DiCK's Hotel Balmain — Restaurant in Sydney

I visited Dick’s Hotel in Balmain the other weekend with some friends, and unfortunately, four of us ended up with food poisoning. We ordered a mix of meals, including chicken parmigiana, steak, and tacos. The steak arrived surprisingly fast—within about five minutes—which seemed a little off, but we didn’t think much of it at the time. Some of my friends who also had a parmigiana didn’t get sick, so it’s unclear whether the issue was food that had been left out too long or possible cross-contamination in the kitchen.

The next day, I called the hotel to report what happened and requested a refund. I was told the manager would call me back the following day, but after waiting two days without a response, I followed up again. When I finally spoke to the manager, she was apologetic and mentioned she had spoken with the owners. However, rather than a refund, they offered a bottle of wine as a goodwill gesture. While I appreciate the offer, it didn’t feel like an appropriate resolution given that four of us became ill after dining there.

When I politely declined and reiterated my request for a refund, I was told they don’t issue refunds due to concerns that some people try to take advantage of the policy. While I understand their position, it was disappointing to feel like our experience wasn’t fully acknowledged. The manager assured me they checked that everything in the fridge was in date, but food safety goes beyond expiry dates—it includes storage, handling, and kitchen hygiene.

If you’re planning to eat here, I’d recommend being mindful of their food safety practices. While the staff were apologetic, the overall handling of the situation could have been...

My friends sent me in on Australia Day to buy a bottle of rosé for a pool party, but I was so taken with the decor, the atmosphere & the friendly staff that I convinced them to come back with me later. I’m an omnivore who can drink & eat anything at all, but my friends are vegetarian & have several other dietary issues, so we shared some vego pizza & vego nachos, which were very tasty and filling, and ordered a carafe of watermelon sangria, which was the perfect drink for a hot day. I loved how friendly and attentive the staff were, and the set of house rules chalked on a wall. One of them was “No customer wifi, don’t even ask. Talk to each other instead.”, which is exactly what people should be doing rather than ignoring each other & interacting with their phones. There’s plenty of time for that on the bus ride home. Top place to dine or drink or both. We will...

Literally the worst management of a situation , I have seen. I know it was Anzac Day but we arrived specifically 2 hours early to watch the Anzac Day AFL clash . Got the tail end of first match ( Swans) and were through the second quarter of the Collingwood , Essendon game on a table we kept for the whole time. Disco is going but at least we had the screen ( downstairs had NRl) Duty manager comes up and without consulting anyone changes it to NRL . No one was watching the screen except our table. He then goes all full on I should kick you out when I question him. If this is customer service in the new world leave this place alone . Return it to the least attended pub in Balmain as it was in the 1980s when I...