While a lot of our foodies and local readers will know Carl Wise from his Social Media posts and food blog, Yippie Pie Yay, he still goes about his business quietly cooking at the Homestead Hotel, in Elizabeth Street. Pub crawl? He was in our sights.
Homestead Bar and Sailor Jerry
“I’d been a couple of times before to the Homestead for the music, the food had escaped me. And what a treat I’d missed.”
I was interested to see his cooking first hand. And though I’d been a couple of times before to the Homestead for the music, the food had escaped me. And what a treat I’d missed. Being a group of 6, we ordered a
selection, and the only fall down of the night was the ‘popcorn chicken’, which didn’t have the usual crispy crumb/panko coating, just a dredge of flour, which wasn’t bad, but we’ve had better.
Calamari
The rest, though, was incredible value for money, and while the décor leaves so much to be desired it’s laughable, Homestead is definitely worth a trip for the food alone, and the occasional bit of good music. It’s grungy, but not in a nice way. And when a colleague told me the building is owned by accountants? Ha! Explains everything.
“There’s a huge choice of sides, from $1 to $3, kids’ burgers at $12 and some good vegetarian options as
well.”
Croquettes and Pork belly
All I can say, to those bean counters, is clean up the place, spend a little on the interior, and it might just match the food that Carl and his hard working little team pump out. So what did we have?
Pulled pork Croquettes with crispy pork belly $14; Chilli crumbed calamari with slaw, $14; House Gravlax, smoked salmon pate with a horseradish cream, $17; Bowl of hand cut chips, $8; Popcorn chicken, sriracha and salsa, $12; and the Beef Bacon and Cheese burger, $14.
There’s a huge choice of sides, from $1 to $3, kids’ burgers at $12 and some good
vegetarian options as well. The food was terrific. No complaints except for the aforementioned chicken. The service? Quick and friendly, and we washed it all down with a jug of beer to start, then a couple of bottles of great wine in the $40 price bracket.
Tassie Wine
There’s a surprisingly good selection of wine as well. And then the band started up. And they were shit. In our view anyway, but I guess that’s horses for courses, isn’t it?
“Carl, here’s to you, and the really good food you put out and I hope those accountants are listening.”
Cured Salmon
After having eaten and paid, I poked my head in to finally meet Carl, and compliment him on his food. He was shy and unassuming, so Carl, here’s to you, and the really good food you put out and I hope those accountants are listening.
The ceiling is exposed insulation padding that’s clumsily coated over with a very thin layer of black paint. Doesn’t work. The furniture probably came from op shops, and needs to go back. I don’t mind shabby chic, but this is downright shabby, and doesn’t do Carl or his food justice.
But as a local pub with music, good cheap food, and a very relaxed atmosphere, it’s still worth a visit, even now. I just pray that sometime soon, it’ll be a pleasant place to walk into.
Any of my readers agree? The building’s old, so probably waiting for demolition or development, but while Carl reigns in his kitchen, go and have a burger at least. Best value in town.
Chrissie 🙂
