Direct from our 2023 restaurant guide, here’s our guide to the state’s finest watering holes
On the hunt for a pint and a parmie, somewhere to scream at the footy or the perfect beer garden for long innings on a Sunday afternoon? WA’s finest pubs have it all. Here are the standard-setters.
No venue embodies the public house of the here and now more than The Royal – smack bang in the centre of Perth – with a winning selection of drinks and Chase Weber’s cut-above cooking (not to mention karaoke and in-house fine diner, Fleur). Mayfair Lane takes a similarly high-minded approach, especially where co-owner Foni Pollitt’s impressive wine list is concerned.
If wine is the order of the day, the cellar at Margaret River’s Settlers Tavern is without peer, complemented by local line-caught seafood and a rollicking live music program. Should beer be the motivating factor, the 22 taps at the Dutch Trading Co in Victoria Park are sure to do the trick. And an XPA from the in-house brewery at Albany’s White Star Hotel is nothing to scoff at, especially if it comes with a locally caught fish schnitzel.
In warmer weather, make a beeline for Picabar in Northbridge, the palm-flanked courtyard of The Brisbane Hotel in Highgate or the buzzy backyard at The Quarter Acre Hotel in Applecross. Along the coast, The Cottesloe Beach Hotel’s verandah is an optimal spot for a Spritz in the sunshine; ditto The National Hotel rooftop in Fremantle and the leafy confines of the nearby Norfolk Hotel.
All the while, freshened-up old favourites like the Subiaco Hotel and The Leederville Hotel continue to kick goals, as do The Elford in Mount Lawley and The Guildford Hotel in the gateway to the Swan Valley, where smoked meats are the calling card.