Cardrona Speight's Ale House, Mt Eden. Photo / Doug Sherring
There is something simultaneously endearing and depressing about the Speights Southern Man schtick.
Playing to a non-existent stereotype, the whole rugged, macho number can pall quite quickly, which is a shame because many of the Speight's alehouses are pretty nice places to drink.
The beer selection isn't huge. Most
of it bears the Speight's name and there are some nice beers among them, including the porter and pilsner.
I strolled into the Cardrona in Mt Eden on a sunny Saturday afternoon, with the pint commandos in tow. A few beers and a bit of a feed was the plan, so we ordered two antipasto platters, a jug of pilsner and a jug of cider.
The platters might not be the cheapest in town (at $35 each), but they are certainly filling. A good range of nibbles - mushrooms, cheese, gherkins, olives, salami and salmon included - is accompanied by a loaf of bread that could have fed the 5000.
One thing, though: it's not a good idea to serve what looked like processed luncheon ham when you're advertising champagne ham.
And the beer was lovely. Cold, with a sharp, hoppy bite and a decent level of carbonation.
The Speight's cider was very good, dry and crisp and surprisingly refreshing.
It's a nice spot, too, as long as you don't mind staring at eye-wateringly expensive homewares stores while you sit on the deck supping.
There is plenty of room, a fire for when it gets cold (indoors and outdoors) and the toilets are admirably clean.
The service was also very good.
A chatty bartender was happy to swap yarns while pouring and the food service was prompt and pleasant.
If they could have controlled the smell from the fryers on the day I visited, it would have been exceptionally pleasant indeed. As it was, the bar area reeked like a dodgy chippy, but that's a small blemish on an otherwise nice afternoon.
Other plus-points included no pokies, no blaring music, muted televisions and the wine list was decent, as was the selection of spirits.
And the best part of all was that there wasn't a grumpy, ignorant, Swanndri-wearing Southern Man-style stereotype to be found in the place. Excellent.
Scores
Service: 4/5
Drink: 4/5
Food: 3.5/5
Atmosphere: 3.5/5
Overall: 3.5
