Eathouse Diner, The

6.5 Recommended

Food  6      Ambience  8      Service  7      Value  5     

Normally I avoid restaurants without a booking policy, but decided to give Eathouse a chance as it was recommended by a friend. Unfortunately, the only seat available was at the bar and quite uncomfortable. It was 6.45 on Friday night. The bar is retro trendy and has a nice atmosphere.

We both ordered the spicy Beef cheeks with plantain and coconut cake, the sauce had an overly reduced, almost overpowering burnt tomato taste. The cake was soggy and rather tasteless. For $28 I was unimpressed.

They offer a large selection of wines and cocktails but the boutique beers were not to my taste.

Mar 06, 2012 

7.5 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  8      Value  6     

A friend took us to an early dinner at The Eathouse Diner. great location, great feel, great food, terrific service. They got packed 2 hours later when we left so it might have been a different experience for later arrivals but I couldn't fault it.

Feb 26, 2012 

8.5 Highly Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  10      Value  9     

Had a brilliant dinner at Eathouse last week, and cant wait to go back!

Arrived around 9pm (thursday) for a late dinner - surprise birthday treat from my lovely wife. Got an outside table straight away. Cute, retro vibe without being pretentiously hipster, a little noisy inside but that's what you get at an always-busy restaurant.

Great menu with some interesting takes on diner classics. Decent wine list at decent prices, too, as well as a kickass list of cocktails.

The food was tasty and quick - just what you want for a late dinner! Oysters in the best salsa I have ever had were a standout at only $3.50! Tuna carpaccio was fresh and perfectly done, coleslaw w/ buffalo mozzarella was beautiful, and the two dipping sauces with the swimmer crabs were incredible.

I'm not normally a big dessert person, but we split an Eathouse mess (the best smashed pavlova you will ever experience) and the apple/pear crumble, and wow. We both felt like we were splitting at the seams already, but there was no way we could let any of that tasty goodness go to waste!

The fascinating list of cocktails on the wall caught our eye, so we picked two at random. Both were delicious (and potent!).

All up, we managed oysters, 4 mains, 2 desserts and a bottle of champagne for around $170. Can't complain about that.

But, beyond the great food and drink, the real standout was the service. The whole crew were genuinely friendly, lovely people who were great at their job and really made us feel at home. Not that pretend 'how was your day?' conversation that seems to be de riguer these days, either. At one point, my wife mentioned in passing that it was my birthday, and every single staff member stopped to say happy birthday, which was totally unexpected and sweet.

We live around the corner and walk past at least once a day, and Eathouse is *always* packed. It's easy to see why. We will definitely be back, often.

Thanks for a wonderful time, guys!

Oct 31, 2011 

4.8 Average

Food  2      Ambience  7      Service  8      Value  2     

Had heard bad reviews from different people but being hopeful I still gave it a try purely out of interest created by the decor and nice vibe. Unfortunately, looks is not all that important and my friends were right. I ordered the spicy beef cheeks with coconut cake sour mango salad which was highly disappointing. The beef was salty and poorly seasoned, coconut cake was soggy and did not really compliment the dish, could have been more generous with the salad to give a good balance, and the mango in the salad was disgusting, could not even eat more than a piece, it was mushy and not fresh (I ordered the dish purely for the mango salad as I love fruit in salads).

Had a few mouthfuls and had to doggy-bag the rest - $90 for 2 meals and a beverage it would have been a financial sin to throw away. Waitstaff were pleasant.

Oct 25, 2011 

4.5 Below Average

Food  6      Ambience  8      Service  1      Value  3     

I ate last night at the Eathouse diner, and I had been there when it first opened and had a good experince. I was disappointed last night, not so much in the food, but in the reception and service. We arrived quite early, like 6:30 pm, and there were about 4 tables inside free, and one outside. We asked a female waitress if there was a table, and she said there were no tables for at least 45 minutes, so I assumed they had been reserved.

We then went outside, and happened to bump into some friends sitting at a table, as we were chatting to them another male waiter came up to us and I asked him if the outside tables were booked. He said, they don't take bookings, I said there are free tables inside and he said "we keep those for bigger walk-in's"- there was only myself and my friends.

