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The Sydney suburb of Haberfield famously has no pubs.
When a man named Des Middleton tried to open one here in 1948, more than half of the suburb’s population (that was 4,238 residents, at the time) voted against it. Over the years, some Haberfield restaurateurs have even struggled to secure liquor licenses for their eateries. So, to this day, this little Inner Western suburb full of heritage homes is still without a pub. Despite the area’s Italian-ness, it doesn’t even have a wine bar.
We’d say it doesn’t need a pub when it has UTS Haberfield Rowers
The club house – located on the popular Bay Run, over the water at Iron Cove – has housed various restaurants over the years, but in May 2024, it was taken over by hospitality pro Con Dedes (of Flying Fish and Sala), who has rebranded the venue as Regatta Club. In a nod to what seems like Haberfield’s pub-free policy, the staff have the words ‘REGATTA PUB CLUB’ written on the back of their T-shirts. Cute.
This new venue has an easy, breezy, always-summery vibe, and it’s the perfect place for an afternoon or balmy-evening drink (and yes, the only place in this ’hood where you can have a drink without eating).
As you walk up the stairs, there’s a big hand-painted mural on the wall – drawings of rowing-club motifs; a nod to the venue’s reason for being – by artist Georgia Draws a House. The large, open-plan room is surrounded by glass doors that all open up to decks, which stretch along the front and both sides of the club. No matter where you sit, inside or out, you can see the sparkling water, boats gliding by, and people walking and running along the popular Bay Run track.
As mentioned, Haberfield has long been an Italian area, and if you really, really squint, you could start to imagine that you’re on the Italian Riviera. Bench tables – with alternating orange Aperol- and navy-blue Peroni-branded umbrellas – line the edge of the front deck. As well as Aperol Spritzes, there are other prosecco-led Spritzes on the menu (a Limoncello Spritz, a Hugo Spritz with St Germain, and Watermelon Spritz with gin and lilet). The rest of the drinks menu features mostly Australian wines and craft beers (and, of course, Peroni).
The food menu includes pizzas, vodka rigatoni and seafood spaghettoni, as well as all the pub, sorry, club classics (burgers, schnitties, a steak sandwich) and coastal venue additions (a seafood platter, and a lobster and prawn roll). The latter is my absolute favourite dish here. Deliciously fresh-tasting chopped prawns and lobster are mixed in with a creamy mayo-based dressing, lots of dill and lemon, as well as finely chopped celery and cucumber. The mixture is stuffed generously – along with butter lettuce – into a slightly toasted brioche roll, and it’s served with chips and a slice of pickle. It’s the perfect complement to a Limoncello Spritz on a breezy summer’s day.
My other top picks: the Mediterranean plate, which features three large skewers of perfectly grilled lamb souvlaki, haloumi, pita bread, tzatziki and Greek salad; and the cheese burger, which comes with a large beef patty, a fun chunk of thick-cut bacon, diced onions, a big gherkin slice, melted American cheese and burger sauce on a milk bun. Big call, but it may just qualify as one of the best burgers in Sydney. (Don’t @ me.)
Since Dedes took the place over, it’s always been full of vibe and people
There are multi-generational families, gals having catch-ups over Spritzes, couples enjoying sunset beers on the deck, sport lovers in the small sports bar, dog-owners treating their best mate to a ‘Doglato’ (yep, that’s a thing). One of the things I like most about the place: you feel lucky to be here, but there isn't that privileged vibe that comes with some other Sydney venues on the water.
On Sundays they do live music from 4 to 7pm, and they offer some daily specials – at the time of writing, they serve up $25 Scotch fillet Wednesdays, $25 schnitzel and drink Thursdays, and $15 Aperol Spritzes all day Fridays. If you did take up that offer and drink Aperols all day (that is not advised), you could head home via the light rail by walking up to the Leichhardt North stop.
So yeah, Haberfield still doesn’t have a pub, no. But it does have Regatta Club – and there definitely don’t seem to be any complaints from the locals.
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