Varnish On King

Such an unassuming front, blink and you’ll miss it. The smell of bacon is enticing as you walk in and down stairs the selection of whiskey at the bar is impressive. The small bar has a cosy feel and a great place to go out with friends when you want to be able to hear each other and feel a touch classy, whilst still staying in the Perth CBD.
I myself don’t enjoy straight whiskey so having the option of fresh apple juice is fantastic (they juice it fresh when you order). Last time I was in I tried the moonshine (peach and then apple pie) with the fresh apple juice and they were both refreshing and tasty. The extensive selection guarantees there will be something there for everyone.

Love this place (it is my local which helps)! This bar has got me drinking American whiskey, and I am a scotch snob from way back (again, proximity may be at work). Definitely try a boilermaker at some point — I started out on the Negro Modelos but have moved over to Hop Thief of late. Beef shorts ribs are fabulous — as a result have not tried many other larger dishes on the menu. The mac ‘n’ cheese is great, as are the cauliflower beignets… brussel sprouts may also convert a few fence sitters. Highly recommended, and of course the wonderful staff are a huge selling point. This is the only bar I’ve been to in Perth in which every time I’ve had a conversation with someone next to me at the bar — which I love. People seem fun and relaxed in this place — and you also get free pretzels.

I’ve been here 3 times now! The food is delicious and the staff are extremely friendly and helpful with food and drink recommendations. I did have a problem once with one of the dishes that came out and the staff quickly provided me with a solution! Definitely worth trying! Great vibe and look inside!

Where do I start!
I went there last night with my wife for my 41^st birthday dinner… and quite frankly it was the worst dinner I’ve even been presented with.
The $ 80 bottle of red wine was excellent — but even that process was flawed… we ordered the bottle of red, but a bottle of white came out… the staff were poor in attendance.
The most disappointing part of the meal was the main… we ordered the ribs… no ordinary ribs…
It was 90% fat — and when I say fat… I mean dripping fat… it would have been the worst cut of meat I’ve had in my life. Period.
I had one mouthful, and the taste was disgusting. Imagine eating a piece of hot lard — that was the deal.
The staff enquired when my wife and I both pushed out plates away, and I told them the quality was garbage.
We finished the $ 80 bottle of wine, paid our $ 200 for the ribs — and left.
Don’t bother people with this joint is terrible… btw take your mobile with you, because you can’t read the menu either — as its so dark in there — and they printed the menu on dark brown paper with black ink…
1 out of 10 — and thats generous.

Went for dinner for the first time on Saturday night and we were greeted with a beautiful happy smiley faced lady on the door who advised us that our friends had already arrived and were waiting for us in the bar… great first impression!
We had so much fun, really cool fitout, great staff, really friendly and helpful. Also loved the choice of old school music. Some of the reviews I read said it was too loud but I don’t agree, I could easily hear everyone in my group and the music just added to the already great atmosphere.
We had a beautiful dinner, there were 6 of us and the menu is designed for sharing from small plates to large (and they were large)
All the food was amazing especially the rump cap with fresh herbs and pan juices, cooked medium rare to perfection, absolutely gorgeous… I cannot remember having such well cooked beef in a restaurant so I highly recommend this dish!
We also had desert, there was only two to choose from but they were both really yum, in particular the Valrhona chocolate tart
Excellent wine list and of course as these guys specialise in whiskey… so plenty of that too.
Can’t wait to return. (Make sure you book on the weekend as it was packed)

Varnish on King is easily missed, occupying a small basement located on King Street. The signage is understated and reflects the style of the bar downstairs.
I’ve had the pleasure of eating at Varnish on a few occasions now and each time I have enjoyed the experience. The menu features bar food such as tater tots with chipotle hot sauce and fried chicken wings alongside more substantial dishes including melt-​in-​your-​mouth twice-​cooked beef short ribs. The mac & cheese is a perfect accompaniment.
On offer at the bar you’ll find a good selection of beer and wine, but the star here is the whiskey list, mostly American styles such as bourbon and rye whiskeys. Can’t decide between beer and whiskey? Varnish has that covered with a selection of boilermakers.
If there is one criticism I could offer of Varnish on King it’s that there sometimes just isn’t enough room at the bar. This is a small venue and when you pack a few punters in you will find yourself battling to get to the bar to order a drink. This aside, Varnish is a great spot and I highly recommend it for both a casual drink or a sit down meal.

Bad, small plates of food, no flavour, dark, crowded, noisy, expensive.
Ok bar for a drink but don’t eat there! Painful experience.

