Honeysuckle Hotel

After a couple tries and reading others reviews I’m going to park my butt on the fence at 3 stars. First time I left with the worst headache I’ve ever had on account of the music. This visit was headache free but the music is still too loud! We moved upstairs thinking it would be easier to talk as a group but it wasn’t. We were practically yelling at the person next to us. One of the girls almost lost her voice.
I agree that the meals are overpriced. My pizza was ok but nothing to rave about and my friends $ 23 salad wasn’t particularly tasty either and at that price I’d be wanting a lot of flavour. Another girl ordered the mussels, I’m unsure of the price, but it looked and smelled amazing and was a large portion.
It’s in a prime location and I’m sure is beautiful on a sunny day for lunch. Sooo… It’s not a bad hotel but not spectacular either. Also, no reservations.

Really bad service, rude and arrogant. Turned TV off with 10 minutes to go on the football, bar closed earlier than that. Just another glorified beer barn really, lots of wood and metal and the idea of «style» that other places seem to think it’s fancy, but in the end it’s just a really bad pub. Pizzas were doughy and tasteless. No thanks, Sydney is full of these and I avoid them like the plague. As the plague, it is spreading.

What is it about pubs with amazing wood interiors, fireplaces and water views that suck me in like a Hoover? Sure the view is of the silos across the harbour but hey, its still spectacular watching the ships sail in. The deck alone is worth a visit. I wish I could say more about the rest of this place however, this is where I start to strip off a couple of those stars.
Don’t get me wrong, its a great place to catch up with some mates, polishing off a few throwdowns and talking trash, provided you come here on a night where they offer their specials (I was late by a day for the $ 10 steak — DAAAMN). As far as pub grub goes though, their menu is varied enough and is fairly expensive for what it is. I settled on the grilled barra, salad and dressing on the side. Pretty straight forward right? Apparently not though, so when the buzzer went off for me to pick up my plate, where was the dressing? Over the barra !!! First, I wasnt aware Barra was considered a side and second, who puts dressing on fish?
The vibe is pretty chill and i would probably return but on another night.

Had a great time here. Honeysuckle hotel is a great venue on the waters edge so we had a beautiful view of the sunset. Lovely place for drinks! We had a $ 10 steak so I was happy with that and it was well cooked –medium rare. I saw they hav a range of cheap pub meals during the week including a schnitto night on Monday’s. Overall a great experience here– lovin Newcastle!

For such a promising venue, it is a disappointment. The space is not well used, so there is a surprising lack of table space for what appears to be a popular venue — kind of like a tardis in reverse. The prices were expensive when you consider that you have to run down and up stairs to pick up your meals yourself with those beepers they give you. I think given the quality of the architecture and the location, it is a real wasted opportunity to have a great venue, rather than what they ended up with, which is a thoroughly ordinary one.
I had a Hendricks and Tonic with cucumber, their garlic bread, and their special of the evening which was a Mexican BBQ Grill. The meat was cooked well, the chicken superb, but the chorizo sausage was barely warm and tasted uncooked. I couldn’t eat it. It is a cured meat and OK to eat that way, but chorizo tastes great when grilled properly and the sugars caramelise to form a yummy treat. The BBQ Grill plate cost $ 35. I finished the meal off with a pint of Peroni — very nice.
Staff were friendly and helpful, but really at the end of the day for the price, they should pay the extra in wages and have enough staff on hand to be able to run the meals to your table.

Visited with my mother and sister.
I made the mistake of wearing thongs/​flip-​flops despite the dress code and nothing was ever said about it. It was a busy night and we went for dinner.
The drinks menu was impressive, and my sister had the steak and said it was fine. The fish and chips was gross. Greasy and tasted old/​dirty — my guess is that the grill or oil hadn’t been cleaned/​changed. I couldn’t finish it. My mother had exactly the same problem — greasy and with a dirty taste. I’m not sure if the quality slipped because it was super busy when we were there or what, but it was off-​putting enough we won’t be returning — plus we found it expensive for what it was.
The staff there were nice, but it has fallen into the trap of most Newcastle eateries — busy times, the quality slips, and you’re paying through the nose for glorified fast food.

Always busy and ever popular, the Honeysuckle is under two years old but one of the most popular bars in Newcastle. Great views and amazing outdoor seating area, come here for lunch and drinks on a sunny day and you won’t be disappointed.
The food is good and they have an extensive cocktail list, great selection of beers on tap and good bar staff. The food ranges from standard pub fare to some really tasty mains and specials. Among my favourites are the soft shell crab salad and the seafood sharing plate.
There is an upstairs area that offers a great view of the giant projector TVs, which always have sports showing, making this an ideal place for watching a big game.
Be warned, in the evenings they have a dress code, so no shorts or thongs (flipflops for non Aussies… this can lead to confusion… I don’t think they have any rules on what underwear you are wearing.).
The clientele is mixed in age, mostly late 20’s to 30’s and people tend to dress to impress at the weekends. Overall, it’s reputation is well founded. One of the the best spots in Newcastle, good for a catch up or a group.