<\/p>\n
THE old Shire Hall Hotel has undergone a huge transformation over the past few years.<\/p>\n
Owners Rob and Sandy Martin have painstakingly restored much of the old pub, with vast improvements to the dining area, accommodation and a new bar.<\/p>\n
Under the new name Barkly Bistro, Bar and Accommodation, it\u2019s a venue well worth a visit.<\/p>\n
Rob Martin said people who haven\u2019t visited the hotel for a while would not recognise it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we started it was a bit of a wreck. It had been closed for 12 months and a lot of work was required everywhere from floors to windows. The place had been broken into and there was fingerprint dust everywhere. It was a horror show,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe saw potential in the building and in Ararat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe family connection to the town added another dimension. My mother was born here, my great, great grandmother had the Blue Duck,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Barkly is big on atmosphere.<\/p>\n
Rob and Sandy wanted to create a relaxed, friendly and affordable venue offering something different for patrons.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe thought a lot of people were leaving town to dine out, or not go out at all. We saw an opportunity to do something a bit nicer to keep people in town.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an everyday place that\u2019s a bit nicer. We want to invoke a feeling when people come here, we want people to enjoy a drink or a beautiful cocktail in a beautiful environment,\u201d Rob said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve banned F bombs and C bombs, we\u2019ve banned work gear after 6.30, that\u2019s because we want to create a comfortable environment where people don\u2019t feel intimidated,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Barkly Bistro, Bar and Accommodation offers a superb menu including home made burgers, gnocchi, steaks,\u00a0 parmigiana, pork belly and nightly specials.<\/p>\n
There is also a great selection of starters and Ararat\u2019s best deserts.<\/p>\n
For people needing somewhere to stay, there are 16 fully refurbished rooms with shared facilities priced between $88 and $99 a night which includes an al-a-carte breakfast. Ideal for relatives visiting from out of town!<\/p>\n
The Barkly Bar, Bistro and Accommodation is open each night from Wednesday to Saturday from 2.30 until late, with dinner between 6pm and 8pm.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s even live music on Friday nights featuring local talents like Parso and Dave Nicholson.<\/p>\n
On Sunday, the Barkly is open for breakfast through until 2pm.<\/p>\n
The Barkly Bar, Bistro and Accommodation is at 240 Barkly Street Ararat. Telephone 5352 1868.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
THE old Shire Hall Hotel has undergone a huge transformation over the past few years.
\nOwners Rob and Sandy Martin have painstakingly restored much of the old pub, with vast improvements to the dining area, accommodation and a new bar.
\nUnder the new name Barkly Bistro, Bar and Accommodation, it\u2019s a venue well worth a visit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1347,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"coauthors":[31],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/IMG_6613-1-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pdqUu4-lK","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1348"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1348"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1348\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1347"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1348"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1348"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1348"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theadvocate.net.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=1348"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}