Macquarie Arms

Craving pub food in Windsor? Look no further. Macquarie Arms has a peaceful, friendly atmosphere perfect for families and large groups. The décor is quite outdated but the beer garden with playground for the little ones makes up for it. There is a $ 10 meal deal each day of the week inclusive of fish and chips, chicken schnitzel, burgers and pasta. The staff are friendly, attentive and all meals are delivered with a smile!

Amazing place!!! What more do you want when hanging around in a semi sleepy town? This place is the oldest hotel and pub in Australia! The establishment has a fine dark wood interior, updated lights for a well lit illumination, soft lounger chairs around tables, an arcade with «big buck hunter HD!!», a fabulous menu, and much much more. Service e is always welcoming and expedient. The quality and selection of food for a low price is absolutely awesome, I ordered the daily special of fish and chips that was w excellent, and my overzealous compatriot ordered a soft shell crab over an Asian zest salad that was eemarkable, who knew. Lol the drinks are decently priced but where its at is the selection of choices they give you. I will definitely come back when I come through here again.

It’s incredible to me but the Macquarie Arms Hotel in Windsor is thought to be the oldest inn and «the oldest pub» on mainland Australia. (Tasmania likes to sneaks in now and then when we aren’t looking. Not sure if you can trust the Tassies though. I heard the place started as a penal colony. lol). Being the oldest pub is surely a great honour in Australia, in a land where beer is damn near sacred. Talk about hiding in plain sight up there on the hill in Thompson’s Square (see separate review). I wonder if the patrons went from Australia’s oldest school & church at nearby Ebenezer down here to the oldest pub.
The Arms’ website (
) states: «In 1815 a «spacious and commodious inn» was constructed by Richard Fitzgerald adjoining Thompson Square and was known as the Macquarie Arms. In order to save Government the cost of providing such a structure, Macquarie had given «Mr. Fitzgerald a large allotment in the square on the expressed condition of his building immediately thereon a handsome commodious inn of brick or stone and to be at least two stories high.» (Macquarie’s Journal of his tours– 12^th Jan. 1811)
The soldiers would sometimes stay on the upper floor. After a hard day’s work, the convicts who built the Macquarie Arms entertained themselves by smuggling barrels of illegal rum from the Hawkesbury River into the quarters below through the «Rum Smuggler’s Tunnels». Two convict brothers blew themselves up in the cellar. A young girl Mary died upstairs after being trapped by a fire. Windsor Ghost Tours says their ghosts remain and will take you on a tour on Saturday nights. That would be fun.
The Heritage Council of NSW describes the Arms as follows:
«Physical Description:
The hotel is a building of generous proportions, with sandstock brick walls, stuccoed over and painted white. It has two large Georgian doorways with semi-​circular traceried fanlights and sidelights, but the glass in the one facing George Street has unfortunately been painted over. The one opening onto Thompson Square can still be seen in its original state. The hotel retains its well designed cedar joinery, its cedar circular staircase, its extensive stone flagged cellars, its turned wooden verandah columns, and its stone flagging.»
I’ll give it four stars for not giving up the ghost.
A portrait of Governor Macquarie hands in the Dining Room as would be expected.
The Arms boasts «Beautiful Pub Food from $ 6.50 pastas to $ 9.95 steak and beer deals (see our weekly specials in house). Keno, TAB, Pokies and three pool tables and two dart boards.
HOURS: Monday/​Tuesday/​Sunday 10am to 10pm. Wednesday to Saturday 10am to 12am.»
I never thought of pub food as beautiful, but maybe it’s in the eye of the beholder. Average or adequate would be a better description, but the wait can be painful. Maybe they’re resting on their laurels, but pretty good laurels they are generally. Good for a drink for history’s sake, but I wouldn’t base a family meal here if you know what I mean. But when visiting a pub I’m not going to get picky about the food. They have steaks, battered fish & chips, schnitzel, burgers, pasta, salads and more. $ 10 for 10 items on Monday, and other specials, sometimes beef ribs.
A horseshoe on the outside wall of the Macquarie Arms pub marks the level a huge flood peaked at in 1867, when beaches along the Hawkesbury to Barrenjoey were littered with the debris from the town.