Every year, thousands of Aussie backpackers leave the country in order to drink their way around Europe. We say, why waste thousands of dollars and months of your time when you can sample the best of Europe's alcoholic culture right in your own back yard? Try these European themed pubs before you go anywhere (if it helps, try lugging around a heavy backpack as you do so).
Ireland
If you can't find an Irish pub in Brisbane, you're obviously walking around with your eyes closed.
Gilhooleys offers Irish themed shenanigans with locations all over Brisbane. The franchise chain looks the part, with a heavily wooded interior, stained glass windows, beer crates for tables and loads of themed junk on the walls. The steakhouse offers a mean bangers and mash and they run a variety of discount nights, making this venue very popular with students.
Mick O'Malleys (
171-209 Queen Street) is a popular inner city Irish pub with a restaurant, live entertainment from Wednesday to Sunday and an impressive 18 varieties of beers on tap.
Belgium
The Kingdom of Belgium takes beer very seriously. In fact, there was a time when beer was considered more sanitary, and was thus was more widely drank, than water in Belgium. Kinda makes us Aussie's look like teetotallers, doesn't it?
Despite being called a cafe, the
Belgian Beer Cafe (
corner Mary Street and Edward Street) also takes beer very seriously – they even host Beer Appreciation classes, for those who don't appreciate the amber liquid enough. The Belgian Beer Cafe is a boutique bar with a European influenced restaurant.
Germany
Talk about taking beer seriously... In typical German style, the
Brisbane German Club (
416 Vulture Street, East Brisbane) boasts two bars. The main bar stays open late and serves German beer and schnapps, while the Kellerman Bar is available for function hire. The restaurant is heavy on German favourites like kassler (smoked pork loin chop), leberkaes (German meat loaf), schnitzels and bratwurst.
The German Club is the headquarters for a traditional dance group, a golf club, a mixed choir and a card club, and also hosts events throughout the year, like Oktoberfest, so you can be guaranteed that there's always something to keep you entertained at the German Club.
England
The
Pig N Whistle has two stores in the city (Queen Street and Riverside), as well as pubs in Indooroopilly and the Sunshine Coast. The bar is stocked with selections from all over the Isle, the restaurant serves up English comfort foods and the TV is always tuned to the sports channel, which features live feeds from football matches in England and Europe. The Queen Street pub is a twenty-four hour venue.
And for a general European experience, check out
Salon Lounge (
Shop 5A, 110 Macquarie Street, Tenriffe), a cocktail bar serving tapas and European wines.
