Bar Fred

Bar Fred

Clem Bastow, Reviewer

Thursday, February 21, 2008

This city-fringe bar's no-nonsense exterior will keep the regulars happily ensconced.

Through BarFly's colourful history we've detailed the importance of having a bar you can call your own; in short, a local. A joint you can stumble to and stumble from without so much as a short-trip Metcard to bother your back pocket, a satellite living room you can conduct your social business from within, somewhere the idea of saying, "The usual, thanks," wouldn't be met with derision or a pamphlet for AA. Residents of Carlton North have another potential favourite to add to their list, with Nicholson Street's seemingly unassuming Bar Fred, another of those city-fringe bars whose no-nonsense exterior will keep the regulars happily ensconced. Tucked in the outer reaches of the main Nicholson Street strip among the dusty chemists, bargain stores and mysterious coffee lounges, you could walk right past Fred if it wasn't for the fact there are usually a handful of stylish types 'aving a wheeze on the footpath. Its low-lit interior is as welcoming on a chilly evening as it is at ...

Full review on The Age