The Gully Public House and Garden, Tea Tree Gully

It would be very rare for some of you to see me up in the north. Living further in the south, it is really inconvenient for us to go to any venue in the far north and hence we missed many good places. I used to teach in Mawson Lakes, but it is possibly the second furtherest place in Adelaide that I have ever gone to. The north most place is actually in Elizabeth; or Barossa Valley if you consider it’s a part of Adelaide, although it is not. Anyway, what would I have to do in Tea Tree Gully? Food! Last week, Tina and myself received a generous invitation to dine at The Gully Public House and Garden for their menu launch as well as enjoying some Tank Beer – a new favourite in addition to local craft beers.

If you think the name sounds fancy, it used to be known as Tea Tree Gully Hotel. The venue was established in 1854 and has played a significant role in Tea Tree Gully’s history. With traditionally being a public house, the venue has gained good reputation among locals as the heart of the community and as a place for enjoying a beer or two, socialising with friends.

I am a person who loves history – any piece of history has its own taste. To be exact, every piece of history has its sweetness and bitterness,  but at the end of the day, people will remember the long existence, regardless of any drama that has been on and off. Recently, the venue has been given a new name “The Gully Public House and Garden” as well as a $2 million makeover, which transformed the pub into a real public house, a place to be cheerful with a couple of friends on a Saturday arvo as well as a place to relax after a long working day.

Here at The Gully PHG, diners are expected to see beautiful egg chairs, modern seating areas and even blankets! 🙂 With a winter night, the warm blankets are musts! Another thing for a winter night is beer and chips, which surely will impress a hungry person like me. The golden Tank Beer was so nice to have with all the extraordinary flavours on the palate and a good barley fragrance on the nose. I was surprised that the tank beer was crafted and delivered within 72 hours and you definitely see a great effort in its production process. 🙂

 

However, if you are a street food fanatic, the venue also got several good entrees such as the pulled pork burger shown below. Adelaide has now been fulfilled with burgers everywhere but for a good burger, there are some key essential parts for me. You may have your own criteria for a burger, but for me the bun has to be soft and slightly chargrilled or fried. The content has to be flavoursome and tasty and the meat has to be soft, tender and moist. Luckily, even if you are fuss, the pulled pork burgers at the Gully ticked all the boxes. I especially liked the pulled pork filling and would fancy more if there were some more 😀

 

On the other hand, for diners who loves cracking pork, the kitchen has developed a recipe using pork belly and Tank Beer. The pork has been marinated and cooked using tank beer and the flavour of the beer, as I mentioned earlier on has fully diffused into the meat and also the alcohol and slight acidity has softened the meat. While on the top, you still have your perfect roasted skin which is hard and tasty! Sitting on top of a potato medallion and apple slices, this dish surely had improved taste sensation and enhanced texture. Well done and this was our favourite of all dishes. I thought about ordering this for a main but then went why not taste something else 😛

I know I have started talking about mains but there is another entree which I want to introduce. Dinning at a pub, pizza is an essential part. We had two pizzas on the day – caramalised onion and goat cheese pizzetta and cheesy bacon pizzetta. The goat cheese one was fabulous with complex yet beautiful flavours, especially the melted goat cheese. However, somehow when I started looking for photos, I just realised that I forgot to take a photo 😦 However I do have the photo for the second pizza – the bacon and cheese one. I believe the cheese was a blend and gave layers of flavours on the palate. Correct me if I am wrong though. 🙂 Oh, yes, plenty of cheese please~~!

 

Now, it’s time for the mains. As I said, I really wanted to order the pork belly again but you know when the wife (Tina) was not happy. So, instead, I had something even larger than the pork bellies – beef short ribs. It was huge and I mean it! If you have a look at the photo below, you will be amazed by the serve, considering it was only $30 for a big dish like this. However, I was even much amazed by its taste! The short ribs were cooked to perfection with all the juiciness and tenderness of the meat maintained well. The meat was extremely flavourful because the added flavour from the bone and could easily been taken off the bone! The salad was equally good as it took away some of the oiliness from the meat. Well done!

 

 

 

My regulars would know that I am a meaty animal but unfortunately, in a family you always have the other side. Tina is gradually turning into a no-meat person. She still eats a little bit of meat but more fruit and veggie and seafood. Well, I admit her lifestyle is much healthier than mine, especially when I am writing at the moment and she has already fallen asleep. 🙂

 

So now, for her main, she chose a salad – The salmon salad. This is a light and delicious salad and should satisfy any fussy person if they are after a salad with seafood. The salmon was very light on the palate and you won’t notice any heavy flavours. It was clean, light and healthy. The mandarin was a good highlight too with such a beautiful flavour and the introduction of sweetness to cleanse the palate even further.

 

 

 

On the table, it was also served with a roasted pork dish for sharing and I took a small amount for taste. Brilliant! Especially with the fatty bit still on the meat, the pork was very tender and delish! 🙂

 

 

To pair all these dishes, we shared a bottle of Rockford Alicante Bouchet, my new favourite!

 

After reading my comment, if it inspires you to check out a local venue, The Gully Public House and Garden should definitely be on your list. The venue uses local South Australian ingredients and fresh produce. As an active and strong supporter of South Aussie produce, I would definitely recommend this place to all. Not only a weekend family venue, the Gully PHG should really be a place for any occasions.

 

The Gully Public House & Garden

1349 North East Road

Tea Tree Gully, SA 5091

P 08 8264 2288