Wednesday, April 10, 2013

The new Plough Hotel, Footscray

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"Now stand up straight," I said, fussing other my kids like we were about to meet the in-laws for the first time.  "I want you on your best behaviour.  This place is a little bit posh."

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We were at the doors of the newly gussied up Plough Hotel, where I'd been just a few nights earlier for a lovely launch party complete with oysters, bluegrass and freely-flowing Brunswick Bitter.  The refit is stunning, with glossy white tiles, luminescent bare bulbs and the visual pop of green succulents peeking out from shelves and tables.

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The pub has been here since 1868.  I remember its former incarnation, windows daubed in fluoro paint that Candy the Clown was in attendance on Fridays.  We'd had a few good roasts there but it didn't really rock our world.

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The Plough closed for what must have been a good year or two before opening under the stewardship of the team behind North Carlton's Kent Hotel.  Instead of Candy with her balloon animals, there's now Kelly Brothers cider and 2 Brothers Grizz amber ale on tap, plus Mountain Goat's steam ale and more.

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"Bistro or dining room?" said the lovely waiter, and soon we were lolling languidly in a booth in the bistro.  Apparently the dining room has the same menu but is just a little more formal.  I bet its big north-facing windows let in lots of lovely light all day.

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The Plough has a menu that, on the face of it, could be that of any true-blue country pub - burger, fish and chips and even bangers and mash.

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$11.50

But dig a little deeper and that burger has a veal pattie and roasted garlic aioli, and the fish and chips is flathead with local beers that change weekly, apparently.  This was the kids' menu fish and chips and the fish was indeed a lovely flattie tail.  It went down a treat.

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$11.50

LOVED this kids' burger, the pattie so mild and sweet in flavour, with proper bread.  The Plough has just started getting bread from Sourdough Kitchen.  I'm definitely keen to try this munchkin's bigger sister!

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$11.50

Kids' chicken parma which also got two thumbs up.  The chips are "roughed up" on the outside, making them crunchy all over and eminently stealable.

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$22

Great bangers and mash - quality pork and fennel snags with peas and pancetta lardons, in an intense, delicious gravy.  The sausages were denoted as "Benalla", but our waiter just said they were from that area - I'd love to know more, if they're from a particular butcher or from a particular breed.  There was a slight hiccup in this dish's first incarnation on the table in that the sausages were a touch pink.  The friendly staff dealt with it with aplomb though.  Being open for less than a week, this was nothing more than a minor mishap on the kitchen's behalf, and I also think the friendly yet professional way it was handled was telling as to the Plough's integrity and commitment to real hospitality.

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Tucking into ice cream with strawberry "sauce" (actually coulis - yum!), my 5-year-old said, "Mum, I thought you said this place was posh?  Where is the posh bit?"  And indeed, I had read the Plough all wrong.  It's classy and it's gorgeous, but it's also down to earth - and downright good.  Welcome to the neighbourhood and I look forward to many more ciders to come.

Cnr Geelong Road and Barkly Street, Footscray
Phone:  9687 2878

26 comments:

  1. Oh awesome. I've been looking on my way past every day. Don't know how I missed it being open. We'll be checking it out soon! We've had some ho hum meals there in the past so I was pretty hopeful about the reno.

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  2. The dishes look a bit light on chip wise - were they filling enough?

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    1. Jen, I thought the same thing when they put them down but they seemed to hit the spot. Honestly, the burger would have been big enough for my dinner - it was very substantial.

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  3. So so so happy that Footscray finally has a great pub on the cbd side of the railway line. The Station Hotel is great but this is closer to home.
    Cheryl.

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    1. My thoughts exactly. We go to the Station fairly regularly for special dinners - seem to have a lot of "special" things we need to celebrate! - but it's not walking distance.

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  4. Oh no -I love love your blog -but bangers and mash for $22 .00 that's pretty high -how good were they?

    Sue Heerey (around the corner from the Plough )

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    1. Sue, prices are tricky. If they were bog-standard bangers and mash, then yes it would be high. But you could tell they were quality snags, the mash was luscious, the gravy I'm sure was proper and not Gravox... Peas not just peas but with lovely, naughty pancetta. So it's really hard to compare prices side by side unless the ingredients are at the same standard.

      For example, the kids' fish and chips was one lovely flattie tail fillet plus chips for $11. In comparison, my kids had "fish and chips" at another establishment recently which was $7 - but the fish was horrible "fish nuggets", formed pieces of mushy fish just like chicken nuggets. I'd far sooner pay the extra $4 for a quality product.