A quiet King street on a Thursday night made it difficult for us to find the place, but I’m glad we did. Go through the heavy wooden doors, down the staircase and you find yourself at a cosy bar. The abundance of wines on display adjacent to the stairs paint a picture of variety and you get that in spades.
The drinks list is exciting, so much to choose from, especially if you love whiskey/​whisky and not a bad sample of beers to boot! Luckily the service is spectacular, so friendly, genuine and knowledgable so you can find the drink to suit your pleasure.
The food menu is full of tough decisions, the waiter will be sure to aid you with that too, I chose the cured scallops and salmon roe. Seafood is my personal favourite and this didn’t disappoint, luckily I wasn’t too hungry though. I was told to go for the ribs and when I go back (which is soon), I will indulge for sure.
The décor is classy enough without being obnoxious and the lighting is soft enough to make everyone look like movie stars.
Must visit!

I really wanted to like varnish and whilst It was an okay place there was nothing to set it apart from the crowd… so after three separate visits I cannot say that I have ever had decent service it is meh to me.
I like the fit out, the booze is okay if you like burbon, the menu sounds nice, but good luck getting served is all I can say.
On the plus side the décor is great, the fit out creates some nice spaces for people to chill out in style, but if I have to wait forever for my drink then it takes away from the ambiance; especially when the place was half full.
Perhaps I got the wrong nights? Or perhaps I am not mates with the staff, the table next to me got three food orders when I had to almost tackle a waiter to ask where our single tapas course was??? Which seemed to be an inconvenience to them chatting to their mates at the next table
With the competition in town I don’t think I would put myself through the effort of going here again; which is a shame since it showed promise.

Ridiculously overcrowded hipster bar. Food is mixed and overpriced. Scallops were good, prawns were dry to the point of ruin, pork belly was great, tater tots were tasteless (siracha? Oh please, it wasn’t siracha. I’ve had ketchup that was spicier!)
Drinks are cheap by Perth prices but not a lot of style.
Best part of the whole place is the music selection. Worst part is attempting to get to and from the WC — a cattle prod would have helped. Also the lame (oh so Perth) service — being snotty doesn’t add to the ambiance.

I am getting used to the oh my god high prices in Perth — $ 8 for tatertots! — but what will never sit we’ll with me is the overwhelming lack of service in the ‘service’ industry.
First and foremost — if you have wifi, and you have your SSID set to your restaurant’s name… and I drop $ 400 on SMALL small plates and vodka sodas that are more soda than vodka… do not seem annoyed when I ask you for a code. As an international guest, I can always use wifi… and when the waitstaff expresses more than a bit of disdain for the thought of me asking… it does not leave a good impression.
Drinks…eh…
Food…they put the small in small plates…
Service…somewhere between surly used car salesmen and obnoxious art galley owners…
Snitty about me asking for a wifi code… means I won’t be back.

This is a pretty good spot — out of the way enough to be quiet at times, but hip and sophisticated enough to be an excellent date spot!
The downstairs lounge feel of the place really has a good ambiance, and while it can be a bit cramped at times (putting fixed tables 1.5m from the bar was a bit of an odd design decision), most days it’s nice and relaxing. The bourbon and whiskey collection is one of the best in Perth, and they have a great beer selection as well!
Service-​wise the staff was responsive and knew most of the typical whiskey cocktails, and the bar was well stocked with all of the dressings you’d need!
The food smelled excellent, but we didn’t indulge — I’ll have to check it out again soon to see how the food goes as well!

American style basement whiskey bar — sophisticated and a mind boggling selection of whiskey. Make sure to book ahead for a table. The braised short ribs and the whiskey flight (pairing of assortment of bacon and whiskey) cannot be missed.
Does get a little bit noisy.

Wandered up King Street around 7pm to be greeted at the door to Varnish by a friendly woman with a blunt cut bob and a clip board. Uh-​oh, this looks ominous. Turns out, she’s just checking off patrons with bookings. Randoms were also allowed to enter. Lucky us.
The interior is long and thin, with a cluster of couches and stools right at the bottom of the stairs adjacent to a long row of dining tables, opposite the bar. A really lovely waitress explained that all the tables were booked (despite them being empty) and she showed us to a little strip of wood attached to the wall, at the far end of the bar, adjacent to the kitchen. It was sort of like we were in the naughty corner, rammed up against and facing the wall, seated on stools, with all the rest of the bar and it’s goings on behind our backs, kitchen to our right.
By the time the first dish arrived, I turned around and all those empty tables were full. All of them. It got noisy. The 80’s music was blaring and we had a little competition between us who could name the song first. (I rocked).
The food we ordered was outstanding. We had the venison carpaccio and the mac n cheese. Delicious, both. Accompanied by a delightful fresh squeezed apple juice with rye, it almost made up for the crappy positioning. And the waitress really was very good at her job. That’s the 3 stars right there.
After eating, we weren’t really enjoying the position, so we decided to leave. If we were more comfortable, we may have stayed longer.
Worth a look in.

