Galbraith’s

Came here the other night for a pint of beer and some food. I got a pint of the Czech style Pilsner and I enjoyed it. It was quite refreshing, light, and not too hoppy (I’m not a fan of hoppy beers). Also ordered some food: Rosemary Polenta Fries to share and a burger with fries. The burger was pretty good, cooked medium well on a sesame bun. The fries are thin and crispy. The rosemary polenta fries were also quite delicious, and I would highly recommend them if you like eating crispy polenta.
Overall I think I will be back. The alehouse has a nice old timey authentic feel. I think next time I would like to try their pie (I saw people eating it around me and it looked huge!) and some more beer.

How does the legendary Galbraiths only average 3.5 stars? Do people just not get this place?
History: Keith Galbraith was doing craft beer here before most of New Zealand knew what it was. The legendary late Michael Jackson (not that one…) loved this place.
Now I know you can’t just coast on your laurels, but really, nothing has changed in terms of atmosphere or quality. The food and beer are top notch. The staff are fun and friendly. The place is cosy and welcoming. The prices are… Auckland prices. But not bad for that.
Get in here! Mine’s a pint of Bob’s.

I hate the pub scene and there’s no way you’ll drag me into one — unless of course, it’s in a historical building and you mention the fact that they brew a damn fine stout!
I had a glass of the Rurik on tap — a rich dark velvety brown stout that tastes like espresso, chocolate and liquorice!!! This stuff is sexy as hell!
Neera, you can shout me a stout, anytime! :p

My first time here, and have not yet tried the food. I have been by many times, but never went in. I can see why people like it for a lazy afternoon hang. It’s pretty big with multiple rooms so it doesn’t get too noisy. It’s super cozy and warm in the winter. There is a sizable back patio beer garden that would be excellent on a sunny afternoon.
The beer selection is huge, and they’re happy to give you a taste if you’re unsure. I went with the seasonal tap option, a medium bodied apricotty Pilsner. Very nice!
I actually met some friends here to mess around with our ukuleles. The room out the back overlooking their brewery was perfect for this. We didn’t bother anyone, and there was no other music playing so we weren’t competing.
Nice atmosphere on a Saturday afternoon. Not too busy, casual family scene. Next time ’round I’ll check out the food. Looks like pretty standard pub fare.

Friendly staff, comfortable décor, and good beer. The food takes a really long time to arrive though the bartenders did let us know this in advance.

I love Galbraith’s. Admittedly, I’ve had several friends working behind the bar over the years, but before craft beer became cool Galbraith’s was serving up small batch brews and interesting flavours from around the world.
With a warm and cosy atmosphere by the fire in Winter or a sunny, relaxed afternoon on the rooftop in summer, Galbraith’s has year round covered. The service is relaxed and friendly, knowledgeable and passionate about the beers, particularly those that are brewed on site (the brewery is behind plate glass so viewable to visitors). The menu is contemporary with a nod to British pub classics and changes to reflect the season.
On my last visit I had the scotch egg which was HUGE and the fish and chips which was fresh, not oily at all and had some wonderful hand-​cut chips and a wee portion of mushy peas on the side.
It’s unpretentious, inexpensive and welcoming and is the perfect spot for a quick bite or an all afternoon-​into-​evening session.

Galbraiths used to be my local and is an absolute favourite pub of mine in Auckland. The atmosphere is warm and cozy, with old wooden tables and wood paneling. I also love how they have a window that looks into their brewery. I’m not much of a beer drinker (they are renowned for their beers) but their wine selection is superb and I’ve always enjoyed their food.
My only criticism is that it is a pricey place to go out for a meal, not that the food isn’t worth the price they ask for (in some circumstances it is), but $ 9.90 for a tiny bucket of thick cut fries with some store bought ketchup is a tiny bit overboard imho.
However for a catch up with friends while enjoying their beer garden or especially relaxing in front of their open fire in winter with a glass of red wine, then it is highly recommended.

Glorious old dame of a pub — but its niche is being eaten up by all the new craft beer breweries around Auckland. I love looking into the brewing room, and sitting in the front room to watch the old journalists file in on a Friday night.
The place holds sweet events for community and social groups, and the pub that feeling of being at the centre of a lot of people’s lives. I love the vibe.
Unfortunately the Galbraiths beer just doesn’t float my boat. The imported English hand-​pulls are great, but the local brewed stuff isn’t as exciting as the concentrated weirdness of New Zealand brewers like Hot Water Beach and Liberty down the road at the Lumsden in Newmarket or Brothers in City Works.

Stopped in here after arriving a little late in the day to our hotel at 7pm and after a particularly rainy walk around town ended up here for a beer. A really good, strong Belgian beer at that! It was worth the walk in the rain! We also shared a scotch egg. I’m no expert on scotch eggs but as far a scotch eggs go this one was pretty good. It had all the right flavors and textures. Needless to say we’ll probably be making our way back here again before we leave in a few days.

One of the few brewpubs in AKL. Quality ales and a great selection of other craft brews from around NZ.

Went there craving a good pub meal, great beer, and an easy Friday night. I got all three in one go at Galbraith’s. Really recommend doing the beer sampler as there are just too many choices to pick one or two. The menu isn’t super creative but does try to offer some variety and changing items (the goat curry looked superb). My partner’s fish n’ chips hit the mark but my burger was a overcooked though the chips were fab. The only disappointing aspect was although the bartender knew heaps about the beers on tap, he absolutely knew nothing about their extensive whiskey/​scotch selection. Also, I reckon a bit of classic rock would go a long way.

