Forresters Hotel

This place is aces! However if you’re a vegetarian the menu is pretty terrible — just sayin’. There wasn’t even the de rigueur haloumi burger option! I had a tofu hotdog with a sprinkling of cheese and it was enormous but also cost me $ 18.
Now that I have that off my chest, the positives (and there are a lot of positives)! The space is awesome: an old-​school corner pub with lots of rooms and stairs and wood finish, it makes you feel like you’re clomping around a mate’s house. There’s a cute beer garden to the side, and out front a bench runs along the length of the pub so that patrons can perch there and shamelessly eye up passerby. The bar staff are unhurried (in the best take-​your-​time kinda way; not the I’m-over-here-talking-to-my-mate kinda way) and the guy who served us offered up good suggestions re. food choices (at his recommendation my friend had the Korean chicken burger and really enjoyed it) and booze (he suggested the $ 10 jug special since pints were $ 9.50 anyhow). The vibe was relaxed and everyone was in high spirits. We’re keen to check out Queenie’s, the Caribbean restaurant upstairs, so will definitely be back!

Really really awesome place. Came here with mates after work on a Thursday $ 10 jugs you can’t go wrong! $ 12 burgers were amazing, classic American diner style. Very impressed will totally come back!

This place has great meal and drink specials AND free popcorn with seasoning on it. I was here on Monday when the special is $ 5 steak. I didn’t actually have one, but almost everyone else in my group had one — some more than one — and everyone liked them. It’s a great happy hour place: a busy enough place but not too busy. You can’t beat a $ 10 jug in Sydney. I would definitely come back.

I went here for lunch with a large group of people. Apparently it gets packed during the evenings, but lunchtime was not too bad. It was drizzling that day and one of the areas had a bit of a leaky roof and smelled strongly of fertilizer, so we had to move to another area.
I ordered the chicken schnitzel with gravy. The schnitzel was OK, a bit dry, but the gravy was bad. :(It was watery and bland. We had the salt and pepper squid to share, and that was quite tasty. Food arrived quite quickly, which was awesome.
Food was just okay, but I wouldn’t mind coming back here as it seems like a fun place to hang out.

Trendy casual Surry Hills Pub with great meal specials.
We were a group of 6 on Schnitty Trivia night and 5 of us had schnitty’s — mexican, German, parmigiana.
$ 12 each, a little light on the toppings but a good deal.
Very relaxed vibe and friendly & easy going service.
I want to go back to sample more of the menu, a lot of American style options — burgers, wings, mac & cheese etc.

This used to be the place to go for the most fabulous happy hour in five Dollar steak. Now it’s just close!

Stopped in for a cider, was going to get a $ 10 margaritas but it wasn’t 6pm yet and they’re happy hour only starts at 6pm. It’s $ 16 normally.

The space is amazeballs.
I love that they have a wee outside area where you can sit and enjoy some food. Except we went in the middle of winter so it was too cold to do so.
We huddled inside just before the huge lunch rush. I’m kind of glad we got in early, the place packs out fast. Must be the cheap lunch deals.
If you don’t mind not hearing yourself think over the level of the music then this is the place for you. It’s not that I hated what they were playing, I hated that I had to yell at my lunch companions over the music to be heard.
The food came out and was interesting. I see what they were trying to achieve, however being that I love my American, this kinda left me wanting to jump on a plane and fly over there for some decent foods.
The burger I got was ok, the chips, possibly all 20 of them were crunchy on the outside. Some friends got sliders and pizza. They said it was ok, not the best they’ve had either.
Atmosphere got a tick, pub drink prices. uh ouch man! I didn’t even have a beer… food is sorta ok. Might have to try other dishes before I decide if it’s worth it.

LOVE this place. It has a very relaxed and open feel to it. There is indoor seating, a partly outdoor patio, and even upstairs areas to sit. The beverage and food options are both great and the hippie ambiance is great for hanging out.

Forresters sucked today. Menu is average, they got our order wrong, they’re disorganized and vague about the food, the twat behind the bar kept calling me darling, no American soda’s like they have at Norfolk… not up to scratch. Not terrible, just not great.

The Forresters is a local neighborhood hangout with a lively patio, a fun crowd, and great food. The cheeseburger is amongst the most popular items and features cheddar, pickles, onion rings, mustard, mayo, and a sesame bun. The burger is tender, flavorful, and has a good mouthwatering effect. A grilled bun, melted cheese, and the fried onion rings are the stand out ingredients. The beef is a bit dry but not enough to take much away from the burger. A side of quite tasty parmesan fries is also included with the burger. While it’s not the best in Sydney; the Forresters fun atmosphere and solid burger make it worth a visit.

