The Oxford Tavern
Cnr of New Canterbury Road & Crystal Street, Petersham
2013 has been a busy year for the team at Drink & Dine: not only have they opened Sydney’s messy and delicious new crab shack, House of Crabs, they’ve taken over and renovated The Oxford Tavern.
The Oxford Tavern is Drink & Dine’s first addition in the inner west to their stable of pubs that have redefined the Sydney pub landscape (their venues include The Norfolk Hotel, The Carrington, The Forresters and The Abercrombie). The Oxford Tavern was for a long time very much a schnitty and titty kind of bar, replete with strippers and topless waitresses.
We’re advised that the pole and the strippers have gone, but they’ve left much of the venue’s character intact; all the while adding their own unique design take to the site. Check out the gallery below to get a better idea of what lies in wait.
The bar is designed to be a neighbourhood boozer with plenty of sports and beers out the front; out the back is Rita’s Lounge, billed as a “late night honky tonk open till 3am,” and complete with a grand piano and a jungle beer garden. What more could you really want from a neighbourhood boozer? Drinks run the gamut from Coladas to BBQ Margaritas to a drink we’re not too sure how to classify: a Banana Hammock (Rye, banana liqueur, lemon and soda) will set you back just ten of your hard-earned dancer dollars.