Riverview Hotel, Balmain

The Riverview Hotel is one of the most popular pubs in Balmain and an age old institution in itself. The pub first opened in over 135 years ago in 1880 and has had a long and colourful history since, to this day it’s still a very popular destination with the locals and serves up some delicious food.

Mushroom Polenta Chips w/ Gorgonzola 
Spiced Squid w/ Harissa Aioli
Jamon Croquettas w/ Aioli & Lemon

I always love pub eats and the tapas sized entree choices at Riverview Hotel certainly don’t disappoint. The mushroom polenta and spiced squid were delicious bites to start the meal but the jamon croquettas were actually my favourite dish from the whole meal, they’re very creamy and flavourful.

I’d been craving a nice big juicy steak for a while now so the moment I saw this on the menu I couldn’t help but order it for myself. The steak itself was a nice cut of meat but the handcut chips actually stole the show, they tasted great and they’re also insanely crispy.

Since we hadn’t exactly been eating healthy for most of our meals this week, we decided to go with something a little lighter to go with all our heavier dishes. The lamb salad actually turned out to quite delicious with a mixture of refreshing greens and flavourful strips of lamb.

Unfortunately I was driving but the bar has a great selection of drinks including the usual beers on tap, wines and cocktails to pick from. I did sneak in a sip of the Tom Collins cocktail which was quite refreshing.

Although we arrived relatively early in the evening, the bar was already filled to the brim with a load of people. Even though the pub is small, it’s well presented and is quite welcoming. With such good food and a nice venue to match, it’s not hard to see why it’s a very popular venue.

The Food Diary dined as guests of Riverview Hotel & CPM Online Marketing.
All views and opinions expressed in this post are our own.