The Skinny Dog Hotel

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A slightly unusual name for a pub, especially one that emphasises its food as a major attraction. A bit of a strange vibe as we entered as well, a gastronomic pub that was next to empty at 1pm on a Saturday arvo, it was slightly unsettling. However, over the course of the next two hours, it filled up nicely, and with it an improved atmosphere of this pretty classy pub in the leafy eastern suburbs no end. Maybe the people of Kew lunch a little later than most of us.



The next thing you notice is the extreme squeaky cleanliness of the place. Management obviously prefer to run a very ship-shape shop. The décor and setup of the pub is an odd mix, with pictures of small dogs running on the walls (maybe not so strange, given the name of the place), three seperate, large dining areas and a row of booths along the far wall for a little more privacy.

Choosing a booth, the menus and beers came out nice and quickly. Their selection of beers on tap and by the bottle is extremely broad, and the Little Creatures Bright Ale was a very refreshing start to the meal. Cool, funky music entertained as we waited and there were no annoying TV screens or pokies interrupting the conversation. We started to warm to the place on this pretty wet, cool and nasty Melbourne afternoon.

The first delight to arrive to tempt the taste buds was a great tasting plate. The sate chicken skewers were excellent, the chicken quite succulent and the peanut sauce beautiful and rich. A bowl of calamari and chorizo was a nice surprise, bursting with smoky flavour. Then there was an excellent bruschetta and flat breads with a beetroot dip. Our taste buds were well and truly tempted.

The mains followed nice and quickly. The 'half serve' chicken parmagiana was absolutely enormous. Hate to see the full serve. It was cheesy as a good pub parma should be, but the napoli sauce was also rich and the lightly breaded schnitzel was beautifully cooked. The salad was fresh. This was an ideal pub feed.

Slightly more unusual was the mushroom tart, which initially looked a little on the small side but turned out to be deceptively filling, especially when accompanied by a massive bowl of excellent beer battered fries with a tangy aioli dip. It sat on a bed of fresh salad and a single, large field mushroom. The flavours were subtle but strong and this writer is quite partial to pine nuts. Another winner.

We finished with a superb passion fruit panacotta with ice cream, which was light and delicious. Rather full were we at this stage, and the dessert didn't make us feel bloated, but rather rounded things off in a sweet and splendid fashion, just as a good dessert should.

The Skinny Dog is a touch on the pricey side for a pub, but probably what you would expect these days in a higher socio-economic area. Plus it still provides great value for money. With very large servings you'd be well advised to bring your appetite.

This is a place that can be enjoyed any time, with themed dinners every night, whether it be pizza, burgers, steak or parma, and a $15 express lunch for people in a hurry. The service is on the ball and full of smiles, and once you get used to the slightly unusual décor and ambience, The Skinny Dog is a happy place to enjoy a very solid pub feed. Just don't expect to stay skinny if you eat there regularly.
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