Before October, I’d never walked into a pub. I’m the biggest homebody, and there are few things I dislike more than big crowds and loud music. I’d been to bars – well, restaurants with bars – but never a pub. Come October, though, K wanted pub food for lunch after reading about The Rose Hotel in Chippendale, so off we went. The food section is situated behind the bar in a courtyard bathed in sunlight.
Their menu offers a wide variety of standard pub food – chicken pharmigarnia, pizzas however you like, salads, burgers, and lasagna to name a few. I initially go for the fish and chips, but they’ve run out, so the veggie burger ($12.00 for lunch, $17.00 otherwise) it is!
I usually ignore the vegetarian options on menus out of habit – I love my meats and eat vegetables out of obligation to my body rather than enjoyment. Not this time, though, ‘cuz I love corn, and the veggie burger had ‘corn and broad bean fritters, haloumi, mixed leaves, tomato, coriander, topped with spicy tomato relish’.
I expected a fritter with whole corn kernels/broad beans rather than a mashed one. Surprisingly, though, my disappointment was short lived as the ‘patty’ tasted like a croquette – crunchy on the outside with soft innards – I love croquettes. The tomato salsa added just the slightest tasty kick, while the mixed leaves added crunchy freshness and the haloumi’s thick texture was a delicious substitute for meat. The coriander, which usually has a distinct flavour, was absent.
The Rose Hotel is located at 52-54 Cleveland St, Chippendale NSW 2008.