Avoid the manager: he’s snarky! God forbid you want to taste a few beers or change something on a food order (complicated requests like swapping shoestring chips for regular chips). My husband and I love the food and especially the beer but man, we got tired of the run-​ins with this guy. Figured out he didn’t work Tuesdays so that’s when we’d go. I even tweeted about his crappy attitude once and got some cut-​and-​paste response like «Thank you for coming to Galbraith’s.» Ha! Still, we couldn’t stay away completely as it’s a great place to go for a roast and a beer, especially in winter. And the rest of the staff are great.

If you’re after a «classic» pub, then here is the spot.
Food is done well. Good solid pub food. Although it is a bit on the pricey side.
They brew on site, and are mostly in the traditional English style, and mostly on handpump. There is a great section of the pub where you look into the brewery and can see the action.
A fantastic guest tap section as well, with great details of what’s on offer on the wall. Pretty solid bottled beer selection in the fridges behind the bar too.
Many different types of seating areas, indoor, outdoor (covered/​uncovered). Also some great spots never to the fire for those cold winter nights.

Had a pleasant meal in here with three fellow diners. Enjoyed the view of the on site brewery, nice to see how made on a local scale. The hardest thing was choosing which beer to accompany my wild boar burger !
Beware that the alehouse gets very busy if the local venue is hosting a gig

Ahh Galbraith’s. I heard mum talk about this before I actually went myself — her and her teacher mates used to pop in. It sounded a bit meh, but somehow I ended up here before a concert across the road last week and it was awesome. Sure, i was pretty drunk by the time we arrived, but it was still fun!
It was super busy this night and the vibe was cool. The beer selection is pretty amazing, and they brew a number of their own onsite. I ordered a vodka, soda lime — blasphemy right? But they didn’t even raise an eyebrow or anything!
Some of the people I was with got some pub food and it looked really good, they also said it was yum. The portion size is really big and the prices are reasonable. I got some fries and aioli, possibly the best partnership in the world. And they were great.
Fun times. I can tell it will work just as well in the day time.

Yeah maybe it’s a terrible idea to go to an Alehouse when you’re not really the biggest beer drinker, but yeah I did it and you know what? It was okay. They’ve got beverages other than beer, but I feel like you would have to really like and want beer to take advantage of the place’s full potential.
Food was surprisingly okay, very pub-​style but better than most. Hearty and shit. It’s warm in there too, so you kind of feel all cosy and like you’re hanging out in someone’s lounge which can only be a good thing. Someone’s semi-​fancy lounge. It’s kind of fancy for a pub. I reckon it’d be a good place to meet a group of friends for Sunday afternoon drinks and fries or something. In fact, I might just do that.

I haven’t eaten any food at Galbraiths, so I’ll leave that out of this. Though in saying that, I’ve been there while friends have eaten, and they’ve had a bloody great time. Anyway. I like the beer at Galbraiths. It’s cool to go to a place and be kind of overwhelmed by the variety of beer. I like to try a new one every visit. Better yet, they have a wide assortment on tap, which is cool, because as much as it’s all well and good to drink beer from a bottle, it’s a lot better to drink out of a cup in my opinion.
They put the cricket on when it’s happening, too. So that’s obviously a bloody good thing.

Located in the old Grafton Library, Galbraith’s opened in 1996 and is a classic pub and alehouse.
Very laid back in style, Galbraith’s is all about good hearty food and providing patrons with good quality beers brewed on site.
There are still photos around the pub of the original library, and these combined with the patterned carpet, long wooden tables and friendly bar staff gives Galbraith’s a real family-​friendly atmosphere. Considering it is owned by the Galbraith family, this comfortable homely vibe is only fitting.
I have been going to Galbraith’s since I was a kid with my family, and more recently to meet my dad there for a drink and a catch up. ‘
Prices are really reasonable and the size of the meals is pretty impressive. Galbraith’s is definitely somewhere where you get your money’s worth! I recommend their St Benedicts Pie. In winter it is the perfect hearty dinner; the tender steak, mushrooms, herbs and ale make for a flavoursome dish and it washes down brilliantly with a pint!
Tip: Located right next to a pay and display carpark, parking is handy but make sure you have coins on you.

Like good beer? Sick of the same old tap beers you get at all other pubs? Then Galbraith’s ale house is the place to experiment and try something new. They have such a massive selection of boutique beers both from their own brewery and other locations around New Zealand. If you come at the right time, you can even watch the brewing process in action. It’s a really cool idea to have the vats visible from certain places locations in the pub.
The building itself is large and old (I think it’s an old post office or something), but when it gets busy it can still be quite hard to find a free table. The food and the beers are quite pricey, but delicious. I definitely recommend checking this place out.

Galbraith’s is a ‘proper’ pub in every sense of the word. Proper in that it’s a real alehouse, with a variety of beers on tap, several of which it brews itself. And proper in the sense of formal, upper-​class British stuffiness, all high ceilings and polished wood.
That’s maybe a slightly unfair interpretation, but it’s the impression I always get when I go into Galbraith’s. It makes me feel a bit shabby and working class, but I’m sure that’s not their intention. Regardless of my reaction the beer is interesting and the food is very good (although leaning towards the pricier side of a pub meal). As you go in you can look through a window and see the beer being brewed, by which I mean you can look through a window and see a very large copper pot thing.