often be more appropriate in the colder months. we rarely get to sample the desserts because we are too full, but we did manage an irish cream butter pudding once that was heavenly. the last jar is one of the few nice things about winter in melbourne!

overall, i think the last jar is a very casual, relaxed and fuss free place to come to in the cbd. few standout dishes with a few more that could be better. still, decent gastropub affair that isgoodvalue for money too.

had dinner here sat night. we intended on eating in the dining room, but it was booked out (2 weeks before). so we ate in the bar area, which i'm told is the same menu. the food was remarkablygoodand the service was very attentive, even to the point of shielding us from the eclectic mix of patrons who call the last jar their own. overall, a great (and interesting) experience at the jar. highly recommended, but you'll need to book 3-4 weeks in advance for the dining room or take your chances out in the bar. either way, it's enjoyable. the jar isn't a cheap night out, you can expect to part with $50 ph for 2 courses + drinks. if i had any criticism at all, it would be that the wine list is somewhat limited, would like to see some fine victorian shiraz feature (preferably heathcote)

the menu was small and wasn't really to our liking and because they had been busy, 2 of the few mains weren't available so all four of us stuck to steaks.steaks were really good, well cooked, melt in your mouth stuff! chips were... not chips. more like the largest thick cut spuds on the planet but well seasoned and a massive hit. salad consisted of onion and lettuce and was drowned in oil, wasn't touched by anyone on the table. a bit pricey butgoodfood and friendly staff so will come back again.

nice irish. was looking for a irish pub with traditional irish fare,think we have found it,agoodpub when visiting the viccy market,the staff were more than helpful,explaining the menu to us,and the food was delicious,as was the killkenny beer,had the musells and the irsh coddle,how good,as was the bread,and agoodday was had by all

i have been coming to their sunday roast dinner twice. love the close proximity to home. food is great andgoodvalue for money. guinness on tap is also handy.

the pub is a bit isolated from the dining precincts of inner melbourne but it was agoodfind! great atmosphere for after work drinks on a friday but very noisy if you’re there for dinner. the food was enjoyable and above average. i had the asparagus and mushroom eton mess.

nice atmosphere and feels like your back in ireland. service was verygoodbut the food was not anything special. my girlfriend had the mushroom starter, she thought it was good, could have done with a little garlic dip. i got soda bread but it came out toasted and didn't taste like soda bread. the steak was ok, cooked to my liking but it definetly was not dry aged, a little tough even having it medium rare, 34 $ for a porterhouse you would imagine it would have been better. the guinness was great, easily the best pint of the black stuff in melbourne.

great, classic irish pub with surprisinglygoodfood. we visited for their prawn festival and enjoyed cracking live music & a great atmosphere. service was charming and we enjoyed the selection of food including delicious lakes entrance prawns.

2/12/17 update

the last jar have just included a saturday night $45 five course meal special and the food is awesome. it changes every week but we were treated to a amazing seafood bisque, chicken ballotine and one of the best desserts i’ve had at a pub in a long while! see pics for more :)

the last jar is a lot less “gimmicky irish pub” and far more “place i’d like to hang out” than most of the usual aussie pubs passing themselves off as quintessentially irish. i imagine they’re about as irish as an outback steakhouse in north america is australian. ugh, ever been to one of those establishments? yuck. the last jar manages to keep all that’sgoodabout a small county pub without cashing in on giant neon beer signs and bunting flags.
 
their recent ode to the dublin bay prawn festival on st patrick’s day weekend was agoodchance to get ourselves acquainted with this awesome spot bordering melbourne’s cbd (the carlton side). six different prawn dishes, irish music and guinness on tap set us up for a relaxing day sitting in one of the cutest beer gardens in melbourne. 
 
with an awesome and quite versatile menu along with great, casual atmosphere and service – the last jar is definitely a spot to add to your after work or weekend list. look out for when they renovate their rooftop – some of the best views of melbourne’s city skyline are about to happen right here.

full (and probably funnier) review live on the blog now, link in bio :)

sometimes you don't want to go anywhere fancy for a drink with friends but you also don't want sticky floors or bad beer. that's where the last jar comes into it. slapped onto a otherwise pretty boring corner of carlton, this pub is a great place for a casual drink with a group of mates. in summer their rooftop courtyard (not an actual rooftop with a view but it is up stairs and open to the sky) is nice to sit in. the indoor areas are cosy and have a open fireplace in winter.

food is great if your hungry and love meat, for vegetarians it's a little lacking in substance and not the cheapest meal around. beer selection isgood- carlton beer snobs you won't be disappointed. laid back, pub style and relaxed staff make it a great local pub. it's really not that far from the cbd or vic markets too if you need somewhere different to try.

delicious fish and chips and pork sandwich .goodvalue . fresh , tasty as .. delicious . great staff and service . a real pub feeling . loved it and going back .

been twice, happy twice. lovely rich meals with irish influence. great decadent pork belly, agoodspecials board. big servings, you'll leave stuffed!

sad to say the dinner at the last jar wasnt asgoodas we expected. my sister who went there before already told me that their food are standard, but since they have new menu, i thought it would be different.
ordered their irish bfast, which was okay, the black and white pudding wasnt asgoodas i tried before, beef brisket soup was more like minestrone and it was okay, steak sandwich was also okay, porterhouse wasgoodand with decent amount of mushroom sauce on it. salmon was okay, but the dissapointing one was the pork belly, and we ordered 4 portion. there were no crackling, no crunchy skin, it was just thick ugly skin with jello like texture, just disgusting. service was okay but he look a bit overwhelmed by serving the whole room all by himself.
will i go back for the food? no. but will for their guinness :)