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    2. Thanks for the feedback Lauren -will check it out-Cheers Sue

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  5. What beers are on tap? Only those mentioned or others?

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    1. No there are more. Brunswick Bitter, Mildura Stefano's pilsner, Mornington Peninsula pale ale, 3 Ravens '55' American Pale Ale plus the others I mentioned. Whole drinks list here: http://www.ploughhotel.com.au/menus/PloughHotel-Drinks-April2013.pdf

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  6. Good to see some decent brews on tap, but I have to disagree with you on the refit - looks bland & innocuous to me, like so many modern Aussie 'pubs'. Hate to think how much they spent turning it into an airport lounge....

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    1. Airport lounge?! You must be a frequent flyer! My photos don't really convey it well I guess, but I still disagree. Go check it out and see what you think in the flesh.

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  7. Tried the t-bone last night - not bad at all. Stefano's pilsener is a beautiful drop and their cheapest brew on tap, so that was a hit.

    I like the makeover. It's not loaded with character but is classic and won't date easily. We sat in a booth which was super comfy. Overall, it's great to have a pub like this in the 'Scray to replace the late lamented Royal, although it did feel more like a restaurant than a pub is lack a defined public bar area.

    One nice touch - we took our little one and needed to use the change table, which was spotless and loaded up with baby wipes and nappy sacks.

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    1. Anon, I think you've said it perfectly - "not loaded with character but is classic and won't date easily". Definitely so, so great to have a new "local". And how is that about the change table?! Above and beyond!

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  8. We are so excited about this place reopening in our area. I have a past here with my family for years and it was sad to see it deteriorate over the years. The Plough is such a great building and icon of Footscary and it's great to see it's doors reopening to the pub goers and families of the area. However...... The service was fantastic, the new owners seem so lovely and there is a great vibe going on BUT, the food lacked flavor. The seasoning was lacking, very lacking! The produce was exceptionally fresh and it was a shame that it wasn't excecuted properly. Dishes were bland and lacked a bit of zing!! If your calamari is lacking in Footscray your screwed!! I do like the fact that the menu is simple and pub like but come on guys,I wanna come back, give me a reason why I should come back and I will gladly spend my money with you!!

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    1. Nearly spat my coffee out on the keyboard - "If your calamari is lacking in Footscray, you're screwed!!" BA HA HA! Maybe we should make a new Footscray rating system like the Good Food Guide's chef's hats, only ours will be tentacles! Great to hear your feedback though. Hopefully it was just a one-off issue with a particular dish.

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  9. Glad you liked it Lauren! I really want the Plough to get it right, because it could be such a winner. More seasoning guys, more pow, biff, bang, come on knock our socks off, we know you can do it!

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  10. We went last night, and wondered if you'd already been there. More expensive than we're used to around here, but as you say, the ingredients, the surrounds and the service make it worth the few extra dollars. I love that they value serving local food and drinks.

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    1. Great to hear anon. Have had another meal since - loved the chicken and prosciutto salad but my friend had the tart which was enormous - like, enough for two people, with a bit of salad on top. She wasn't crazy about it as we were expecting a slice of tart and a larger salad. But still a great option for us in Footscray!

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  11. YUM!!! I gotta try this place soon cause it looks AMAZING. Have to come here for dinner on my way back from work one of these nights! And dang would ppl judge me if I ordered from the kids menu? Oh I do hope it's allowed. Otherwise, I need to borrow my friends' kids just so I can do that =]

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    1. Haha! I believe you can get the parma or the fish and chips as an adult size. They might come with salad, but I'm sure if you said chips only, they wouldn't judge you too much! ;-)

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  12. Did you happen to notice any high chairs here? Not sure how welcoming they are to little toddlers now it looks all swanky! Would love to try though, nice to have a new local in the rotation.

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  13. I will say i went there tonight, and have been there several times over the last year. However i was very Very disappointed in the meal, fish and chips was two pieces of fish which really was sad! hand full of chips and quarter cut lettuce with no taste.

    it was BAD! we can buy a great piece of rockling or other fish for less than quater the price and have salad or chips etc.

    Really to wait for an hour for that was embarrassing.

    I will not eat there again and will tell my friends not to eat there again. are they really joking?

    and to have a cold piece of saganaki as an entree for 10 dollars.

    Guys in 12 months u have lost me

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