After closing for a revamp at the end of 2017 the Prince Alfred Hotel opened again in April 2018. It was bought by 100 Burgers Group (Welcome to Thorbury, Belle’s Hot Chicken and Mr Burger), which has made it a place for students to miss lectures in.
The exterior of the 100-year old Grattan Street pub was left virtually untouched, but inside the walls were stripped, staircases moved and a lift installed.
Architecture firm Hot Black splashed around some metal joinery, floral wallpaper and pink surfaces. A rooftop garden has been installed, as has a shipping container for pop-up kitchens.
The menu includes za’atar-crusted tuna with house-pickled vegetables, green beans and 63-degree egg; lamb rump with roasted fennel and onion on pumpkin purée; and fried banana bread with berries, caramel sauce and milk ice-cream. On Sundays there’s all-you-can-eat pancakes.
The venue also has 60 taps serving nine different beers – McCracken’s Amber Ale, Goose Island IPA, and unpasteurised Carlton Draught among them.
Still, you’d be wrong to see Prince Alfred as your standard student boozer, with sticky floors and $1 Jager shots. It’s egalitarian and welcoming to all.
