If 19th-century banker John Gemmill were alive today, you’d surely find him unwinding on his namesake street. The short side road off Club Street has become the more legit bar-and-restaurant quarter in the area – and now, Gemmills, by the same folks behind Moosehead and Maggie Joan’s, is boosting the buzz.
Gemmills is the kind of bar – it also serves breakfast and lunch – you’d imagine deepconversation types to hit up. Wine is its poison of choice. You won’t have to spend too much, either: handwritten price tags ranging from $50 to $110 hang off bottles of Australian, Italian and New Zealand red and whites – pretty reasonable fees. At the food counter, a wooden platter of cheeses tame as Comte ($6) and stinky as Spanish Cabralde de Romain ($8), as well as charcuterie ($7-$10) can be ordered by weight.
In the day, noshing in the mellow room is kept just as simple. A pegboard advertises a legume salad of lentils, chickpeas and Parmesan shavings ($10), and a glass display case makes pointing for a tart of the day ($10) easy-peasy.
Gemmills’ choice to do away with the frills in favour of giving the ’hood a no-nonsense watering hole with good-value food and drinks is a breath of fresh air we’re sure John would approve of.
But if you’re in a hurry, there’s a grab-and-go coffee corner near its entrance where you can order a latte ($4), toasted croissants ($4.50) and housemade granola with fruits and yogurt ($8) to go.