Mel’s Craft Beers and Diner has followed this reinvention and subsequent rise, but theirs has been on the nightlife social ladder. What was once a 2€ shot bar known as Waxy Murphys, where many young teenagers and 20-somethings saw their rise and fall in a night of boozy messiness, Mel’s Craft Beers and Diner is like Waxy Murphy grew up and changed his name. As smartly dressed as a bowtie, Mel’s is the bold step into the age of the Craft beer made by one of Vienna’s serial pub owners, Billy Reddy. And in our humble opinion, it’s going to pay off.
The shiny beer taps lining the bar is just the beginning. Over 400 sorts of craft beer are housed behind there. Stylistically and geographically diverse, the range includes almost anything from Rogue American Amber Ale, to a page of Indian Pale Ales.
As well as some of the best micro-brewery brews from Germany, Italy, Holland and Belgium, you’ll find many rare beers from the USA. There’s also a few rarely heard of ciders and stouts in the mix.
The mammoth list makes choosing a hard task. That’s where the ever-so-competent waiter comes in. On a busy evening, despite several tables filling up (with suits and students), the lone barman copes ably, dispensing advice on the beer, and dishes out of the kitchen, all with speed and good humour. And he also takes the time to speak with us about our choices. If you also have trouble narrowing down your choice, just ask the waiter to recommend you one based on your tastes. Or better yet, do like we did and ask him for a beer that has something specific on the bottle. We asked for one with a naked lady on the label. The result was a cool discovery of a beer we’ve never tried before: Der Verboden Vrucht, straight outta Belgium.
Changing focus from the drink to the décor, the sweeping tunnel is lined with chairs and tables, and neat lamps aligned in rows which end in the bar as the mantlepiece. Aesthetically, the place sucks you in.
And while the tacky American connotation with the word diner cannot be found anywhere in the looks, the diner theme can be found in the menu, right next to the Club Sandwich and the Chicken Ceasar Salad. And there’s nothing tacky about it.
But it’s the burgers that win us over. The Mushroom Swiss and its surrounding moat of fries is impressively tasty, and would give many dedicated burger joints a run for their money. We particularly like the use of the bagel-like buns. And we would have taken our hats off to the vegetarian burger alternative, the Pesto Bortobello, if we’d been wearing one.
Everything fits to the concept, but does so in a honest way without overdoing it – the likes of BB King and Frank Sinatra on the speakers, the waiter dressed in black and white, with breeches. It makes you grateful that such charm of the past can be lived in the modernity of the present.
Sitting there reminiscing on one hairy night in the toilets of Waxy’s, I realised I had grown up as well. Perhaps I should change my name and start wearing a bowtie and breeches.
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