Is there anything more Newcastle than a former Silverchair bass player opening a beer hall in an industrial area? That's precisely what Chris Joannou has done, in tandem with barista and café owner Chris Johnston and designer Tim Leveson to convert Joannou's parents’ old drive-in laundromat into a big, friendly, bar-restaurant-café. It’s an airy, laid-back, concrete-floored place filled with round and square tables, black steel chairs and chuffed Novocastrians. Evidence of the venue’s former function can be seen in the light fittings – they’re cylindrical drums salvaged from industrial dryers – and the beer taps, fashioned from an old laundry press. It's no mean feat to get such a rustic and authentic aesthetic given that the whole venue was gutted by a fire back in 2018, then painstakingly recreated for the relaunch.
Those laundry taps dispense a changing roster of beers from around New South Wales including but certainly not limited to local Newy drops of Grainfed Summer Ales and Grifter sours. The cocktail section of the bar whips up rhubarb infused Spritz and spicy Margaritas with enough kick to knock back any winter chills. The wine list of course favours organic drops from the nearby Hunter region. Food is hearty, wood fired and smoked: the charsui pork is a particular standout that is nearly outshined by the charred cabbage that comes by its side. The salt and vinegar brussel sprouts with pickled grapes is a showstopper and you would be doing yourself a disservice to skip.
If you're bringing a posse then go for the 'Baller Feast' menu which features a whole shoulder of Szechuan lamb with sesame, chilli back bean, and sebago hash. If you stop by for brekky you can pair your eggs and toast with the likes of bacon, mince, black pudding, creamed corn and wood-smoked rainbow trout.
The venue’s large drive-though area is used for chilled out Sunday sessions as well as live music and DJs on the weekend if you're not keen on a full sit down meal. And the name? It’s in homage to 19th century English anthropologist Sir Edward Burnett-Tylor, who pioneered ideas about cultural evolution. It makes sense, seeing as the Edwards (aka the Eddie) has been at the forefront of Newcastle’s evolution into a fun, liveable, progressive city.