The Governor Hotel Review

Great food friendly happy staff lots of space to social distance nice and close to work and then station for commute home

Expensive beers and food crispy skin Atlantic salmon on mashed peas could have a mixed mash instead and a small leaf salad

I recently visited the Gov for the first time with a bunch of friends for their bottomless brunch. Great food, great drinks, great service! Couldn't have had a better experience. Will definitely be visiting again in future!

Arrived here to meet some friends for dinner, and my partner wasn t allowed in due to his haircut. Couldn t even have a meal... shocking

Don't get the Wagyu MB8+ 300g because it's definitely not MB8+.

Even after having it medium rare which the chef couldn't achieve, the steak itself should not be this dry. I left more than half of my steak on the plate.

It's sad to say but even Rashay's surprisingly has Wagyu 4+ & that will definitely melt in your mouth, even if they accidentally overcooked it.

Overall I do love the place, however the staff has not been too friendly lately & I'm there often to conduct client lunch meetings, but I'm starting to find myself having those meetings elsewhere.

It's a shame. It is what it is.

Modern decor, amazing Italian pizza and great bar staff. Ample street parking and close to metro and buses

It's a giant trendy pub really. Three or so floors, with multiple bars and VIP areas. It's a decent spot for end of year events, and even a nightclub upstairs. The rooftop seating and bar is nice though a little dicey in the rain. The view isn't much to write home about as its roadways.
The drinks are above average price wise, you're looking at $10 for a schooner so having drinks here hurts.
Food wise the menu is decent and priced more on par with its competitors. We've tried the pizzas, burgers, steaks and most of the deserts. These average around $21 and for fancier dishes like salmon you in the mid to high 30s.
The governor is probably the best large venue for the general area, though it was described to me as a 3 story 'ranch' for comparison. We gave it more love than that but it's got some room to improve.
Also parking is a nightmare, catch the metro or else you're parking in nearby businesses spaces and taking a walk.

Menu was restricted due to blackouts and was ID checked sitting at a table after already getting ID checked at the door but other than that the parmy I had was excellent as it was perfectly tender, full of flavour and hit the spot just right, I also liked the ability to close the booth doors to the rest of the restaurant. Overall would go again as the food was amazing

Great atmosphere - quick service and friendly staff. Would definitely come back again.

Hotel is very lovely and has good atmosphere. The wait staff are super helpful and go above and beyond to make your evening a good night. We had the tacos for dinner and a pizza and they were delicious! Highly recommend!

Beautiful established, unfortunately toxic staff with no sense of customer service. Walked in and given table for 2. Ordered bottle of red and two gourmet cheese burgers. Waited more than 30 minutes. Approach bay host/waiter and got told not asked to move our table to cubicle and close the door to avoid noise from Optus party. I kindly said that I do not want to sit in the noise and we just want our burger and then we will go. Well our burgers got called from the grill and served raw while the manager and his 2 sidekicks starring us up and down to choke our burger and move on. Female waiter approached and took the tamato sauced bottle which was empty from our table and said it was not for us. I would gladly Spend my money somewhere else Unfortunately the worst experience ever at any establishment. I would highly not recommend this establishment.

Great service. I interacted with maybe half a dozen staff members, from the person who greeted us at the door, to the helpful staff that got some plates and some water. Every interaction was friendly.

The food was good, the decor is modern. I hope these guys do well.

Probably the best place in the Ryde area for a catchup a meal and a chat. Slightly pricey food and drinks. However, ambience and feel of this place is great! Highly recommended!

Absolutely the worst experience I ve had. The staff were so rude and disrespectful! My best friend just walked out of the most beautiful church ceremony for her wedding day, ready to capture the moment at Governor Hotel. Two staff members rudely interrupted our preliminary photos in the car park and then proceeded to kick us out. It was rude and it ruined my best friend s wedding photos. As I write this we are driving around trying to find a new venue to capture the photos and I could not be more disappointed for her. Absolutely despicable behaviour from the staff members

Dhwanil and Abhi are the most amazing staff members. They made us feel so welcomed and their service was extremely impressive. I will definitely go to the Governor again due to these gentlemen.

P.S. they made a mean cocktail

Okay place but lots of teething issues they need to sort out. Was there on Sunday with a few mates. Went to the roof top bar and my mate was asked to remove his hat (we were sitting outside in full sun). It s a roof top bar!!!! Would love to know if they will continue to ban hats in the hotter months.

