EAT + DRINK
MEET THE UNBEERLIEVABLE NEW BURLEIGH WATERING HOLE Burleigh Barrels Brewery, Distillery & Smokehouse is ale we need in our life.
I
f there’s one trend that we never want to end (besides the mum jean and the margarita), it’s the influx of breweries here on the Gold Coast. Our excitement doesn’t wane one iota when another ‘hops’ on the bandwagon, and this southern Gold Coast superstar (which lay dormant for over two years, but more on that later…) embodies why we’re bonkers for a brewery. Set in the postcode we know always delivers the cool, Burleigh Barrels Brewery, Distillery & Smokehouse is THE place to sink a ‘starch smoothie’, trading out the smoothie part for malt, hops and yeast (aka beer). But don’t be fooled, it’s not just for the amber ale drinkers, as the eats, carefully crafted wine list and cracking cocktails are shut-up-good…as is the fit-out. With a brewtiful chilled coastal beach meets industrial brewery ambience, this reimagined former tavern gives the right amount of ‘just came off the beach’ feels. For beer loving mates Pat McCarthy and Peter Trimble, it all started during a European mate-cation and don’t all the best stories start like this?! After visiting some Trappist
30 | insidegoldcoast.com.au
breweries, staying in the odd beer-producing castle and sampling many of the secretly made local brews, they knew what they had to do. Back in Oz, they excitedly took the plunge and signed a lease… exactly three months prior to the pandemic. But, these eternal ‘hoptomists’ clung to their dream for two years, still paying rent and OMG is this not the ultimate commitment to the cause. Fast forward to now and whoomp here it is; a coastal-cool brewery well worth the wait. Featuring indoor seating, a private dining and function room, outdoor undercover dining, a fully functioning brewery and a soon to be installed distillery. It’s proudly the only brewery/distillery on the Gold Coast which is fully licensed with a full-service kitchen (bravo!) cooking up a plethora of feeds infused with locally sourced ingredients. There is a core range of six beers brewed on the premises (under the careful eye of Head Brewer Chris), six rotating guest taps from other local breweries, wines by the bottle and glass (we’ll go the bottle thanks), and an extensive cocktail list. So much yes!