Our friends invited us to join them, squishing onto a very small table, after ordering we had a lovely time, but my wine never turned up, and I had to remind the waiter but he was friendly. We ordered two mains, a dessert (via female waitress) between myself and friend (our other friends had eaten and left already) we finished and then asked for the bill.

The female waitress then came out, put it down I paid by CCard, and signed, she hadn't even picked it up after this, I had left a good tip, and we had been still sitting maybe 3 minutes after I had signed, before she promptly comes out and tells us other people are waiting for this table, so.... I mean really. Terrible way to treat people, felt like all they thought about was the bottom line! Vvery very disappointed.

Sep 23, 2011 

2.5 Not Recommended

Food  1      Ambience  5      Service  2      Value  2     

I love the chalkboard menu on the wall if only it was visible from any tables. Unfortunately, it wasn't visible from our table. I had to walk up to the board so I could read their illegible writings. The waitress who took our order seemed like she had a bad day or something, she was so rude and inattentive. The mojito was just unbelievably horrible, it's really hard to mess up mojito, it lacked acidity and balance.

We ordered caramelized pork, kingfish and lamb. Pork was just too sweet and the nuts inside the pork dish were not crunchy at all which was very unpleasant to chew. Kingfish ceviche was as if the kingfish just took a bath in a tub full of gin. It had more alcohol than my mojito! Too disappointed to even try the desserts. We'll definitely not be going back.

Jul 05, 2011 

6 Average

Food  6      Ambience  8      Service  7      Value  3     

Eathouse Diner is the type of place you want to like, inspired by its hip, retro American diner inspired decor (complete with ample breast pictures in the toilets!) - certainly shows the changing face of Redfern.

Unfortunately, I simply can't recommend the place, mostly because they are serving Beer food at Champagne prices. We went on a Friday night, and the place was packed so we could only get a table outside. No problem there. We ordered 3 cocktails, 4 mains, a "salad" and a dessert. Cocktails were fine, my main was the Salmon with dill and potatoes, which was tasty but far too oily. My wife ordered the Mushroom risotto which had way too much lemon it in and had been put in too early, giving it a bitter tang (and I love lemon).

The side salad consisted of just lettuce, which had also been doused with lemon and vinegar (?) to the point of being inedible. Our friends ordered the Spatchcock and lamb, and it was only the lamb which lived up to it's billing. Actually the banana split dessert was nice too, though quite a simple dessert, caramalised bananas, add ice cream - done!

The food overall felt like food I'd get at a Tavern, and expect to pay accordingly for. Instead we ended up with a bill close to $200 for 4 people (!).
And given how popular the place is you can't even stop and enjoy a chat post-meal, the waiters/waitresses hovered around us and asked us to leave when we didn't order anything more for about 5 minutes. Feels like they are just trying to churn through you as a customer to maximise turnover. Fine in a food court, not fine in a restaurant charging up-market prices.

Overall I rate this a very poor dining experience, not a place I will return to or recommend.

Jun 27, 2011 

8 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  6      Value  8     

Decide to go after popping on our 'must do list'. It was fantastic, will have to add to re think my favorite restaurant. Good service, although it could have been a little more attentive. Great portions, and busting with flavor. A burger would have been a good addition tot he menu. We will be back!

Jun 26, 2011 

3 Below Average

Food  6      Ambience  2      Service  1      Value  3     

This place is confused. It has the look of an American 50s Diner and is listed here as serving American food, but dishes up modern Australian (white bait salad, Lamb shank). When asked if they had a burger a look of horror was all we got.

Service is awful, rude and abrupt. The bar ran out of cocktails. Best to aviod.

Jun 19, 2011 

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  10      Value  8     

The Eathouse diner is a fresh breath of air in the up and coming new hipster hang out area. Menu is great, not exactly traditional diner food like burgers and such but who cares. The food they serve is creative and pretty damn tasty!

Service is super friendly, partnered with a clean and inviting space to have a few drinks with your mates. Would be awesome if they were opened days. I guess they are only new punters in the game. So hopefully one day!

Overall, Thanks Eathouse diner for bringing something new and inspiring to this town. I'll leave this review with 2 more words - 'Eat here'

May 30, 2011