The Great Schnitty Search - Part 2

February 6, 2025

The chicken schnitzel (with chips, of course) is a staple of pub and café menus. With so many places offering this delicacy around the area, Oberon Matters embarked on a journey to try them all.

Never say we're short of places to eat around here.

Royal Hotel, Oberon - $25 (or $27 with gravy or $17 if you know the secret password)

A very nice schnitzel in very nice surroundings. The chip are exceptional.

There is one problem with having a chicken schnitzel for lunch at the Royal. Here is what it says on the menu.

If you turn over the menu after paying $27 for your lunchtime schnitty, you see this.

Asking for an explanation as to why you were charged $10 more than what should have been expected you are told that the special price only applies at lunchtime (it was 1:30pm, so definitely lunchtime) and that you have to specifically ask for the special price. Oberon Matters won't be back.

7/10 (This would have been a much higher score if a schnitzel served at lunchtime had been offered at the lunchtime price.)

Tarana Hotel - $25 (or $20 if you come on Wednesday evening)

One of the best schnitzels Oberon Matters has ever had was at this pub. It wasn't quite perfect this time, but the discounted price (which came without being asked for, unlike some other places), the lovely salad and the delicious gravy made up for that. Reckless beer is discounted on Wednesdays too, doubling the win for a mid-week feed. And yes, there were too many chips to eat them all.

And it's another pub with a nice view.

9.5/10, but make sure you go on Wednesday for a bargain.

Oberon Rainbow Restaurant - $22

An Australian meal in a Chinese restaurant accompanied by a Mexican beer (actually made in China!), What could go wrong with this mixture of cultures?

Well, nothing really. The chicken was moist, the chips were plentiful and there was bacon as well. Bacon! One of the five major food groups.

9.5/10 (Extra points for the bacon.)

Oberon Golf Club

The restaurant at the club only serves "Australian" meals on Mondays and Tuesdays (or only Tuesdays if the Monday is a public holiday) and the rest of the time it is a well regarded Thai eatery. Only doing it occasionally doesn't detract from the quality, and the schnitzel there is perfectly acceptable. The crumbs used have a different appearance to elsewhere, but that's because they are "home made" on the premises. Very nice and yes, there were too many chips. The choice of sauces seems to be between tomato and barbecue, but the latter is just right for chips.

9.4/10

Rockley Pub - $30

As the price took it well out of the range for pub food an executive decision was made to leave it out of the survey.

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Honourable mentions

These purveyors of schnitzels are outside the Oberon Matters coverage area, but we all have to travel occasionally.

Glass House at the Sydney Hilton - $38

An excellent choice for anyone suffering the noise and crowds of Sydney's CBD. It would want to be good at $38 but like all "fine dining" establishments there was the temptation to fiddle with nature and tradition so instead of the mandatory chips it was served with a puddle of sloppy mashed potato topped with a scattering of peas. A bit weird, but the chicken part was very nice even if it was a bit small. The chardonnay accompanying it was pretty ordinary at $15 for half a glass, but this is a special occasion restaurant so that wasn't a surprise.

All gone!

7/10 (marked down because of size, price and no chips)

Castlereagh Hotel, Dubbo - $24

Just the place to eat when you get stranded in Dubbo on New Year's Eve because of train timetable problems (actually train replacement bus timetable problems). The pub was recommended by the helpful staff at Dubbo station after they had failed to convince their bosses in the bureaucracy of any possibility of getting the weary traveller back to his car at Tarana that day.

Like any good pub schnitty there was too much food to eat, and an offer of a doggy bag to eat the rest in a hotel room was politely declined.

9.3/10

Cow and Calf Hotel, Wellington - $24

If you ever plan to motor west,  ...

If you can't quite make it to Dubbo before you need a feed you should stop in Wellington. Great food, good atmosphere and the only problem is that you have to go to another part of the hotel to get the necessary beer. And if that's your biggest problem that day you're doing well.

9.2/10

Red Cow Hotel, Penrith - $26

This used to be the unchallenged market leader - huge servings, lots of sauces to choose from, tasteful renovations. Oberon Matters hasn't been there for a while but there is the hope that nothing has changed.

No score because it might be a disappointment these days, but well worth a try while you wait for the train home.

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Dishonourable mentions
Stay away

You would think it was difficult to get a schnitzel wrong - crumb and fry some chicken, put it on a plate with chips. Some people manage to get it wrong.

Wests, Nelson Bay - $28

This place used to be the Nelson Bay RSL until it was taken over by "experts" in running clubs. The piece of chicken was a quarter of a full schnitzel and was served with about ten chips. Making four meals out of what everyone else calls a single serve wouldn't be a problem if the price was adjusted accordingly, but defamation laws limit any further comments.

0.25/10 (there was actually some chicken on the plate)

EzyMart, Central Station - $8

Not really a pub schnitzel but there needs to be a warning. If you are running to catch the late Bathurst Bullet and need a quick snack, do not be tempted to buy a chicken schnitzel sandwich at the little supermarket on the main concourse at Central. While a good pub schnitty has too much food because of the size of the servings, this has too much because it is inedible. Get to the station a bit earlier and look for something else to eat.

0/10

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Back to Part 1

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