Geelong has an ever-changing and thriving nightlife scene with a diverse selection of pubs, bars and clubs. Whether you are after a quiet drink with friends before trying one of our great restaurants or partying until dawn there is something for everyone’s taste and style around our city centre.
It was only a few years ago Geelong was home to a lot of dreary old sticky floor run down pubs, several dodgy nightclubs and only a handful of popular but very regional town nightspots. Well things have certainly changed and today the city boasts a diverse entertainment scene with some of the best nightlife found outside of Melbourne.
The city pub scene has bounced back after the introduction of the pokies, where we saw the pubs move away from live and huge venues. Todays’ scene is fresh and innovative, and many of the venues are smaller and more diverse and individual with their own groove and style.
The music is making a come back but on a much smaller scale than before. The biggest bands in the country have moved out of the pub barns and into the festivals while more localized and independent acts and a fresh new tribe of DJ’s are now playing the beats in our pubs and clubs.
Many of our older and iconic establishments have vanished like the Geelong Hotel, Carlton, Queen’s Head, Britannia and even the Eureka while and others have undergone huge redevelopments transforming them into brand new venues and right for the times.
Little Malop Street in our city’s heart, the queues and the Eureka are long gone but now there is a new breed of players on the strip, small funky cafes with cool food and tunes, like Pistol Pete’s playing the blues, or the 12 Amendment a tribute to the speakeasy, the Workers Club with its great bands and BBQ and of course there’s the quirky Beav’s one of Geelong’s oldest running and favorite bars still sitting proudly on the James Street Corner. In the lanes and alleys around Little Malop Street is where you will find the hidden treasures like Captain a recycled crate and pallet beer garden, The Blackman’s Brewery Bar just to name a few.
Other highlights around the city include the Piano Bar opposite the old Carlton Hotel and the nearby Frankie and There There.
Lamby’s under the National Wool Centre has been a firm favorite since it opened in our bicentennial year and newer bars like the Edge on the waterfront and the newly renovated National Hotel are also some of the city’s more popular venues, while Homehouse is the king the clubs with its big name DJ’s and huge crowd.
For foodies some of the pubs are doing some pretty good meals, The Max in Gheringhap Street, The Sporting Globe in Ryrie Street and (new) Geelong Hotel in Yarra Street are only a few with a tasty menu and well worth a try.
The city has lost too many of its traditional pubs but there are two old favorites in the city left, The Sir Charles Darling on Bellarine Street and the Sir Charles Hotham on Brougham, still offer friendly service, a great menu with proper home cooked meals and a great atmosphere.