Inside the Scenic Rim’s first gastropub

A refurbished pub in a small town in the Scenic Rim is attracting crowds with its creative culinary offering.

If you’re up for an old-school pub standard – a chicken schnitty or a pie – you’ll find it here at The Roadvale Hotel in the Scenic Rim. But the schnitzel will be panko-crumbed, free-range chicken thigh with warm potato salad, freshly made slaw and apple-pear chutney, and the pie, a special on our visit, is made with slow-cooked beef and local vegetables including whole button mushrooms packed into an enamel tin, and crowned with golden puff pastry, with a pot of homemade ketchup and pickled veg on the side.

The outdoor dining area of The Roadvale Hotel at Roadvale.

The freshly renovated pub brands itself as the region’s first gastropub with “indoor and outdoor dining, a beer garden, coffee and cake, bar and meals with regular live entertainment, dog and family friendly”. The attractive makeover features fold-back concertina windows opening the bar to the front veranda. The interior has timber floors and mint green walls, and a courtyard leads on to a lawn that is a bright and welcoming space that telegraphs a whole new approach to a country pub.

Indoor dining at The Roadvale Hotel.

Owners Milly Davenport and Andrew Wilson, who launched in December last year after a transformation lasting several months, have recruited the experienced Daniel Groneberg to head the kitchen (most recently at Karoomba Vineyard and Lavender Farm, also in the Scenic Rim).

Together they’ve harnessed a hefty array of local producers (they’re listed on the menu) and made food the focus of this community hub in the tiny town of 280, about an hour’s drive west of Brisbane.

The place is packed during our dinner visit, with orders taken at a counter and delivered promptly by friendly staff.

The crispy skin barramundi at The Roadvale Hotel.

Bread (sourdough cob loaves) is made in-house each day and can be ordered with whipped smoked butter and pumpkin jam, served with pumpkin soup or on a ploughman’s board with Kalbar leg ham.

Sliders (three for $26) are soft brioche rolls stuffed with succulent pulled honey soy pork belly and slaw, and a special of salt and pepper softshell crab with lime mayonnaise and watercress ($28) is similarly flavoursome. Main courses include the schnitzel; sausages with mashed potatoes, onion jam and cider jus; slow braised beef cheek; a 600g grass-fed sirloin for two; or warm roasted local beetroot salad as well as truffle linguine with Scenic Rim mushrooms for the plant-focused. There are also pizzas, with the bases made in-house.

We’re part of a group, so work our way through an appealing and diverse line-up of crispy skin barramundi ($35) that wows with its accompanying creamed leek, roasted smashed chat potatoes and tomato lime salsa; the beef pot pie special ($35); lamb ribs deliciously enhanced with sweet chilli glaze, creamed corn and soft flatbread ($35); and twice-cooked duck leg in green curry ($35) with greens, toasted coconut, fried garlic and charred lime. It’s all a long way from the usual pub fare.

Twice-cooked duck leg in green curry at The Roadvale Hotel.

The one-page wine list includes Witches Falls wines from nearby Tamborine Mountain and Bunjurgen ports from the Scenic Rim. Affordability is key with the most expensive bottle a Moet and Chandon for $90 before stepping down to a Bowen Estate Cabernet Sauvignon from South Australia at $57, with many bottles around $30. By-the-glass options are offered in two sizes from $8.80 and the beer lineup includes a Roadvale Rattler.

Desserts are specials of vanilla panna cotta, accompanied by a wedge of hot pink dragonfruit, a drizzle of passionfruit, petals, apple syrup and slivered almonds. The decent-sized tiramisu is capped with blueberries and strewn with rose petals.

Roadvale Hotel’s vanilla panna cotta with dragonfruit.

The Roadvale is a well-run enterprise that stands out for its commitment to truly showcasing regional produce, with the execution lifting it well beyond what you might expect at a busy country pub.

The Roadvale Hotel

320 Gray St, Roadvale

theroadvalehotel.com.au

Open

Lunch: Wed-Sun 11.30am

Dinner: Wed-Sat 5.30pm

Coffee, cake, snacks: Wed-Fri 6am

Sat-Sun 7.30am

Must try

Salt and pepper softshell crab

Verdict – Scores out of 5

Food 3.5

Ambience 3.5

Service 3.5

Value 4

Overall 3.5