Charlies Rooftop — Restaurant in Newcastle-Maitland

Looks the part but unfortunately does not execute! Arrived for happy hour drinks and had a fizz, they were ok but wouldn’t get one again.

We sat at the table for a while and after a fair few staff walking past us, we thought maybe it’s order at the counter which turned on to be correct. It would be helpful for staff to communicate this when they take you to the table or even just have it in the menu as we made sure to check.

As I went to the bar to order, one of the bar girls chatting behind the bar coughed but she did it into a closed fist rather than into her shoulder/arm as you would when working in hospitality.

We had dinner, ordering 5 different share plates as they sounded delicious and the photos do make them look decent but unfortunately not overly the case.

Kingfish Crudo was cut super thick which is more unusual, the dish was super bland as lacking any decent flavour. There was some green puree looking like it could be wasabi which it wasn’t luckily but after reviewing the menu, learned it was avocado and can only imagine it was the “avocado puree” that comes in a tub as it has no taste. The dish could have used citrus and salt to elevate the dish.

Tuna Tartare also similar lacking flavour, the salt and vinegar crisps added a little of something but overly was also bland.

Beef Carpaccio was nice cuts of beef but lacking flavour again and the shaved pecorino was way too thickly shaved so mostly wasted.

Zucchini flowers were nice with good filling but the batter held too much oil and a little salt would help to offset.

The Szechuan Squid with Blood Plum sauce was the nicest dish of all. The sauce was pretty tasty.

Presentation of dishes was nice but lacked so much flavour leaving the overall meal super disappointing.

Atmosphere is nice.

I would only say this place is good for a catch up over some drinks and a small plate of food (I’d enjoy the squid again in a casual catch up). Overall it was an underwhelming experience and as there are way too many good options in Newcastle to eat and drink at, we wouldn’t feel the need...

Really disappointing experience overall.

We were super excited to check out Charlies Rooftop - it looked fun and fresh. The experience ended up being a perfect example of how different portrayals on social media can be to reality.

When we arrived, we weren’t even sure if the door person worked there. They were so disinterested and we said hello only assuming they worked there because why else would you stand in a doorway awkwardly like that.

None of the staff said anything to us at all when we walked in. It was a chore to order a cocktail and took a long time, we were as good as invisible to the bar staff. The bar was not busy.

Unfortunately for us when our chilli margs arrived they tasted like actual fire and took a long time to drink. We ended up there until close and the staff let us know this by turning the lights on… but not saying a word. We looked over to the bar staff and one of them just smirked at us. No one said a word to us as we were leaving and we ended...

I decided to go with 3 of my girlfriends because of the the amazing photos on instagram. We had high hopes of a great experience but that's not what we got. I ordered 3 margaritas and a gin and tonic. The first gin and tonic was served in a plastic kids cup with a dirty rim so I asked for another one and that was also dirty but my girlfriend wiped it and continued to drink out of the kids cup. The margaritas were terrible so much ice hard to drink no salt and $22 each. I returned them and said we were unhappy and the waiter behind the counter couldn't care less he just removed the ice and attempted to salt the glasses. Glass was not even quarter full as he tipped it out removing the ice. No apologie. We couldn't wait to leave and were so disappointed. Will not be recommending this...