Pub Of The Week: Diamond Creek Hotel, Diamond Creek
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29 Main Hurstbridge Road, Diamond Creek
9438 1444
When?: 17 May 2024
SUMMARY:
Many years have passed since a visit to the Diamond Creek Hotel, then owned by the Collingwood Football Club and, with a clever interior makeover involving freeing up space by removing some walls, it is easier to navigate with much packed in.
Sitting perched above the bowls club and Coventry Oval below – home of the Diamond Creek FC – the facade resembles Alpine Ski Club, with a very neat front deck/rooftop to catch the rays and socialise.
Inside the front bar, exposed brick and bright blue carpet, is the main area to gather and watch the sports. Plenty of tables to park the quarter acre and relax.
(I don’t mind being greeted by.. “G’day love, couple of pots?”)
Through to a well spread out dining room, light and sunny, blue/gold colours for the fixtures and furnishings, an exposed kitchen bangs out good, solid pub grub at fair prices compared with its cousins in other locations.
Upstairs is home to functions and live entertainment. This is not a sprawling pub you would expect to find in the ‘burbs. Its compactness gives off a strong communal vibe, driven by switched on staff. (Tip: Good luck getting a car park at rear).
Trivia, DJs, Live Music, Drink Deals complete the package of a well run pub that strives to please.
Pokies: Yes
TAB: Yes
The Diamond Creek Hotel sticks to the road more travelled with its beer, (CD, Vic, Great North) with support from Stella, Guinness and Mountain Goat. Excellent pot of CD, delivered from the massive stainless steel tanks, was $6. In today’s market, that is fair shopping.
Wine list is small and interesting including Hardy’s, Grant Burge and Dalfarras varietals. $12pg was the average price. Sanguine Progeny Shiraz from Heathcote (15pg/60 btle) was the preferred. Most enjoyable.
The Diamond Creek Hotel has an expansive menu with some different items – ones you don’t expect to see on suburban/pokies menus – that warrant consideration. For starters, lamb spare ribs, (lemon, honey, balsamic, rosemary) are $19, tuscan chicken skewers, tuscan spices, tomato relish are $17. Still, cheesy garlic bread ($10) looked the favourite leaving the galley!
Mains of pork belly burgers (apple slaw, sriracha) are $25, seafood risotto $33, chicken parma, full whack is $28, sizzle plate of chilli lime prawns, wombok, capsicum, red onion, rice ($31) are a sample of an appealing selection of mains.
Liking the resurgence of sausages on pub menus. At the Diamond Creek Hotel, it’s a trio – pork/fennel, chicken/chive, lamb/rosemary, mash, caramelised onion, vegetables, gravy – at $27.
Two standout were tried:
- Fresh oysters. 6/$25, 12/$37. While you might think that all this is just putting oysters on a plate, two things struck me; how wonderfully briny they were and at $3/ea (when buying a dozen), how fair that price is in comparison. Tasmanian Pacific and delightful,
- Picanha steak skewers. 400g. $38. This was a good meal, and if desired, an easy share. Brazilian style, chargrilled, (lemon, paprika, cumin), this has a dense dark flavour but served medium rare. Black angus rump is used, chimichurri has heat, C&S fill the plate out.
Most mains will fall in a $25-33 range, (steaks higher) come fully plated but a real effort is made to do a menu that doesn’t join the dots.
Not for the first time in recent weeks, what strikes me about hospitality in pubs at the moment – is that nothing is too much trouble, and a willingness to serve and make the experience as good as can be.
Indeed a conversation with a staff member, Finn, was astonishing – who (to a total stranger – me) said she loved her job and loved working at the Diamond Creek.
And this was a common theme with other staff and as a result, a very good afternoon was enjoyed at the Diamond Creek.
Score: 14