PROFILE BY BEST RESTAURANTS
Most Newtown locals remember the Cooper's Arms Hotel as a dingy little watering hole frequented by old blokes with a taste for breakfast beers. So, it's not surprising to here cries of, "Well I never!" when people discover the upstairs restaurant of the renamed and renovated Cooper's Hotel, because times have changed. Covering the second level of the hotel is a spruced up bar and dining room with an open-air courtyard which has been tastefully landscaped with wooden bar seating and a lush plant arrangement. This restaurant has the space to host large numbers with a functions menu to match but it also works for a party of two and a bottle of wine.
The menu is significant of the revamp, sporting delicious meals which go far beyond regular pub-grub. Begin with some tempura prawns with crisp bean shoot salad and ponzu dipping sauce. For something light, try the seven-spiced soft shell crab on crispy noodle salad. If it's a hearty meal your belly requests, the lamb shanks on soft polenta with oven-dried tomato and red wine jus will be sure to satisfy. Fish lovers will be smacking their lips over the teriyaki marinated salmon with warm soba noodle salad and toasted sesame seeds. If your sweet tooth gets the better of you, the warm chocolate tart with vanilla bean ice-cream with white chocolate sauce is hard to dismiss. So go on, head up the staircase for a pleasant dining surprise.
Annabel Wise