With all the prohibition era styled pubs popping up around the city, The Blind Bear was long…read moreoverdue in the Shire.
I love how this place does drinks - there's four taps of rotating craft beer/cider, and once they're out they tap a new flavour. They ran out of 2 beers while we were there, and a new keg was quickly tapped each time. They have cardboard signs serving as labels - an easy way to keep the signage current - and at $8-9/pint, its a great way to try different beers without damaging your wallet.
For wine they only offer 1 red and 1 white each night, and those change daily. The cocktails are made with care, with a good selection of classics (martini, Manhattan) and some fruity modern conceptions as well.
Food was quite good, despite some of the portions being small. The cheesesteak for $16 could easily be consumed in a few bites. The pulled pork for $16 was delicious, served between two toasted pieces of delicious bread (not the "hoagie" I was expecting, but some of the best pulled pork I've had in Australia), and a better serve than the cheesesteak.
The sliders were, again, on the small side. At $4/each or 4 for $15, you'd need 4 to make a meal. I found the chicken sliders a bit bland, possibly being overpowered by the potatoes in the garlic mash. The beef sliders were much better, with a delicious pickle relish.
Of course, I had to grab the wings (6 for $9 or 12 for $16) which were one of the standouts for the night. A bit sweet at first, they pack a bit of a punch with a heat that builds.
The three chip options (chilli cheese fries, sweet potato wedges, and steak fries with chipotle mayo) were all pretty good.
Rumour (or rather, Facebook) has it that this place does $0.50 wings and $5 hot dogs on Wednesdays - definitely worth checking out.
Come early if you want a table - we managed to grab one of the last of them at 6 pm on a Saturday, and didn't see much turnover during our 3 hour stay.
