A meeting of heritage charm and modern sensibilities mark this city pub as a must-visit.
The jewel in the crown of the Parker Group, this re-furbed classic has been quenching the thirst of citygoers since 1882. In its current era, you’ll find those elements that we all love about pubs of this vintage (the high ceilings, a first-floor wraparound balcony, textures of patina that haven’t been stripped away) and those that come with modernity, like high-end ground-floor restaurant, Fleur (in our Top 100) and Willi’s Pizza Bar, home to seriously good Detroit-style rectangular pan pizzas. The menu upstairs mines counter classics like a roast chicken roll with gravy and fries, and a parmi that’s hard to beat. Daily specials and a happy hour (4–5pm) are a real draw, and while the on-tap selection gets a solid tick, it’s the wine list (always a strong point for this group) that will hold your attention, with its promise of energetic, chilled and wild reds, rosè, orange and macerated numbers, and textural and fleshy whites from a spread of winemakers from the West and beyond.
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