Union Hotel

Came here one night looking for somewhere for casual drinks and dinner on Chapel at around 8pm on a Friday. We weren’t able to get a table at a couple of preferred choices, so ended up here.
It was okay, nothing to write home about. Standard pub food and drinks, but I found it to be overpriced for quite average to below average food. Massive portions but kind of tasteless and unremarkable.
It was also extremely noisey (not in a good way) with kids and prams and drunk patrons and just a weird suburban family meets ageing hipster overall vibe.
I’d give it another shot though on a quieter day and see how I feel then.

Not bad. If a reasonably priced drink in a pretty spacious venue is what you’re after, you’ll find it here. It’s very seat-​centric so if you can’t find anywhere to rest your rump, you’ll be standing a little awkwardly here and probably in somebody’s way. The average weekday isn’t that busy though, so it’s acceptable. There’s sluggish Wi-​Fi but connectivity isn’t great and you’re better off using data. Plenty of regulars seem permanently glued to seats around the top end of this bar. Do they ever leave? They’re always in before me and stay after I’ve left. Food-​wise, you can do much better close to this venue. Go exploring and up your culinary game. Overall, a perfectly acceptable little pit-​stop towards greater things.

What baffles me was how I completely missed this pub the night I first arrived in Melbourne and walked down Chapel Street looking for a place to drink. I ended up at the Court Jester further down the road, and it wasn’t until the next day that I realised this place was here. Okay, it may not have the flashiest of names, but it was still a pretty cool pub. I remember coming in here when there was an Essendon and Geelong football match on, and Geelong just managed to beat Essendon by a couple of points. The roar that erupted from the crowd was priceless. This is certainly one of those pubs in which to watch a game of footy. The other thing that I really like about this place is that the back area is generally very quiet, which means that you can always find a seat, and you can get away from the crowds for a bit.

The Union Hotel was the kick off point for the final night in Melbourne of a dear friend of mine. We had an hour to kill until our dinner reservations and as the first to arrive on the street, I had to find a place out of the cold Melbourne night. The glow of a fireplace lured me into the Union Hotel (is it compulsory for most cool Melbourne suburbs to have a Union Hotel?).
The inside of the building is not impressive but okay as far as pubs go. The fireplace softens an otherwise stark interior. The big leather (?) sofas are definitely the best spot to get if you can a hold on them.
I didn’t try the food but the bar service was quick and there seemed to be a good selection on tap. The wine drinkers among us were pretty happy too.
Would it ever be my local if I lived in the area? Probably not. It’s a bit too cold and clinical in atmosphere for my liking. But for a quick drink it ain’t half bad.

A nice low key place for a beer on a hot Melbourne day.