The Abbey is one of the nicer bars in Greenlane. Photo / Martin Sykes
Herald rating ***
Address: 510 Great South Rd, Greenlane
Phone: (09) 524 6190
Open: From 10am, Mon-Sat
We arrive at: 6.30pm on a Thursday. The Abbey is halfway between our houses and we decide Greenlane is as good a place for a drink as anywhere.
Are served our first drinks by: A smiling and friendly bartender. I notice later he inexplicably charges me an extra
dollar for the same drinks on my second round, but maybe it was worth it for the great service.
The decor is ... The place feels a little over-decorated, but overall it's a nice and cosy space. The best thing about it is the open gas fire, which we settle in front of on comfy leather couches. The bar area is on the right of the establishment; a packed but intimate restaurant is on the left. There is lots of nice wood panelling and there are some superb Oriental-style screens at the back of the room.
... and the ambience: The crowd is a bit older but I'm sure the bar is full of youngsters on the weekends. There is a widescreen telly on the wall showing golf, but this is definitely not a soul-less sports bar.
The house chardonnay is: Matua at $7 a glass.
The beers on tap are: Export Gold, Amstel (light and regular), and four varieties of Monteith's.
The toilets are: Clean, tasteful, and best of all, they have a full-length mirror so you can do a quick check that you're looking hot before rejoining the crowd.
The music is: Nondescript and seems to fade entirely by the time we leave, though the place is pretty full with lively diners and drinkers so perhaps it was drowned out. We detect traces of Sinatra or perhaps Michael Buble (shudder).
Why you should go: This is probably one of the nicer bars in this part of town, so if you live in or near the area, it's a better than average place to make your local.
Bottom line: Keep this one up your sleeve as a good place to take Mum and Dad.
