The Carlisle Castle Hotel

The Carlisle Castle Hotel Newtown – A 150-Year-Old Pub Reborn

Tucked down Albermarle Street away from the King Street crush, The Carlisle Castle Hotel has been pouring beers since 1876, and the team behind Redfern's beloved Bat and Ball has just handed it a loving once-over rather than a full makeover. The original Italian marble bar, imported in the 1920s, has been polished up and topped with a new solid timber bar top, while fresh Axminster carpet, vintage art and a hand-painted Carlton Draught mirror sit alongside the old phone booth turned photobooth and the two pool tables punters were worried might disappear. Out back, the dog-friendly courtyard and smoking area have had a refresh too, and the gold lion on the roof still keeps watch from the parapet.

Executive chef Cameron Votano leans into old English pub cooking without pretending the Carlisle is anything other than a neighbourhood local. Expect a pretzel and herb crumbed schnitzel with mustard gravy, a steak and Guinness pie loaded with slow-braised beef and vintage cheddar, and starters like a blood sausage Scotch egg with date sauce and pig's head toast with fried bread and burnt apple mustard. Dessert comes by way of a banana split built from banana parfait, chocolate fondant, caramel and cremieux, which is doing a lot more work than the name suggests.

On the drinks side, Guinness sits on tap next to Sydney locals Grifter, Young Henrys and Philter, with an Australian-leaning wine list and a signature Carlisle Coffee that splits the difference between an Irish coffee and an Espresso Martini. The pub keeps its old bones intact with a full run of weekly specials: $20 schnitzels and trivia on Monday, $20 steaks Tuesday, $20 parmis Wednesday, $10 cheeseburgers and live jazz Thursday, $1 wings Friday, $1 oysters Saturday and a Sunday roast to close the week. Still pokie-free, still community-first, The Carlisle Castle Hotel is proof a proper pub reno doesn't have to erase what made the place worth saving.