A NEW KIND OF LOCAL

The old bottle-o drive-through is gone. In its place: a coastal glow-up that's finally giving the Pottsville Tavern the audience it deserves.

Despite always having a true local following, there are still plenty of Tweed Coast residents who'd admit they'd never set foot inside the Tavern. Slightly out of the way, tucked behind the memory of a drive-through bottle shop and a reputation that hadn't quite caught up with the times, it's one of those spots that's easy to drive past without ever pulling in. If that sounds familiar, or you're further afield wanting to explore something different, this one's for you. Because the Pottsville Tavern has changed. Completely.

Established in 1999, the Tavern — set just off sparkling Mooball Creek — has always been a fixture of the town: TAB, Keno, a dog-friendly beer garden, a locals' local in every sense. But a recent, extensive refurbishment has turned that quiet fixture into something else entirely: a bright, contemporary coastal space that wouldn't look out of place in Byron or Kingscliff.

The transformation started, fittingly, with the bathrooms. "We did the bathrooms first while we waited on the DA," says venue manager Adrian Costello — a decision that says more than you'd realise. Nice bathrooms, the ones that feel like a plush hotel, are a signal: this is a place that cares about the details. From there, the rest of the venue followed, right down to the gaming room — traditionally the deadest space in any pub. Now, open-air skylights and garden beds sit built directly into the room, so that on a rainy day the water trickles straight down into the greenery below. A small, deliberate touch that changes the whole feel of a space usually left forgotten.

That same instinct for light carries through the venue. The palette is calm and coastal, the furniture the kind you can sink into for a long lunch or a longer Saturday night without once wanting to leave. And the drive-through bottle shop everyone remembers? Relocated to the front of the complex, making way for a layout designed properly around dining, drinking and staying a while. Cayas + Ward Architects – Australia’s leading architects in pubs, clubs, restaurants and bars – led the redesign, and it shows. This isn't a lick of paint over old bones; it's a genuine rethink of what the space is for.

What it's for, it turns out, is everything. The sports bar is a serious drawcard, complete with pool table, electronic dartboard and Foxtel coverage no one else in the area offers — every UFC card, every Boxing Main Event, packed out and buzzing. Wander a few steps further, though, and you'll find an altogether different atmosphere: an exceptional wine list, cocktails made properly from scratch, and a kitchen turning out food that has no business being this good at a pub. The wagyu steak has quickly become the thing people talk about. The prawn and crab ravioli sells out. The smash burger — by all reports — is a genuine problem for anyone trying to eat sensibly. Nothing is pre-cooked, nothing frozen; even the chicken parmy is crumbed fresh daily, finished with Byron Bay mozzarella.

There's a version of this venue for drinks on a Friday after work, and a version for a slow Sunday lunch that turns into a game of pool and an afternoon beer. All-day dining runs through Friday to Sunday, and for anyone worried about the drive home, a courtesy bus runs Sunday to Friday from 4pm, and Saturday from 2pm, right through to close. Found on Overall Drive, just off the main road with plenty of free parking on hand, it's an easy one to pull into whenever the mood strikes.

Families are welcome too, with a kids' playground, a weekend face painter and an ice cream trolley doing the rounds with seven flavours.

A fully separate event space, seating up to 40 with its own acoustic set-up, also makes the "where to book" question an easy one. Ready for anything from a work luncheon to a milestone birthday, the space carries the same contemporary coastal feel as the rest of the venue — considered lighting, greenery threaded through the room, a palette that sits somewhere between beachside and boutique — so it never feels like a function room bolted onto a pub. Fast becoming the go-to for end-of-year functions too, with Melbourne Cup and Christmas parties already filling the calendar, it’s worth locking in early if you're planning ahead.

What comes through most, talking to the people behind it, is intention. This is a venue that's become a community hub — a place for the people and tourists of Pottsville and the surrounding areas alike, hiring locally and building something that belongs to the town rather than simply sitting in it. "Our biggest focus is providing an atmosphere where people want to stay a bit longer," says Adrian.

So, if you've driven past for years and never pulled in, now's the time. Pottsville's newest local secret isn't a secret for much longer.

pottsvilletavern.com.au