Customs House Waterfront Hotel

Two nights in Hobart staying in the hotel. Evening meal was very nice and the breakfast each morning was great as well.

Nice location for a quick lunch, I had the fish basket the fish was a little too fishy tasting for my taste, my husband had the pork belly and a glass of wine and he enjoyed it!

Walked from our apartment after flying in from Melbourne, the doorman suggested this place to eat, ‘4 blocks down and one block over’. Lovely to walk inside and sit next to a lovely fire. Dips and toasted Turkish bread to share for starters, followed by lamb shanks for myself and Fishermans basket for Keith. Lamb deliciously tender with baked vegetables and a tomato based sauce. Fishermans basket pieces cooked in light golden batter with the right balance of seafood and vegetables. The service, setting and meal couldn’t be better. Worth a return visit.

I’ll start with the hotel since I stayed here for a weekend. You really can’t beat the location, being a few hundred metres from Salamanca Place (which is the main activity hub for Hobart) and the ferry for MONA is right across the street. But it seems like, because the hotel has such a prime location, it hasn’t bothered upgrading the facility itself — upgrades that the hotel really needs. The carpet in the hallways is peeling off, the carpet inside our room was stained with some unknown substance, the furnishings in the room are old and falling apart, and the bed was so uncomfortable that I thought seriously about sleeping on the floor as it probably would have been more comfortable. The hallways are a bit of a maze as you have to go up and down several steps to reach many of the rooms, so if you’re carrying a heavy suitcase or you have mobility issues, this could be a problem. Finally, the noise from the bar carries up the stairs and through the windows so if you’re on the street side or a lower floor, you might want to bring ear plugs.
Now for the restaurant. I’d heard that the wallaby fillet was the star attraction so I decided to order that for dinner on my first night in Hobart. Having never had wallaby before, I have no basis of comparison, but on its own it was really fantastic. It’s a much more tender meat than kangaroo and doesn’t need to be cooked as rare as roo (which is why it’s a bit of a turn off for me). The flavour is also really subtle and not gamey at all. My partner had the steak and it was pretty tasty as well. I had mussels for an entrée and they were quite nice, although the portion is a bit small if you’re sharing.
Breakfast was included with the price of a room so I figured if the dinner was so good, the breakfast should probably be pretty decent as well, right? Wrong. The eggs Benedict I had was cold and the eggs were overcooked, the ham tasted old, and the service, which for dinner was friendly and courteous, was cold and unhelpful for breakfast.
Overall, it was a pretty below-​average experience. The next time I’m in Hobart, I’ll pop into the Customs House for a wallaby fillet but I’ll stay somewhere else.

On my last night in Hobart, we ventured out for dinner. After researching online, we decided on the Customs House Hotel. It is one of the oldest Hobart Hotels which still offers beer, food and accommodation.
They had a lot to choose from, even the entrees looked tasty. The restaurant had such a neat layout, we walked by the hotel check-​in area, past a pub/​bar part, and into the restaurant. The walls looked so old, it fits Hobart’s age and mystery.
I ordered the Marinated Wallaby Fillet ($ 29.50), which apparently is one of their hits. It came with roasted vegetables, mushrooms, and potatoes. The steak was topped with onion jam. It was so juicy and tasty, complimented so well with the veggies and a glass of Pinot Noir ($ 9). I was in between the seafood chowder, thai fish cakes, and a few other choices. But I was glad that I ordered the wallaby. My partner had the seafood basket ($ 29.50) and a bottle of Cascade Stout ($ 7). By the end of our meal, I was so full but wished I had room to try a dessert.
If you plan on coming here, just check out their menu, some items are available and are cheaper during lunchtime, for dinner the price just goes up.
On another note, all of the waiters were friendly. They checked up on us, and everything came out in a perfect timely matter. It was a lovely dinner spot, and a perfect way to conclude my trip to Hobart.

Dinner here was quite delish. There were six of us and I tried a little of everyone’s food and was pretty impressed. I ordered the seafood basket which included: crumbed scallops, calamari, prawns, beer battered fish, fries & a garden salad. Pretty big entrée (oh sorry, in australia they are called mains) and i had some trouble finishing it all and i’m usually good about finishing everything. A friend had the wallaby (w/​smashed potatoes, roasted Huon Valley mushrooms & vegetables topped with onion jam) and that was my absolute favorite. The meat was cooked so perfectly moist and the flavors from the marinade were awesome. Would def get the wallaby. Service was alright and the waitress didn’t seem to know anything about the wines and had to ask the bartender but overall pretty good experience. Oh service was a bit on the slow side as well.

A nice central sports bar, with reasonable drink prices, less popular with the nightclub circuit people that travel round salamanca on the busy nights, so a great place for more quiet drinks or as a meeting place. But still worth a look if you want a good beer and to check the footy scores.