Just stupid and un necessary rules. Stop trying to pretend you re in the eastern suburbs. You re in North Ryde.

They also have bottle service where you can buy a whole bottle of spirits. An example of their craziness is charging $400 for a bottle of scotch that retails for $80.

Staff were very nice but the management need to iron out some stupid rules

Love Helena best Gaming Goddess ever and Chelsea the licensee has been very helpful would never go anywhere else with the service here

Great place, friendly staff and great food options. Loved it!!

Heaps of room, great food and plenty if drinks to choose from.

The Hotel is very well appointed. Covid19 practices are top notch. Have had two lunches there in the last week and the food I chose both times were very generous and tasty. Love the intimate cubicles and decor. Will be returning again.

Better than El Rancho but not great. Not really good value and awkward location (parking)

Nice venue. They have salsa on the rooftop from 3pm on Saturdays. We're still waiting for other dancers to arrive!

A great pub - a little pricey, however upon arriving the security forced me to download an app. This is pretty much malware and unacceptable in 2020. Please update your sign in policies

Aj I think her name is, best gaming hostess I have ever come across. Beer is expensive af.... but the place has a nice feel about it

Great food. Great drink...and looks fabulous inside and out. Fantadtic rooftop bar available. It's a great place have a couple of drink after work and meet up with friends. 5/5 star. Worth the visit.

After ordering and paying for a meal I was not issued a tax invoice. I repeatedly asked for one. The duty manager was responsible for printing out the invoice but had failed to do so and also failed to notify me so that I was waiting for more than 30 mins. Ultimately, I had to ask again - where he told me the printer was jammed and he sent me a photo of the partial invoice. Not once did he apologize and he asked me to go print it out on my own when I asked him to have a printed copy for me the following day.

Upon leaving, I called the hotel because I noticed the invoice was a partial invoice without the total written. I was very upset because of the waiting and the incompetence of the staff. Instead of understanding the customer, when Luke answered the phone he continued to belittle me. I believe he expressed disrespect for me as a woman and probably also an Asian woman. Regardless, of the reason there was 0 respect. I reminded him that I am a paying customer and he gave no care.He just told me to come back tomorrow at no unspecified time since he could not guarantee the printer working for my tax invoice.

I told him , I'd like to talk to his manage but he had no idea when his manager would be working again and was adamant that he was the highest manager at the Governor...

Throughout the whole process, he did not issue any apology .

My complaint is that the staff are unfit for their position and they don't know how to handle angry customers or even basic technology and what to do when it doesn't work -- like issue a handwritten tax invoice. In the end, I still have not received my tax invoice.

I am part of a business that frequently goes here for dinner -- but I can tell you myself and my company are done here.

A place with great atmosphere & beautiful view at the roof top. Good variety of Japanese beer and whiskey. The bar food is also above average & not too expensive.

Nice meals but menu seems the same since opened. A bit on the expensive side for what it is.

It was my birthday on 31.10., the Sunday before I went there with my 5 gfs for dinner and I got to download the Momento app in order to get a free voucher for my birthday meal, when the d-day came, the staff who appeared to be the manager wasn t helpful to me at all, I asked her ways on how I can secure my meal, she didn t seem amused all she was saying check your email or check at your address maybe it has been mailed .... and ended up charging me for my meal that I didn t even plan for, overall I was disappointed by the service and she barely even smiles at customers.

Great looking place, free transport to cooperate places. A little expensive on the menu but regardless it was good experience.

Don t bother doing Bottomless Brunch unless Alex is your Mixologist. He is amazing - knows exactly what your taste is and will match you to a cocktail. Definitely a must do at The Governor if you can request Alex! Overall great service, will definitely be booking the Brunch again and requesting Alex.

Great pub excellent experience from the front door. Great sign in using the app getting members discounts. Food and Beverage both of the highest standards. Very well appointed and helpful and friendly staff. Would give them more than 5 stars if I could.

Great place to meet. Friendly staff. Nice food. Would recommend

They are really working towards staying covid safe. Also I am obsessed with the Spinach Pide it is delicious

It's pretty good place to have few beers with a friends.

Great spot for Melbourne cup. Great service all round.

