Maltnhops Brewhaus — Restaurant in Newcastle-Maitland

UPDATE: First visit way back was great. Not today. On holiday and was waiting eagerly to get back while in the area. Drove 40km circuit to visit.

Up front: Beers still awesome. Cam's pizzas are still awesome. But Cam acted like we were an inconvenience in the early afternoon of a midweek day.

Between us . . . BETWEEN US . . . we requested three samples prior to ordering a schooner each. These were local beers so needed to try before buying to know if we liked them. He cuts in with a sarcastic tone, "Ya wanna go for a tasting paddle?!" Don't mind the question; do mind the attitude.

There were some non-local beers on tap. He said they were a lot more expensive than their own due to tax. Not a problem. Trying to chat, I said I didn't realise that their own brews were subject to less tax. With his back turned, he muttered about the extra taxes. I asked about the taste of a certain beer. Response? "I don't know anything about it; it's not one of ours."

We thought he was having a bad day so cut some slack. But, five minutes later, he's happily whistling a tune behind the bar. No, not a bad day . . . just being grumpy with us tourists.

If I want a schooner slapped in front of me, I'll go to the local bowlo. At a brewery, it's about the experience: A friendly inter-change, maybe a bit of info on the beer I'mlooking at, and a good beer to top it off . . . done this right around Australia, NZ, and Vietnam.

In view of other reviews complaining of similar experiences, I'm not sure they're checking what people are saying. Or do they not care? It's a shame considering my original review below:

Un-stinking-believable! Cold weather but warm inside. Tried three beers . . . all spot on. And friendly service by Cam. Highlight of...

Fellow craft beer enthusiasts in Sydney had been raving about the quality of beers being put out by MaltnHops so had to come and see for myself.

Started off with the Pilz which was exactly what I needed after a busy day on the road and managed to get there just in time to grab the last pizza of the night which was pretty good.

I was flying solo so pulled up a seat at the bar to have a chat with Cam who was working the taps and get a bit of history about the joint, the surrounding region and the beers. Cam is one of the OG’s of the Brewery so he had plenty of stories to share and was happy to chat while serving the locals and cleaning up for the night, awesome bloke!

Didn’t have a bad beer all night, standouts for me were the Red IPA (bloody sensational) and the NEIPA.

Overall awesome spot that I need to get back to in the not so distant future, especially when the dark beers start gracing the taps over the...

Everyone has limits about how rudely they're prepared to be treated when they walk into a business, before turning around and walking out. This guy exceeded that limit within five mins of my arriving - taking his frustration out on every metal item he had behind the bar. I worked in hospo for a lot of years and there was no excuse for it. I'm sorry you're having a bad day mate, but that's not my fault. I look forward to the response from the owner about what I did wrong to justify...