Pub Of The Week: Tony Leonard reviews the Half Moon Hotel, Brighton

Half Moon Hotel

120 Church Street, Brighton.
9591 0611

When? May 12, 2023.
www.halfmoon.com.au

VENUE 

As suburbs go, Brighton is well served for pubs and such is the competition given its affluence, all operators must step up to the mark to win the fight for your leisure dollar.

The Half Moon seems to be at the forefront of much pub discussions here and it is easy to see why.

The pub looks great from the outside with the white washed brick facade a feature, while the new-ish front bar (to the right on entering) is replete with smart timber furnishings. The dining room has a beach look to it, complete with a giant tree providing a stack of shade and a backdrop of sandblasted brick wall.

A quieter second dining room, library in look, does the higher end food with a punchy compact beer garden to the rear.

The Half Moon is part of the Morris Group, whose credits include O’Connells and the Railway Club, in South and Port Melbourne respectively, and they know how to run pubs. Little touches like cloth napkins and heavier, better level cutlery are a given with an attention to service obvious from the get-go.

Best of all, it has a pub heart. Steak day, $25, offers up Cape Grim Porter, 250g, all plated on Wednesdays,  Happy hour, M-F, 4-6pm, does Carlton pots for a fiver, and yes a bit of Brighton with an oyster and Champagne special!

No pokies, no TAB, but footy always on the screens in the public bar.

Very, very solid pub citizen is the Half Moon.

FOOD/DRINK

Two menus – Bar/Dining are offered with the difference being what’s available on either to order. For instance, Sausage Rolls (Beef, Pork, Gruyère) @$15 or Braised  Pork/Veal meatballs, Herb Ricotta, Focaccia @21 only appear on the bar menu, along with Cheeseburger (24)  and Steak sandwich (29).

Dining room ramps it up with Steak Tartare , $25, or Kingfish Crudo (25) as a sample of its entrees, with Barramundi w/buttered asparagus, pickled fennel, @$35, or Pork Belly, pear purée , bok choy, radish, for $39.

The glue between the menus is a fabulous Sunday Roast, $30, but all the trimmings done properly. (Read as no shortcuts from frozen packets, masquerading as typical, fair dinkum roast vegetables).

Carlton Draught, Melbourne Bitter, share the spotlight at the taps with the fine work from the Colonial Brewing Co., Balter, Mountain Goat. Zero alcohol beer is provided by Peroni and Heaps Normal. The CD was very good, the tip always is how good the glass looks after drinking. It did.

Massive wine list completes the deal from well known and popular producers such as DeBortoli, Shaw/Smith, Heggies. Two excellent wines pg were tried; Singlefile Riesling, and Balnaves Cab Sav, both priced at $12.

The average meal prices (dining) are;

• Entrees – $24
• Mains – $35 (excl steaks, priced higher)
• Desserts – $16

Tried was…

• Octopus carpaccio, Lemon  oil, shallots, radish. $24. Pretty as a picture when arriving, the octopus and radish are arranged as a small discs on each other, the lemon oil worked together with them so well.
• Fish of the Day. $42. Swordfish, apple fennel slaw. Excellent fish, generously served,  with the slaw a fine partner to the fish. My preference is for fully plated so it needed some potato to top it off, but nonetheless a very good fish dish.
• Roast of the day. Chicken $30. What a beauty. Roast breast and thigh arrive as 2 pieces, skin crisp. Moist, juicy, cooked to perfection. A pot of Roast Potatoes sits along Cauliflower and Cheese. Honey carrots, Roasted Swede/Turnip, Yorkshire Pudding with a pot of Chicken Gravy. Even writing it again brings a smile.

SUMMARY 

The Half Moon is a true stayer on the Bayside pub scene. When eating Sundays, the give up for any popular pub is how many couples/families are having lunch and the pub was full in all areas.

This is a best of both worlds pub. Whether it is the bar or the dining rooms, you are never in any doubt you’re in a pub and more testament to its success, was the accommodating staff, from a warm welcome, to pouring of the drinks to the care of the overall experience.

(Message to the young man in the dining room: love your passion but don’t give yourself an anxiety attack worrying about everything).

Return visit for sure: Half Moon, Church Street, Brighton.

Score: 15/20