Very good ambience.Diffently wouldnt recommend the Pho for lunch.No where close to the aunthentic one

A fine establishment, there are definitely enough reasons to come back.

What's good: decor is nice, fresh, and clean. Lighting is spot on. Staff all excellent and helpful. Trivia host is good. Good selection of drinks.

What's not so good: Chicken schnitzel didn't come with gravy/sauce, I thought the kale slaw would taste better with some dressing, and was quite dry. Cheese burger also felt a bit plain. Could do with a couple of other burger options (burger with the lot maybe). Limited parking, if on site fills up then street parking is metered until 7pm from what I saw. Would be good if designated overflow parking could be organised. If it gets busy at the rear bar, doors that lead to the area start to get blocked and there's no way around it as far as I could see.

Excellent venue in the local area. Food priced too high by at least 15%

Wonderful to come to such a relaxed place with so much to offer, recommend it to everyone

The food and drinks were very good and decor was nice. Unfortunately there was not a lot of parking so after being stuck in the parking lot as people were continuing to enter as there was no signage I drove past 5 spots unused but reserved and another 5 blocked by a single car. The side streets weren't much better with most of it being no parking till 8pm. So overall as much as I liked the other things the parking really brought it down so couldn't award 5 stars.

Good place with decent food but little expensive....

Good atmosphere friendly staff, good food. The place buzzes at lunch time

Great casual drinking pub around Macquarie Park! They have expanded to have a roof top bar as well! Top food is the cheese burger with chips.

Fabulous venue and great staff! Thanks for the hospitality

Great venue, awesome staff and great drinks menu. Only small let down is the food so often falls short of everything else around it. The tastiest thing on the menu, brisket Ramen, was taken off and replaced with a mediocre beef pho.

Amazing venue, super spacious and a good selection of food & drink. My 3 stars is because of the menu pricing (members & visitors); no one is able to become a member yet so everyone has to pay higher price. Also, in this day and age, there is no reason to charge eftpos & amex surcharges; this should ve been worked into pricing beforehand.

Place is okay, but is located in a quiet area of Macquarie park and there is not much else around the area.
Parking onsite is a bit confusion too, there's signs that all say VIP member parking only so it does not seem they want guest to park and provide no other parking spots.
Was unable to goto the rooftop due to the rain, and dined downstairs.
Food was average, ordered the MS8 rump medium, it was not rested long enough and still had blood dripping. It definately was not as fatty as you would expec tg from a MS8. The tomatoes that came with it were nice and very acidic to help cut the richness of the meat but they only gave 2 tomatoes which definately was not enough and the dish does not come with any other salad.
My friend ordered the gnocchi which did not look appealing at all, they were unable to finish the dish.

Food could be better for the price. Service was ok.

Always a nice place to go. The rooftop and bistro was closed which was a shame.

Great food. Had a Burger and a Noodle dish.. Great service and very pleasant surroundings .

Below ordinary food. Expensive for what you get! Nice place, but expensive. Luckily the company was excellent.

Pizzas are great and awesome selection of beers on tap.

Busy. Martini was... Fine. The pub food was fine. Very corporate infested.

This is literally the best pub in the area (Chatswood, Ryde, Macquarie etc.)!

There are multiple venues in one:

- Downstairs bistro and "garden" - perfect for a casual meal with family, evening meal with friends or even a function. Food here is great: from pizzas to poke bowls.

- Downstairs bar and gaming launge - great for a quick drink or a long night with friends.

- Rooftop Bar - this is far too cool for the area. Great vibes and good snack food (like the photo), which is different to the menu downstairs.

For those that read the negative reviews I can say a few things. All the staff I have met have been really nice and I've been to all areas multiple times because I live around corner. Also if looking half respectable is the price you pay for having a cool place in the area, I will pay it no questions asked. For those not prepared, the ranch is right around the corner but it's nothing on the Governor.

I highly recommend you check this place out.

Good ambience, have to still check out the rooftop bar

The venue is nice enough. The review is based solely on the meals that were overpriced and not fresh. We had the green bowl with chicken, everything was cold and pre-prepared and the chicken which was an extra $6 was not warm and fresh as you'd expect, it was cold and had clearly come out of packet. The second dish was almost the same price for some cold egg and sprouts, again no prep worthy of the price. It was edible but at almost $30 for cold pre-packaged food it was not worth the cost.

