1876 Bar and Restaurant gives Queenstown pub dining a memorable historic setting. The venue occupies the town's converted former Magistrate's Court, retaining the character of an old civic building while opening onto a large sunny deck and garden bar. Guests can eat inside when the weather turns or take a table outdoors and watch Ballarat Street. Regular live entertainment brings more energy after dark, yet the daily noon opening means the building is just as accessible for lunch. It feels equally suited to a casual meal, an afternoon drink or the start of a longer Queenstown evening.
The snacks are deliberately social and often borrow the flavours of larger pub dishes. Southern fried chicken wings come with buffalo sauce, ranch and pickles, while crisp potato scallops keep things simple with chicken salt and ketchup. Cheeseburger spring rolls fold a familiar filling into a shareable shell. Grilled prawns arrive with garlic and chilli butter on sourdough, and pork belly bites bring Korean barbecue sauce, sesame and kimchi. Together with garlic bread and chips, the section can serve as a quick bar snack or be assembled into a fuller spread for the table.
Burgers and pub classics carry the main menu. There is a straightforward cheeseburger, a Korean fried chicken version with kimchi and fermented chilli barbecue sauce, and the larger 1876 burger with two beef patties, bacon, cheese and onion rings. A black-bean burger supplies a meat-free choice. Schnitzel can stay traditional or become a ham and mozzarella parmigiana, while beer-battered fish and chips and Caesar salad cover familiar territory. Pumpkin and kale lasagna adds a vegetable-led main, and rump, rib-eye and sirloin steaks all come with chips, salad and a choice of sauce.
Lunch can be lighter, with cheese and tomato, ham and cheese, or brisket toasties available during the afternoon. A warm chocolate brownie with Irish cream chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream provides the menu's rich finish. The full bar, garden space and daily service make 1876 practical for groups whose plans stretch from a meal into drinks or entertainment. Different areas can also handle functions and exclusive hire, so the courthouse setting works on both an everyday and event scale without losing the relaxed pub character that defines the venue.
Address: 45 Ballarat Street, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
Been to 1876 Bar and Restaurant? Be one of the first to rate it.
+ Log your visit
