It was a cold, rainy, blustery Canberra day and dining reviewer WENDY JOHNSON was looking for lunch around a fireplace. That took her to The Old Canberra Inn, in Lyneham.

THE Old Canberra Inn, established in 1857, is a family-friendly pub promises great, fresh, pub food, sourced locally, in a cosy building older than the capital itself.

The Old Canberra Inn is known for its rotating craft beer taps (some local and all independent Aussie-made). We’re not big beer drinkers so headed to the wine list, surprised at how icy freezing it was (affecting the flavour, for sure).

Food is divided into small plates, large plates, burgers and house specials. Kids will be happy with $12 meals (cheeseburger, schnitzel, fish or veggie lasagne).

We initially intended to go the pub-grub route but several small plates looked scrumptious, so we decided to order several to share.

First up was crumbed haloumi ($15), crunchy on the outside and although this moreish style of cheese tends to be salty, this was overly so. The crumb was perfect, however, and the romesco sauce was smokey and a welcome addition.

While we didn’t ask that the hand-cut chips be crispy, we didn’t expect them to be, well, soooo soft. The roasted capsicum aioli was creamy, rich and slightly sweet.

Crispy eggplant rolled out next ($14) with a hugely spicy glaze. The gochujang was punchy, colourful and sticky, with a slightly fermented taste.

Crispy eggplant… with a hugely spicy glaze. Photo: Wendy Johnson

The soft, hand-cut chips… with creamy, rich roasted capsicum aioli. Photo: Wendy Johnson

Crumbed haloumi… perfectly crumbed with smokey romesco sauce. Photo: Wendy Johnson

We loved the lamb kofta meatballs ($17). This dish is served with hummus and flatbread. We’re hummus fans through and through, but found this version slightly gritty and weren’t sure what additional ingredients were used beyond the traditional garlic, olive oil, chickpeas and tahini. It was a pronounced flavour and, despite our best efforts, we couldn’t pinpoint it. The hummus didn’t get a big tick from either of us.

House specials include a chargrilled roo striploin with rendang coconut cream, green beans and papaya pickle ($29), Also a vegan curry ($21) and a don’t-count-the-calories barbecue pack. For $32 this includes chorizo, house-smoked beef brisket and free-range pork belly with mac and cheese and a chipotle slaw. Too challenging for us.

The service style at The Old Canberra Inn is to order at the bar, quoting your table number, and then the staff bring your dishes to you. We had to ask for plates and cutlery (difficult to share small plates without them).

The Old Canberra Inn oozes character and is divided into multiple rooms each with its own personality (ours featured kookaburra wallpaper). The fires were roaring in the main part of the inn, keeping everyone toasty warm on a miserable day. As we were leaving, the musos were coming in. The inn is known for its live music, and rightly so.