I do love this bar, have been a few times now. It was very crowded the night we went, I think we just made it in. Stopped in for a few drinks before Bruce Springsteen and there was a function on too. Didn’t take long to get our drinks though and the staff are fantastic, always having a joke with the customers. :)
We were singing and moving to the music which was a mixture of 80’s and 90’s hits that Friday night.
Haven’t tried the food there yet, but the functions food looked really good.
Looking forward to sampling some food and more drinks, love my bourbon :)

The only thing I liked about Varnish was the beaver above the bar that they so cleverly named Justin Beaver.
With so many small bars swarming Perth, choices of venue are unlimited and this is one venue I won’t be frequenting.
Varnish is cramped, stuffy and pour a drink so unhonest it makes the heart ache.
Varnish fancies themselves a high-​class whiskey and wine bar. I fancy Varnish as an overpriced trap with modern décor. I won’t be back, not when so many other bars in Perth give you way more bang for your buck.

If you need some American whiskey, get down to Varnish!
And definitely try one their pickle back creations. It consists of a bourbon and a pickle that have been matched together. The taste sensation is amazing!
Food is designed to share and 3 – 4 dishes between 2 people is ample. And will leave you room to try their dessert slider :)
Friendly knowledgable service every time.

I think I just found my new favourite hangout.
The interior is timeless and cutting edge all at once — yes that is possible! The music is awesome too, a real mish-​mash of all sorts of genres of cool, yet sing-​along songs. The service is friendly and the food is next level.
I dined with a pregnant friend, and I ate like I was eating for two too. We tried the prawn dish which was a single huge prawn, and more like a delicious chunk of crayfish. I tried the lobster sausage, of which I loved the concept, but preferred the prawn small plate instead. For mains we tried the pig cheek and ribs — both very rich and enjoyable. The carrot and beetroot side was a favourite. Then of course we had to try the dessert burger which well and truly lived up to the hype. Toasted donut for the bun, a patty of soft chocolate with hazelnuts, a berry sauce as ketchup, and custard for the slice of cheese. Save room for this one.
There was a bit of wait on food, but the kitchen was slammed with the pre-​concert dining crowd.
Looking forward to going back and getting stuck into more of their drinks menu.
I wish Unilocal would let me put angle brackets in my reviews so I could add little love hearts at the end of this review for Varnish On King.

Varnish is one of the new small bar additions to Perth which makes a mark with tasteful décor and classy menu for food and drink. I’m really liking these new ‘hidden’ places within Perth which make me wonder — what existed here before?
The bar is small but fairly busy for a Thursday night and popular with the suits and I can see why. It isn’t overly pricy like the lavish laneway lounge it is less theatrical and has an undestated elegance. I chose the White Rabbit — White Ale for $ 10. The taste reminded me a little bit of bacon (?) — which I really was into.
My friend had a pickled onion with his shot as well as a beer. The service was friendly and the atmosphere was relaxed. Not too sure if there is room for any big groups — but for a small catch up with a few friends this setting is perfect.

Mmmm. Bad service.
I would love to say this place is great. BUT the service was below par. It was 2 star but they did manage to get one back by the end of the night. (@yelp pls bring in half stars)
So I arrived and there was a spare table. I asked if I could sit and they said ok. And that’s where service stopped. Nobody wiped the table, nobody took drinks orders and certainly no food order. The table next to me left and was cleaned and new people sat and ordered. It helped that they new the bar tender. So here I sit. Waiting. Finally flagged someone down who seemed perplexed when I said I wanted to order. So placed the order (food and wine) then waited… And waited… «Excuse me, where are our drinks» then they appeared. They had been poured but not delivered. Staff appeared busy but never appeared to do anything.
The bone marrow arrived first. Delicious and highly recommended. Then lobster roll and the prawn entrée. All extremely nice. The waiters then got better. «You have finished your drink would you like another.» «Can I suggest this one?» Finally some good service.
Finished on the short ribs that fell off the bone and were delicious.
When we got the bill and asked if everything was ok, I said no and explained. «We’ll if you didn’t book then we would not know if you wanted food» and that affects service how!!!
May try again but so many other places to try first.