Murray's At Manly Returns

January 12, 2012, by Crafty Pint

Murray's At Manly Returns

In Herman Melville’s epic novel Moby Dick, Captain Ahab spent a lifetime on rough seas pursuing the elusive white whale, a journey that ultimately consumed him. To follow Ahab’s journey today there are two options: (1) smuggle yourself on board a ‘scientific whaling’ vessel, or (2) hop on a ferry to Manly where, in an infinitely more favourable twist on the tale, it will be you who will be consuming the white whale. To the great relief of animal rights activists the latter option does not mean there is a restaurant serving hari-hari nabe and to the great relief of craft beer lovers it does mean that Murray’s is now pouring its flagship Whale Ale on the peninsula.

That Murray’s has opened their own restaurant at one of Sydney’s most iconic beachside locations is perhaps the clearest indication yet that the craft beer scene has moved from dimly lit back sheds towards the mainstream. Murray’s at Manly is the newest addition to the burgeoning craft beer fraternity and as Murray Howe, owner and founder, says “in terms of location, this is the premiership”. It’s hard to argue.

Sitting directly opposite the beach on prime real estate and a prime people-watching position in the sunshine, you can now enjoy a beer good enough to match the surroundings. In fact you can, and probably will, enjoy much more than one beer. The whole Murray’s range is available, which means up to 18 craft beers on tap plus those in bottle and whatever seasonal releases happen to be, well, in season.

A dingy boozer this is not. A wholesale revamp has made the interior naturally bright and airy, with particular attention paid to making the most of the sea views – just so you remember you’re at the beach and it’s OK to kick back and enjoy yourself. That probably explains the cushy seats which make you more inclined to recline. Indeed, such is the relaxed ‘beachy’ vibe of the place it feels more like going to a friend’s modern beach house for a meal – albeit one which can accommodate 300 diners. That’s a lot of people but it’s necessary because, despite the obvious beer connection, this is a restaurant first and foremost. Scratch that, this isn’t a restaurant at all: as the menu states, it’s “a real beer and food adventure”.

What Murray’s at Manly aims to do is introduce craft beer – something not everyone loves – to people via food – something everybody loves. They’ve put together a comprehensive food menu where each item has been carefully matched with one of their beers. From the relatively simple – Fish & Chips with a Whale Ale (Wheat Beer) or Pork Spare Ribs with the Angry Man Pale Ale – to the more complex – Belgian Beef Carbonade with a Heart of Darkness (Imperial Stout) or Vanilla Bean Crí¨me Brulee with a Grand Cru (Trippel/Golden Strong Ale) – there genuinely is something for everyone in terms of both sustenance and liquid refreshment. By serving quality food with a beer of equal quality, the overall dining experience is enhanced and customers head home with a better understanding of the virtues of quality craft beer.

As remarkable as it seems, not everyone knows about craft beer. Not yet anyway. With this in mind, dining at Murray’s is designed to be as approachable as possible to the newcomer. In addition to the beer and food matching, staff will happily give recommendations, explain curious terms like ‘IPA’ and ’hand pump’ and provide samples. Removing some of the intimidation about beer – yes, it can be intimidating – helps to get people talking about the beer which in turn is a good starting point to getting them interested in it.

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Murray Howe (left) with head brewer Shawn Sherlock

Having only reopened in late December 2011 following the refit the venue is still very new, so the real test of converting the masses lies ahead. Among planned events are regular Beer & Cheese and Beer & Chocolate matching classes, as well as Meet the Brewer sessions. Pushing the quality craft beer message is something Murray’s is particularly keen to get behind, not solely for their own business but for craft brewers and craft beer in general. To that end, they also have plans for Tap Takeovers where smaller Australian craft brewers will get exposure to a market that would otherwise be virtually impossible to reach.

Murray’s enthusiasm and passion for craft beer has taken the business from dreaming of selling a keg of IPA a week in rural NSW to having a venue at one of the more prominent foreshores in Sydney. Even for an industry on the rise, setting up shop at Manly is a bold statement of intent, one which should be wholeheartedly encouraged by anyone interested in seeing quality craft beer make it into more hearts, minds and pint glasses.

Whale watching on the east coast has always been a popular activity but, thanks to Murray’s, it’s gotten a whole lot better.

Thanks to Nick Oscilowski, a Kiwi craft beer lover who moved to Sydney a few months and was initially shocked at how little good beer he could find so began to dig a little deeper and gradually found what he was looking for. That inspired him to start his blog, then he found The Crafty Pint, got in touch and here’s his first article for us. Hopefully, there will be more to come.

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