RCI EV Issue 8 Spring 2013

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Lord Nelson
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Hero of Waterloo
Australians were once ashamed of their
convict past, but now embrace it with
pride. The lively Lord Nelson, in the Rocks,
prominently displays a framed passenger list
from the first fleet of ships bringing prisoners
to Sydney, in 1788, and many a customer
has eagerly searched it for family names.
The 1841 stone pub has been renovated into
a posh, comfortable establishment with a
microbrewery; try the dark porter called
Nelson’s Blood, along with a range of ales.
The kitchen serves fresh ‘ damper’ (campfirebaked
bread that was a staple of pioneer life);
modern Australian delicacies, with fresh crab
and chili; and the quintessential Sydney pub
lunch - beer battered catch of the day (fish).
The oldest Sydney pubs lie in the waterfront district called the Rocks,
where the British first landed, in 1788, to establish Australia as a penal
colony. It wasn’t long before visitors were shocked by the proliferation of
‘grog shops’; rum was even legal tender for a spell. Those wild days can
best be imagined at the Hero of Waterloo, built in 1843 from sandstone
blocks that convicts had carved by hand. In the barracks style interior, ale
is served beneath a portrait of the Duke of Wellington. If the publican
is in the right mood, you may even be offered a tour of the ancient cellar,
one room of which once doubled as a lockup for securing prisoners after
hours and who’s tunnel was used to spirit involuntarily recruited sallies to
the dock.
19 Kent Street lordnelsonbrewery.com
81 Lower Fort Street heroofwaterloo.com.au
ENDLESS VACATION 17