The Carine Review

Review by Tom Zaunmayr

The Carine has a rich and vibrant history, although in recent years has become a dreary & quiet location, far away from the 50 metre lines of its hay day. Its most recent takeover however has seen a revamped an energetic nightspot develop in the heart of the Northern suburbs.

It all still looks the same – black leather couches & vintage stitched seats surround fake marble tables all facing the big screen during the day. The beer garden still has the same wooden furniture dispersed amongst the greenery and the sports bar is still the same generic, basic set up.

Come night time on the weekend though and the ‘Reen’ comes to life. Its weekly ‘Ditch Friday’ event sees some of the best of Ministry of Sound & local DJs spinning the tunes above the lounge-turned-dance floor. $5 tapas and $7 house pints make it a cheap place to start a night out if you live around the Sorrento area.

Saturday nights have more of the same with modern songs mixing in well with the super hits of yesteryear (unless there’s a major sporting event on) whilst a revamped Sunday sess sees live acoustic bands laying a casual atmosphere over the crowd to soak up the last hours of the weekend in peace.

During the week you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone besides blue-collar workers knocking off for an early pint, but the night brings those keen to dance. It’s great seeing middle-aged divas sharing the floor with the young ones in peace.

The mix of old and young gives The Carine an interesting feel: it’s very laid back and you don’t feel like you could end up in trouble with one wrong move – as is the case with many clubs these days. There is very little animosity amongst the crowd, everyone accepts and respects each other, plenty of friendly hellos to be heard all night.

The bar staff are always very easy-going; they don’t look like they’re being forced against their will to be there, and know how to have a conversation past the standard grunts and groans. Being owned by Woolies means that pricing is biased towards Woolworths Sail & Anchor brand beer – at just seven dollars a pint, or $19.50 for an extra large jug. The same goes for the Woolies owned wine & spirit brands.

The rest of the drinks list is a tad on the expensive side, with the average pint costing $10-$11. The wine list is short, but they do cover all the bases from sweet white to fruity red – mostly Australian brand names. The spirits list is a little longer, with an adequate array of white, red, brown, green, yellow, blue and everything in between lining the bar wall.

The Carine is a relaxed local tavern, reinventing itself with a fresh look to appeal to modern generations, whilst still retaining the friendly, down-to-earth feel you expect from a local. Great for post work & pre clubbing drinks, but don’t expect a whole night there to be labeled ‘best ever’.



Make a Function Enquiry