WHERE AND WHAT

Near the Middle Brighton railway crossing sits Half Moon, a dignified old pub with a whitewashed exterior and a nautical, deco-ish air. It's surprising to learn that the building only dates to the 1960s and used to be a popular boozer called the Hotel Central. Half Moon's fortunes flagged when the former owners went bust, but hospitality and brewing behemoth the Colonial Leisure Group took it on three years ago, adding it to its transnational cachet of pubs, which includes Fitzroy's Bimbo Deluxe and South Yarra's Botanical. A facelift last year (by the architects behind some of Melbourne's hippest restaurants and bars, including Chin Chin, Coda and Golden Fields) has imbued Half Moon with a rustically industrial look. Expect lots of recycled timber. For locals, Half Moon is a godsend - one of the few decent pubs in the area; warm, inviting and pokie-free.

WHERE TO SIT

There are six drinking and eating areas, and the main dining room is large and pleasant with wooden tables, designer brass lights and cream leather banquettes lining a long wall of exposed bricks. The master stroke is the mirrored greenhouse that bookends the room and is filled with shimmering crab apple trees, a lovely, serene touch. There's also an open fireplace - inexplicably not used on the wintry Sunday evening we visited. Come summer, the courtyard is the place to be.

WHEN TO GO

Monday to Friday 10am to midnight, Saturday 10am to 1am, and Sunday 10am to midnight.

DRINK

You've got to love a wine list with a bumper 49 by the glass (including sparkling and dessert) - ranging in price from $8 to $22 (if you care or dare to indulge in a drop of Penfolds Bin 389 from 2008). Wines are predominantly Australian, with a smattering from New Zealand and Europe. Beer offerings feature ales from the Colonial Brewing Company's Margaret River brewery, and boutique beers, too.

EAT

Half Moon's website describes the culinary offerings as "honest pub food", and that's about right. Meals are uncomplicated and servings are generous. There are some hits (a wild mushroom tart, a juicy chargrilled rib-eye steak, a succulent fillet of barramundi) and some misses (the Crystal Bay prawns coated in five spice and coriander, and a roasted spatchcock). No complaints about dessert though - the creme brulee and soft-centred chocolate pudding were lusciously good. Pizzas, "pub classics" (burgers, chicken parma, veal schnitzel), and a children's menu (crumbed fish and chips, spaghetti with Napoli sauce) complete no-nonsense fare.

WHO'S THERE

Locals out for a communal drink and a fuss-free feed.

WHY BOTHER

For a laid-back outing with friends.

Half Moon, 120 Church Street, Brighton, 9591 0611