Royal Oak Hotel - Home of Minh Khoi Vietnamese — Restaurant in Kilmore

Tonight we travelled to Kilmore to celebrate my friend's 50th birthday. We were having a lovely time dancing and lauging at Macs hotel. When she told.me I had to run from Macs closing at 11 to be in the Royal Oak which advertised open till 1 I thought it was a joke... but half the party were 2 minutes late! A woman stood guarding the door and was absolutely disgracefully rude. So we had no choice but to go home and my friend's birthday was ruined. She called me later in tears because one of the 15 year old bar staff had deemed her too intoxicated to buy a drink! She'd only had 2 drinks before hand ! A single mother, workaholic, wildlife carer, who does so much for kilmore community and rarely has the opportunity to go out, was shattered to be so disrspected and condemned. Then she was belittled being forced to say she was argumenrtutative when she had not even been the one asking for a drink to begin with. This bar is a joke. Run by a control freak narcissist with no regard for any one. I am grateful to be back in Melbourne where we have a choice and not have to deal with someone controlling our social lives. I really hope Kilmore residents are given an alternative option soon. It embarrassing that their social lives are overseen by this...

Edit: 07/05/2024 Chef left and kitchen closed at time of update.

I love the food, friendly staff, and learning about different beers. Only took me 20 years to find out. We judge our experiences against our expectations. This is a solid old fashioned hotel with a heart of gold. The kitchen team provide large delicious bistro meals. No fancy ambience. Just a great feed and drink at affordable prices. The bar staff are lovely and have been helping me learn more about a range of beers. I’ve uploaded some photos. I try to only review after attending on multiple occasions to judge consistency. I’ve only had great experiences.

Edit: I’m going weekly to try out the menu. The steak tonight was delicious. (Photo). I’m a very happy customer. Love the White...

Firstly I looked at the place on line and when arriving the bistro looked completely different. The appearance has nothing going for it. Secondly if you order anything with garlic there is no garlic so take your own. Fish was excellent. Scotch steak medium rare dry as the Simpson desert and I did question it as it was pricey and they insisted it was medium rare. Squid you can cook better out of the packet. Garlic prawns no garlic. Chicken Parma just acceptable. Chocolate mess and ice cream not desirable. But try it yourself and let me know...