Love that you can book online. Went in on a Sunday night and the staff we really friendly and chatty which is always nice. Greeted and shown to our table by the host who was great at explaining and showing us around and accommodating.
Honestly didn't expect much from the fried chicken but it was amazing.. the only annoying thing was that it was a little difficult to get to the sauce to dip the chicken. There either needs to be more sauce, or maybe a wider/more shallow dish to serve it in. The steak was cooked well, to the requested medium rare.
It's nice seeing the waiters take pride in the setup of the coasters and place settings. Small details go a long way in my eyes.
Thank you for finally establishing a place close to home with great food.
The only down side was parking..and that there are limited spots, especially since street parking around the area is paid until 7pm :(

Ordered the pho as small meal expecting to eat a delicious broth with fresh beef. Instead I received a deconstructed nightmare - the flavour-lacking broth was served in a tea-pot next to the beef which was in a novelty top hat (huh)? Inside the hat was the beef topped with what seemed to be an entire cut up raw tomato and handful of mint. The whole thing was terrible and overpriced for a cup (hat) of soup.

To top things of the whole thing was served on a piece of slate meaning I had to have a staff member take it to my table despite the bistro having a food pickup point. The cherry on top was that the staff member gave me a knife and a fork, no spoon.

All up a really weird experience. I'd cut the pho and keep to pub food. Hmmmn....

Great trivia night on Tuesday. Good place to hang out

Very disappointing experience. We were a group of 50 people, pre-booked our pre-dinner drinks and food, gave all information requested weeks in advance and confirming late last week. Was really looking forward to the evening based on reviews. Well, the reality was far from pleasant.

Our pre-dinner drinks arrived while we were being served our main meals. There was one barman making 50 drinks.

We were given a room with tiny tables suited for peanuts/chips rather than eating a meal. When checking if there was a mistake, we were told no, we were expected to cut into a steak/ hot dinner on the tiny table with enough room for 2 people at best. We were told the main indoor dinning area was fully booked, but we saw only vacant tables for the entire time we were there.

The day manager was unhelpful, uncaring (if indeed a mistake had been made) and downright rude in the short time she talked to us before running off. She left the sorting out to the "evening" manager, who was not only unhelpful but also invisible.

To top that off, they tried to offload more deserts to us then what we ordered. Perhaps, the main room bookings were no-shows?

Never again to the Governor and will be telling all our friends and colleagues to go to one of the many other restaurants available in the area.

Always packed at lunchtime on a Friday! The vibe and service is great, but the food a little hit and miss. Have had some fantastic meals there as well as some not so good ones.
The rooftop bar is lovely.

Good size venue on the bottom and great bar staff and host staff; however, was quite disappointing that the rooftop bar was closed when I went there. Will give it another go next time the rooftop is open.

A fabulous night birthday celebration., chilly though, the gorgeous Nicole warmed us with her beautiful manner and also brought us a heater and a new gas bottle was needed! Above and beyond the call of duty, thank you Nicole

Good bar and plenty of space. Location just means there isnt much to look out onto from the rooftop

Great service and lovely food. Acoustics could be better, but definitely a fun venue.

A number of us went on a Tuesday night and found that there was no onsite parking available and no nearby street parking. We were surprised that a venue of this size had so few parking spaces and was located in such an unfriendly environment. Given that, it was also a little offensive to see unused spaces reserved for VIPs. The options were to park on private property nearby or walk a few blocks and pay for parking. Arriving a little stressed, we found that the Governor is a beautiful space that offers great food and drinks but we're still upset about the parking.... How bad is it on a Friday!?

Surprisingly great pub and needed in the area. Awesome food, great menu choices. Trendy setting and atmosphere. No table service was disappointing.

Lovely place to have a meal and celebrate with family and friends. Good food and great service. Clean, open venue. Would recommend.

Great pub in an area with almost no competition. Expect it to be busy during Friday lunch time and if you re in a group, making a booking. Good choices of beer and the food is great. Highly recommend hanging out in the rooftop bar. Maybe doesn t have the same view as something in the City but it definitely has a cool vibe and is pretty chilled out.

A bit expensive, but food is good and atmosphere is nice.

Random vibe and place as it attracts an eclectic crowd. But happy hour margaritas on the roof top is great.
It s just an over sized bistro, where you have to order food at the counter, and collect it once your buzzer alerts you- not great value considering the lack of service