Food only review: EFFING AMAZING. Pub food just cannot get any better than this, and we weren’t even drinking. Wanted to get in on some incredible deals, which were all over the place, but we were too early for the $ 10 schnitzels which started at 6. So me and my fellow fogey got ourselves an early bird dinner with the gigantic share platter of bbq pork, chips, Korean salad and dinner rolls. The platter was $ 30 but well worth it, and I walked away thinking we got a better deal than $ 10 schnitzel even…
The pork: falls off the bone, bbq sauce not my ideal flavor profile but still really yummy and sweet enough to go with everything else on the plate it slipped onto. The meat itself was tender, barely any fat, clearly cooked lovingly by a pro all day long The Korean salad was the surprise on the plate for me… cabbage, bean sprouts, pineapple, and some raspberry-​eque vinaigrette that shouldn’t have tasted right on it all but really went perfectly. The dinner rolls were crispy on the outside and opened with a puff of steam, really soft and ready for butter on the inside. The crinkle cut chips were good with the extra pork bbq sauce, or with some of the sidebar of sauces in bottles nearby, including sweet chili sauce, among others. By the end of it I was so stuffed, I pretty much had to be rolled down Riley Street to get home.
I will definitely be back, for drinks, for trivia, for $ 10 schnitzel, for other deals, possibly even to stuff my face with the exact same magnificent platter all over again.

DO YOU MISS AMERICA? Sometimes I do. Forresters, it seems — feels the same way. They’ve taken American diner food (aka Dude Food) dedicated their entire menu to the stuff. Tacos, sliders, pulled pork, BBQ, fries, fries with cheese, Hawaiian corn, burgers, grits, southern salad. Basically, it means that when the Surry Hills kids travel to the American south, and sit down in a diner, they won’t bat an eyelid when checking out the menu.
This sprawling, lovely pub has really done well with its new (ish) fit-​out. There’s a front veranda, a beer-​garden, rooms with booths, function spaces, … it’s a nouveau Americana hipster den, and the punters love it. I mean, they love it so much it can be hard to get to the bar.
I should really *love* this place, but I’ve had a few run-​ins with it recently that haven’t been so grand.
Firstly — and this is more of a licencing thing, not a Forresters thing — there are rules about sitting on the veranda. You can only drink out there if you have ordered a main meal. Apparently tacos do not maketh a main meal. So even if you’re eating a big plate of tacos, if you’re drinking a beer with it, you’re in contravention of the liquor licence, or so says the bouncer. Gah.
Second time I came here, it was so crowded that I was pulled under by the crowd, mosh-​pit style. Everyone was very nice about helping me up, but really … it’s just a pub, not a music festival. Why all the fuss? After being squished onto the ground by lots of large tall people, the bouncers assumed I was drunk (actually we had just arrived, I was sober), but they were very happy to see us leave. Gah x 2.
The third time I came here we got stuck into the food. Sliders, tacos, chilli chips, popcorn squid, pizza. The table groaned under the weight of the calories piled upon it. The popcorn squid was excellent. Everything else, though, was rather bland. We had to go on a hunt for tabasco sauce to liven things up. The sliders were dry and needed sauce, and the fish tacos had little flavour.
Nonetheless, I’m sure I will be back — the beer garden is gorgeous, and there is plenty more on the menu to try out.

It seems like every time I step foot into a Miller and Wirth pub, «It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas» begins playing. You know what to expect when Christmas is around the corner: faux pine trees, candy canes, coal and sleigh bells. Well, if you’ve been to the Norfolk, Carrington and Abercrombie, you can bet your santa hat you’ve got a good idea of what’s in store: chalkboards with bubble letters, black and white family pictures from the late 1700s, an out of place type of food offering, and hipstaaasss. Hey girl, hey!
Now I love the Norfolk, and that’s mainly for it’s courtyard, which is airy and full of foliage. Forresters has the same sex appeal that the Norfolk does, but unfortunately it lacks this outside escape. There’s an «outside room» which is basically an outdoor/​indoor smokers chamber that would never apologize for blowing out smoke rings into the rest of the restaurant. We were sitting in the main room off from the hash den and couldn’t help but smell smoke in waves …
Either way, the cliché kitsch of the Forresters makes for a good time with friends. They also have good specials one during the week, my personal favorite of which is $ 10 cider jugs on Thursday! A pitcher purchase also gets ya a spin on the old prize wheel, which kindly dealt me a free cider jug!
I’m yet to try the food — not sure if I will considering it’s a bit pricey for evening time — but I’ve heard through the grapevine that their $ 10 lunches are rockin!
Everyone loves Christmas.
Everyone loves the Forresters.

Love the menu at Forresters — really good southern style chicken salad, pulled pork sandwich and reuben. It’s a good lunch option in Surry Hills (perhaps not the healthiest though). They have a $ 10 menu and pizzas as well. I would say typically quick service, but did have one incident where we waited over an hour for lunch. They have an outdoor beer garden that was recently renovated. It closes at 11 pm on the weekends because of the noise, but you can carry on at the indoor bar. Good for groups!

Went to this place when it first opened and my gosh these guys clearly know what they are doing.
This is the newest additional to a fast growing group which have a collection of inner city bars that are beginning to take over Surry hills/​Chippendale.
With the focus here a little more on the food (Italian styling’ to be exact) You can find your share plate options here something like; meatballs, risotto balls and calamari and then mains focus on pizza, pasta and rotisserie! Interesting menu– seems small but solid, food was way above average for pub grub.
As is to be expected, the space is already super busy on a Saturday night which doesn’t make it a great option if you want to actually hear your friends.
So do what we did– grab some wine, a pizza and a stool then scoff it all down and continue the party in surry hills!

