You’d be hard pressed to find a suburb with more personality and local pride than Enmore. Sydney’s Inner West has long been a hub for creative types looking for an outlet – theatre, street art, clothing, hair, tattoos, piercings. And along Enmore Rd, you can get anything and everything. Sort of like Portobello Road, when you think about it.
The Duke of Edinburgh was one of the institutions along Enmore Road – although a well trodden watering hole for patrons at the Enmore Theatre, you could certainly say it had seen better days. Well, the good news is that it’s reopen for business, thanks to a new name, a new look and a whole new team.
Say hello to the Duke of Enmore. The name says it all. This is a pub that’s proud of where it comes from and who its patrons are. The duo behind DRNKS delivery service, James Wirth and Michael Delaney, certainly know a thing or two about restoring pubs to newfound glory. They also own The Norfolk in Redfern and are responsible for The Carrington, The Oxford Tavern and The Abercrombie Hotel transformations.
When it came to the Duke of Enmore, it seems like a phoenix emerged from the ashes – hideous wallpaper stripped back, the beautiful old ceiling uncovered, a new floor and stained glass windows installed. Add their signature tartan carpet, and you’ve got a pub that perfectly balances on the point of laid back local and Inner West dive bar. It’s a fairly no frills space, with old school pub charm in spades.
Now let’s be clear. This is a pub with a classic locals vibe but very serious bar game. When you own a drinks delivery service that specialises in small batch, organic wine, the bar is raised. And they’re delivering. The bar is actually part bottle shop – they’re still tinkering with the range, expect it to be a regularly changing offering as we get the feeling Joel Amos, also from DRNKS, is having a lot of fun stretching into the new space.
Hyper local is definitely the name of the game when it comes to the beer – they’re good friends with the Young Henrys crew, and there’s some other good local brews on tap. The whole Archie Rose spirits range is also behind the bar – we’re big fans of their Coastal gin, which doesn’t pop up too often so grab it when you see it.
The cocktail list has all your classics, and a few new ones that are certainly a bit cheeky – we’ll let you check out the menu for yourself!
When it comes to the food, pub grub is still definitely on the menu. They’re keeping the locals happy with a solid vegan offering – the ‘salt and pepper enoki shrooms’ come with chilli soy dipping sauce, there’s an eggplant parmigiana with all the trimmings (fries and salad) and a cauliflower steak that has us meat eaters switching sides for the night. Carnivores can grab the ‘Steak’ or go for an ‘Expensive Steak’, and there’s also a heart Duke Burger.
The Duke of Enmore
148 Enmore Rd, Enmore
Opening hours:
11am – 2am
https://thedukeofenmore.com.au/
