While not a big beer drinker, I like to try different beers. Here is a great place for a meal and a chance to enjoy different beer flavours.

Decided to take an out-of-state visitor here for the infamous Tuesday Trivia night. I heard a lot about it and it certainly lived up to it's name. Well organised, great hostess, plenty of areas for groups large and small to sit. The food was a bit disappointing. We ordered a couple of bottles of wine - prices were about right for a bar/pub

This place is a great bar if you like your beer and are keen to try different micro brews. For me it's more of an earlier night bar and does get a fair bit of a hipster west end type crowd but it still kicks on late. I haven't tried the food yet but it's meant to be pretty good. One of the better bars in west end

I really like this place as a bit of a Weekend afternoon catch up venue. It generally isn't to crazy busy at those times, so you can easily grab a seat and chat with friends over a beer.
They have a pretty wide range of beers, for about $6 or so each, which I find pretty reasonable. The food less so, it is not an extensive menu and is kinda expensive. That said, you do get a pretty decent serving on your plate.
It has a cool decor, the bar is awesome, normal top but built with old books, I really like it. The walls around the pool table are covered in comic book pages and another wall has bookshelves with more old Readers Digest books. A bit funky to my mind. Have picked up a book on occasion when waiting for late friends, and been happily kept occupied.
The main letdown of this place is the staff. I don't know if it is their intention, but they all maintain an attitude of complete indifference at most times, except when they are talking to each other and ignoring customers at the bar.
Overall, I quite like this place and recommend it definitely for a beer with friends.

I love my beer, and had high hopes for this place. But I left disappointed.

One thing a botique beer bar needs is staff who know what the product they're selling - this was sorely missing from my visit to Archive.

The place was packed, so the service was always a little rushed - I like to look over my menu and choose carefully. Not feeling pressured into making a choice ASAP.

Food left a lot to be desired - the cheese platter did not come as described.

A good place to start your night before heading off somewhere else.

Approximate cost: $6

This is such a great bar to go to for a quiet drink with friends. It has a wide selection of good beers. If unsure of what to order, simply ask the barmen and he'll give you a recommendation.

Approximate cost: $6

I read about this place and decided to visit. It's just a great night out. It's perfect for conversation and a game of pool. It's quirky and fun and plenty of tasty beers. Sure to impress anyone you bring here.

I had recently read about Archive Beer Boutique + Bistro at West End, and after a brief perusal of the two page beer list, the husband and I decided that we would be stupid not to check it out. As avid beer drinkers [and hungry after not having brekky], this seemed too awesome... as if it were too good to be true.

Turns out that it was everything we expected and more! The space is reasonably small [it's under Uber], but so cleverly decked out. There's a sweet outdoor dining area, perfect for people watching, and a cosy interior for the cooler nights. The bar is made of hundreds of stacked old books; the pool table area has been wallpapered in newspaper; and there are sets of comfy old couches tucked away behind the bar. It looks like they've raided every op-shop for the coolest and most comfortable lounges ever.

There are, of course, your frequently found 'boutique' beers - James Squire, Little Creatures and Beez Neez, but given the range of beautiful Australian microbreweries, we would have been stupid to settle for something so easy. Thankfully, with the help of the ultra-knowledgeable bar manager, Sam, the husband and I discovered some beautiful boozes!
I ordered the Bridge Road 'Celtic' Red Ale [$7], while the husband went for the Wicked Elf Pilsner [$9] as we waited for our dip plate to share [$10]. The bread was super-fresh and lightly toasted, and came with hommous, pesto and a beetroot dip. It was all good, except the beetroot dip was... well, liquid. It was like beetroot froth that had settled. Delicious, but bizarre!
As our main was prepared, more beer was ordered - I had a Fusion 'Prime' Ale [$6], and husband had the Pikes Oakbank Pilsner [$6]. We ended up choosing the mixed grill for our main [$60], and realised when it arrived that the breads were a stupid idea.
The plate was piled high with beautifully cooked meats - eye fillet steak, grilled chorizo, lamb cutlets and grilled striped bass. We were expecting to get chicken skewers, but the chef was kind enough to explain that the chicken was not so great, so substituted some chilli prawn skewers instead.
The eye fillet was cooked to perfection, although sliced a bit clumsily; the fish was tender and juicy and got a big thumbs up from the husband. The lamb cutlets were a tad overcooked for our order of medium rare, but still tender and nicely seasoned; while the chorizo was well-sourced - finally, a spicy chorizo in a Brissy restaurant! The late addition of prawn skewers also got a thumbs up from the husband, although I was bummed we ended up with that... I'm one of those [apparent] freaks who just doesn't dig seafood, so I was quite looking forward to some chicken. Still, the red meat was enough to sate my hunger, and we sadly left quite a lot on the plate. The side of green salad and chips were barely touched, and it was decided that we would attempt this meal again at dinner - after not eating all day.
After lunch, we caught up with a friend and played some pool while continuing to amble through the beer list. It's about this time that I start getting hazy with the names - I know I tried a couple of darks (my favourite was the 3 Ravens Dark Smoke Beer at $7), but I basically relied on the knowledge of the bartender. They also had a big list of all tasting notes for the beers, which came in super-handy. A few games of pool and a couple more schooners later, we headed home - excited about this new find and already champing at the bit to return.

The service was greatly friendly, and as mentioned, Sam the barman was a great help in working our way through the extensive beer list. They were out of a few brands, which was a bummer, but it's not like we could exactly complain... they weren't short on replacements! While yes, the meal was expensive, it was worth every cent. The meats were beautifully cooked, and it all came out quite quickly. But the main drawcard for me - affordable boutique beers. The prices varied from $5-$9, with another 4 at $13. There was even a small reserve selection, ranging up to a $50 750ml bottle of Bridge Road Imperial Porter!
All in all - I am totally looking forward to going back. The service, the atmosphere, the beer and the food was all fantastic. The wine list was small and somewhat boring, but you'd be mad to bother with wine at all at this place! I also noticed that they do breakfast until midday. A small list, but reasonably priced - and I'm now contemplating what might be the perfect breakfast beer ;o)

Approximate cost: $30