You’ve been to the Flinders, you’ve been to the Carrington, you’ve been to the Norfolk, you’ve been to the Abercrombie, but, have you been to The Forresters?
The Forresters is the latest offering in a list of refurbed pubs by those good people, James Miller and Jamie Wirth. By now, these guys have the formula down pat.
The Forresters has been lovingly restored and transformed into an old school Italian style joint. The ground floor pub, is divided into sections, which each section themed slightly different to the last. But, it somehow works and creates a warm, welcoming, homely mood. You can’t help but feel like you’re in the company of old friends here and I think that’s exactly the point. This is a place you come to relax and have a good time.
Ms R, Mr L and I chose to dine at the ‘Sit Down Dinners’ restaurant upstairs on this Wednesday evening, and we are not disappointed. We are looked after by an American dude, with thick rimmed glasses and retro style, who is knowledgeable, cheeky, full of suggestions, but not at all pushy. We like him instantly.
The menu is Italian, focussing on salads, rotisserie meats, pizzas and pastas. I can’t help but notice the Pay Day Pizza on the menu, at $ 50, with Lobster, Truffle & Truffle Salami. Now, that’s a pizza! The same menu is available throughout the pub.
We love the ‘Feed Me’ chefs choice banquet menu, available to groups of 4 or more at $ 40 per person, in the Sit Down Dinners restaurant, and the $ 10 lunches Monday — Friday. Now that’s good value.
After some input from our new friend, we create our own banquet menu.
Cut & Fry Calamari
Pea & Fetta Salad with Beans, Mint & Pancetta
Rotisserie — today’s selection is beef
Ham, Mushroom & Pecorino Pizza
Bucatini Vongole with Flat Head, Diamond Clams, Mussels & Prawns
The dishes are excellent, with the standouts being the Calamari and the Bucatini Vongole. We wash it all down with a recommended bottle of 2005 Tinja Sangiovese Merlot Barbera from Mudgee. A worthwhile recommendation indeed.
The Forresters is great for groups. It’s a relaxed, casual vibe, with great service, great drinks and great food and best of all, all at great prices. We love The Forresters and we can see why everyone else does too.

We ventured up to the Forresters Hotel on the corner of Foveaux Street and Riley for a pub lunch. Finding a table in the courtyard under the warm and gentle sun, we each, in turn, approached the bar to order food.
Apparently the joint is owned by some ex Rugby League players and they’ve done quite a good job with it, it’s a relaxed and comfortable pub with good food and reasonably priced beverages and manages to avoid the pretence that a lot of modern pubs seem to carry about.
Though I will say this, we went to the Forresters because of their cheap chicken/​steak and chips, but upon closer inspection the deal was not so fantastic. Yes the food is good, but what they do there, and this may only apply to the lunch special, but if you want to get a sauce on your steak or chicken it’s an extra dollar, and if you want to get salad with it as well, it’s even more.
A crafty little device that is indeed.
I also came here once to go the Australian Writers Guild Christmas Party which was a fun event, even if it did take some warming up to get into it, (read: drinking wine). Writers aren’t necessarily always the most social and outgoing people and so the first half of the night, when all are sober, is spent awkwardly talking about each others work and being political about the response you give them. The next part, when a little inebriated, involves talking about organising writing groups and reading each others manuscripts to give feedback and to catch up for coffees to discuss ideas.
The final part of the night, which extends to the end of time, is the part where you don’t follow up on anything you talked about, but rather return to your sober hovel to complete your magnum opus, which in three years time you’ll look back on and say, ‘That’s rubbish, my new magnum opus will be much better.’

I’m all for barebones pubs with a little bit of local flare. Forresters Hotel is located deep in the heart of Surry Hills. If you tend to frequent the busy brothel across the street (no judgement, I swear!), you’ll know exactly where it is, right on the corner of Riley and Foveaux.
Stop in on a Wednesday and take part in the quiz night (starts at 7:30). It’s one of the best in town. Gotta love those multimedia clues! If you get in early enough, you can even grab yourself a $ 10 steak, which is far from skimpy. Forresters does meal deals all through the week and drink specials as well. During the cold winter months they did an awesome mulled wine that came served in a tin mug (think Grandma’s house).
Another thing I just absolutely adore about Forresters is its side /​front beer garden, labeled «The Hills.» It’s colorful and decorated with bric-​à-​brac, which seems to be the Surry Hills «thing.» Another good feature about this place is although it’s cool and it knows it, Forresters doesn’t have that pretentious feeling one gets up closer to Crown. Hope it will stay that way for a while because it’s refreshing.

I quite like Forresters, despite the fact that it’s a little on the pricey side. The reason is primarily because of their awesome beer garden. I love it! It’s adorable.
There’s also a pretty lovely bistro on the ground floor, where you can find anything from chicken parmigiana to a seafood platter.
There are private function rooms on the first and second floors, that you can book if you want to have a party or any kind of function that is separate from the general public.
The service and waitstaff are awesome, even if they do take a little time to get your order ready.