Almanac Pubs: Petrel Hotel re-opens
“Where you guys been goin?”
Following the temporary closure of the Petrel Hotel in Geelong West for extensive renovations after Melbourne Cup week, the above rather quirky salutation has become one of the most frequent conversation starters around the 3218 and nearby postcodes over the last three months.
Earnest exchanges between estranged Petrel regulars have broken out like spot fires during random but welcome encounters across multiple venues – supermarkets, servos, other pubs, golf courses, early morning queues for blood tests and sometimes in broad daylight in Pakington Street.
Anecdotal reports of alleged cross factional activity have even landed on this desk.
Apparently, regular boozers from the old front bar, middle bar and smokers’ bar have allegedly been seen discreetly engaged in discussions with other thirsty souls from different bars. Heady stuff.
Now, Dan Murphy’s provides a critical essential community service with their helpful staff, wide product range and price matching policies; however, three months is a very long time to survive on packaged beer alone while your local pub is shut irrespective of how competitively priced the benevolent folk at Dan’s are.
After all, the local pub is, well, if not the actual glue, then the jar the glue is kept in that cuddles locals together in its warming embraces. Even Shakespeare, no less, foreshadowed that the Petrel would, in due course, play this role as the “… balm of hurt minds, great nature’s second course and chief nourisher in life’s feast…that knits up the ravelled sleave of care…”
And that is certainly the way Geelong West imbibers have always seen the social contribution made by the Petrel. Thankfully, Margaret Thatcher’s chilling old Tory line that “there is no such thing as society” doesn’t cut the mustard with the tipplers from the City by the Bay.
In a recent Newspoll@Pako survey, John Donne’s “no man is an island” was a resounding winner over Paul Simon’s “I am a rock.” Good thing too.
But hey, even a three month wait without your regular local pub eventually comes to an end.
In Enid Blyton’s series of books about the Magic Faraway Tree, the children would climb up a small ladder at the top of the tree then through a hole in the clouds and find themselves in whatever magical land had arrived that day. Her last chapters of these books would always feature the Land of Treats or something similar.
Well, on 8 February loyal thirsty 3218 drinkers didn’t need to find the elusive hole in the clouds. They simply needed to cross Pako at the correct spot and become blissfully lost in the magical Land of Beer. The Petrel had reopened her hospitable doors.
During 2023, the first year of the O’Brien family leasehold to new management under mine host Matt Drew saw several modest changes. Slow but steady. Think here, Usman Khawaja rather than Glenn Maxwell.
After the doors opened on the renos today though, these recent changes grab you immediately.
The obvious one is a new modern look paint job. An impressive contemporary roomy layout strikes you on entry as three bars have been collapsed into two. You can now see from one end of the pub down to the other with an open space ceiling.
Essentially, the key difference is more space for dining room patrons but still with room out the front for regular beer drinkers seeking solace as tipped above by Shakespeare. How this balance all plays out in the longer term is possibly a work in progress.
In other features:
Big new expanded food menu. Tick.
Much larger wine list too. Tick.
Bar prices for drinks still more Geelong than Melbourne (just). Tick.
No pokies – not that there ever were but we remain grateful for small ongoing mercies just the same. Tick.
Large Sky Sports screens with no volume – on weekends at least. Tick.
Petrel Social Club and Angling Club still a going concern. Tick.
Further reports after feedback from other returning Petrel tragics over coming weeks will be noted and filed as required.
Incidentally, for curious minded readers with any remote interest in the matter, the most commonly supplied answers to the question in the opening sentence above were, in order, as follows: Bell Park Sports Club, Queen of the West Hotel (your author’s temporary bolt-hole of choice), the Green Room, Sphinx Hotel and Saleyards Hotel.
But that was then. This is now.
Come on down folks.
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About Roger Lowrey
Roger Lowrey is a Geelong based writer who lists his special interests as reading, writing, horse racing, Roman history and AEC electoral boundaries. Some of his friends think he is a little eccentric.
Looks fab RDL. Maybe we should have a Footy Almanac get together and lunch of locals who live not too far away from the pub? Perhaps we could have readings of our pieces from the Almanac?
Excellent piece Roger. The value of a local cannot be understated. It is the big (and probably only) disappointment with Preston where we have called home the last 25 years. Cramers is down the hill from our place but it’s a damned pokies joint. Everyone tells me of Cramer’s glory days when it was a rock venue and they saw Cold Chisel or when Molly was the resident DJ every Thursday night. Not now. Cramers is now in its god-awful days. Cheers
I loved this, Roger.
You have really captured the value of the local pub – it is so much more than just a place to have a beer.
Coincidentally, our local boozer in Williamstown, The Stags Head, closed its doors for renovations for a number of months last year and opened just before Christmas. It would be fair to say that Friday evenings at the Willy Bowls Club were very big during those months.
See you at the Petrel soon!!
Erudite coverage, RDL! Try hard not to make up for lost time. I’ll look forward to a visit when next I catch up with the Geelong (and surrounds) Push.
Just one observation from afar – the carpet (final photo) is, perchance, a little prominent. My colourblindness may come in handy.
RDL- lovely read. Shakespeare liked a snort, didn’t he? The photo of the Anglers’ Club honour board reminded me of the old pub social clubs which sort to give the punters an additional sense of ownership and investment in their local. Last I checked these were still a feature in a few country pubs.
When I lived in Engerland a leftish mate told me that if a statue was ever erected to honour Thatcher he’d see to it that, with his personal assistance, it’d soon resemble an upside-down fountain.
In a time when pubs are closing more than reopening this is a good news story of the highest order (well, you know what I mean). I look forward to a cup with you in the Petrel one day!
Excellent Roger yep never underestimate the value of the local you took us along for the ride superbly