The Settlers Tavern
2 Hely St
West Gosford, Central Coast NSW
The newly renovated Settlers Tavern is somewhere that’s well worth visiting. It’s been lightened and brightened into an area that’s now spacious, airy and bright. It also has some cosier more private areas too. This makes it perfect for couples, friends, families - in fact anyone - to sit, relax and enjoy a meal from the diverse menu on offer here.
Being a lovely warm day, Mlady started with a beer. It seemed appropriate in a tavern! She loves dark beer and as Toohey’s Old was on tap the box was ticked. It was so enjoyable that she had another one later on! Sir chose a smooth Marsden Pale Ale which was also on tap. It seemed appropriate as this was a product of The Marsden Brewhouse which is part of the same broader group, the Laundy Hotel Group.
We were visiting at lunch time so we moved on to ordering food. There’s a diverse new menu here with plenty for everyone. They also have daily Chef’s Specials hat are well worth checking out. For starters, we had the very tasty Settlers Bread. We both enjoy anything that is spicy and/or has chilli and this nice soft crunchy bread was topped with cheese, bacon and sweet chilli sauce - so nice!
We just had to try the chicken wings with spicy mayo. These were so good! They had a beautiful outside crunch with a tender juicy center and dipping them into the spicy mayo was Capital D Delicious. It was hard to stop eating them. We also had a bowl to place the chicken bones in, which was a nice touch.
Sir chose his main from the ‘Chefs Specials’ and had the Reef & Beef. Meat and seafood are a great combination! This was a 280gm Scotch Fillet topped with grilled prawns in a creamy garlic sauce served with chips and salad. The presentation was mouthwatering and it was such a substantial serving. The Scotch Fillet was a very tasty tender piece of meat, beautifully cooked and exactly how he had ordered it - medium rare. The grilled prawns in their creamy garlic sauce went so well and so did the pile of crisp chips and stacks of fresh salad.
Mlady decided on an appetising salad. They have several options available and you can add extras to them as well. She chose the warm pumpkin, fetta and toasted walnut salad, baby spinach, sundried tomatoes, avocado, dukkha tossed in garlic vinaigrette. She added Szechuan pepper squid which is something not often available for a salad addition. Mlady is quite partial to salads and this one, with plenty of spicy squid added, went to another dimension and made for a very tasty substantial meal. Mlady thoroughly enjoyed this.
We did manage to fit in dessert - just - and Sir had the Brownie a La Mode. A chocolate dessert is always going to be popular! This one was two classic warm gluten free brownie squares with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup. Vanilla ice cream is the best with brownies and topped with a chocolate syrup sauce - perfect.
Mlady liked the homemade ice cream sandwiches from Pat and Sticks and had the wonderfully refreshing chocolate peppermint. Chocolate and peppermint go so well together and being in the middle of a soft biscuity ‘sandwich’ made it even better. Mlady loved this. There is also a vegan variety of this lovely home made ice cream.
The food at The Settlers Tavern is fresh, tasty and the servings are big. There’s lots to choose from with something for everyone. They also have a really pleasant outdoor area at the back that is super family friendly (with a massive mural to be added soon) but also just a great outside spot with its own bar.
Sir and Mlady dined as guests of The Settlers Tavern. Special thank you to Adrian, the lovely manager there, for taking time from his busy schedule to talk with us and show us around. Big thank you also to Chef Joy who popped out from her busy kitchen to see us. She’s serving up great food. Thanks also to Rosie and Andre for looking after us.