I was sent to The Junction for a business trip. My employers had booked me a room for a 2 night…read morestay at The Junction Hotel. My first reaction after hearing the arrangement they had made was "You've got to be kidding me! They booked a room for me at the top of a pub?" (thinking that The Junction Hotel would be another one of those filthy pubs with a bunch of drunkards). Colleagues who stayed at this hotel tried hard to convince me that The Junction Hotel is no ordinary pub - but I still had to see it to believe it (you wouldn't blame me for being cynical too if you saw most of the pubs within the area I live in). But to my surprise...it was a nice hotel! 1. My hotel room was clean. 2. Modern. 3. Complete with necessities (like most commercial hotels): * Towels and hand towels * Shampoo - conditioner - body wash gel * Complimentary bottles of mineral water (and chocolates!) inside the refrigerator * Hair dryer * Iron and ironing board * Lots of toilet paper and tissues (no need for the housekeeper to stack them up on a daily basis * Coat hangers 4. There is a bar and a nice restaurant right downstairs: there's no need to get out of the building just to get food and drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic). Their menu was great and has quiet a variety of things to choose from. The meal prices (depending on what you order) can be a bit costly. But the quality of the food served at the hotel are well worth it. You just need to taste it and refer to the food presentation! 5. The restaurant and bar staff would be willing to bring food and drinks to your room (although you will have to order by the bar downstairs due to the fact that there are no telephones inside the rooms). But hey...it's a few walks down the stairs and you're there. Unless you are ridiculously lazy... 6. Less expensive than other hotels (I forgot the exact price but it was definitely less than $150 per night). 7. Oh! Did I mention how super comfortable the bed was? I definitely wouldn't bother paying to stay at the Crown Plaza Hotel (not far away) when I could get myself a hotel room that is equally decent - and that cost less. The guests - mostly locals - were also nice. I felt that I was able to just randomly start conversations with strangers.

Great pub food. Really enjoyed my Cajun Barramundi . It was surprisingly moist. But the highlight…read morewas the wait staff. Attentive friendly but not intrusive to a sole diner here for business.

The thing about Hamilton is that there is a pub on both sides of the railway station, and both pubs…read moreare pretty cool. However, this one was actually much livelier than the other one, so I guess I would have to give it points for that. In fact listening to the banter going on between the bar staff was actually rather amusing, especially since they were dealing with an undersirable. The other thing was that they had some awesome beers on tap, and a great outdoor area as well. Yeah, this place was pretty cool.

A basic little pub that's right across the road from Hamilton train station. I went in late…read moreafternoon, as a place to have a cold drink while I waited for my train. Given the time of day, I saw the place at its most naked (though darkly lit) and it was showing signs of wear. I considered sitting at the suede/micro-fibre lounges, however they'd seen too many good times and were rubbed bare. The other seating was stool based. Though not particularly comfortable (I probably wouldn't go there for a chat), in my brief wait for the train, my stool was sufficient. It felt a bit dingy. The bathrooms were older style, but roomy and clean. Edit: I hear they have new furniture?

Disappointing. We ordered 4 burgers with our group. They were all burnt to a crisp. No taste and…read moredry as a bone. Should have sent them back but we didn't want to make a scene. There were very few parties in the place when we arrived and others who arrived after us got their meals first. It was almost as if they put the burgers on and just forgot. The chips were tasty. It is a huge pub with a nice bar.

In the Hunter Valley for a wedding with a buddy, we drive into downtown Cessnock for a pub feed…read more Typical country town. All the women are pregnant. Even the kids look pregnant. There are four pubs. Peden's looks like the one where we'll lose the least teeth. I'm wearing a singlet. It doesn't help. They know we're city folk. I may as well be wearing a tux. The bistro-style restaurant is an unexpected winner. My pork schnitty is rough-chopped with a home-made herb crumbing that blows my tiny city mind. It's served on a pizza tray with roast salted chat potatoes and a tidy little green salad with just the right amount of dressing. I'm a dressing Nazi -not too little, perish forbid too much -but they nailed it. They freaking nailed it man. My mate gets the lamb shanks on a bed of mash and red wine jus. Also a winner. Chimmichurri-style gremolata on top, decent lashings of. And the lamb is redonk. Tender. Falls off the bone like a nightie off a blonde. So much more than just a shitty schnitty and chips style joint, this food is really good, bordering on really, really good. We leave before being beaten up. It's the right call.

Most of the rooms are on the same level with a courtyard, we had ours looking towards the tennis…read morecourt. Unfortunately it rained heavily for 90% of the time we were here but the rooms were clean, staff were super friendly and the hotel was very nice. The library off reception has a log fire and there is a cozy comfort to the reception which I loved plus the smell of a log fire burning. They are also walking distance to the hunter valley village shops and gardens so easy to get to and really convenient too.

I go to breakfast meetings here on a regular basis. The facilities are good, and they serve a nice…read morebuffet breakfast. Service is always friendly.

Had a really good and relaxing stay here. Nice location and ample space for all guests. Highly…read morerecommended if you're looking for some quiet time.

We purchased a scoopon for a getaway. The value for money was good . The room needs a major upgrade…read more. The grounds were amazing with fantastic wildlife to view. The pool needs some TLC as it was very green and the poolside area isn't very inviting at all. One of the staff members was rude to us upon asking a question . Location is great and very central . A walk to Roche estate and Hunter valley gardens . We were out most of the time but it wouldn't be first on my list to visit .

$12 lunch deals. Good find! Presented well and tasted good…read more I'll come back. Loved the outside seating and relaxed atmosphere.

This pub wasn't all that bad, particularly since it had a huge beer garden out the back. In fact,…read moreit was the beer garden that really grabbed my attention with regards to this place. Not only was it quite large, but it was also rather pleasant. Well, they didn't have a great range of beers, which was a little disappointing, but as a pub, it really wasn't all that bad.

Some of the most beautiful views in the Hunter Valley and the owner Ray couldn't have been more…read morehospitable. He came out and guided us with a torch when we called him saying we were a bit lost at a crossroad. He showed us around our room personally to make sure we felt right at home before settling in for the night. The breakfast basket we received had varieties of cereal, some fruit, different bread options for toast as well as jams, peanut butter, coffee and tea. There was a small kitchenette where we were able to prepare and store food that we brought from home. Ray even placed several bottles of his own wine in the room for us to consume. At $20 a pop they were cheaper than most of the other vineyards we visited and the Shiraz was beautiful. Was bummed he didn't have any non-chardonnay whites though. The sofa bed was surprisingly comfortable. It didn't dip in the middle and you couldn't feel the springs- two things I normally hate about sofa beds. The bathroom was huge and the spa bath could have fit all 3 of us. Even the bathtub had a beautiful view overlooking the vineyards if you opened the blinds. Only downfall in the room? The three of us could not stop sneezing the entire time. It didn't seem dirty or dusty but something in there was making our noses crazy. The floors didn't seem SUPER clean when walking on them with bare feet but it wasn't bad enough to complain about. There was a pool too which was part of the appeal when deciding where to book for our girls weekend getaway. We never even saw it though. We were out on a wine tour all day Saturday and the weather turned a bit sour on Sunday so instead of sunbathing we stuck to our balcony, ate cheese, crackers, dips, drank three bottles of wine and contemplated the meaning of song lyrics on my Mumford and Sons Pandora station. When you have all that, who needs a pool anyway? Our holiday weekend rates ran us about $300 per night. Not the cheapest but not the most expensive either and for what we got (and our view) we felt it was more than fair. Highly recommend this place and would definitely visit again next time I'm in the Hunter.