The Generous Squire

I swear I must have walked past The Generous Squire thirty-odd times over the past four months (during its construction), eagerly awaiting its grand opening. The scheduled opening date was supposed to be July, but according to the manager, there were delays, which prevented it from opening until last Monday.

The Generous Squire

In August, I spoke to Chuck Hahn at The Good Food and Wine Festival about his new “Squire”. He had always wanted to establish one in Perth so as to cater for the WA crowd. With the facilities now to brew James Squire beer on the opposite side of the country (his home being Sydney), costs would be reduced. Perth loves its beer. There are a number of quality award winning beers brewed right here in WA – Little Creatures, Redoak Rauch, Nail Stout are to name just a few. Chuck remained optimistic about the WA market, and already has planned for two exclusive beers to be brewed right here later this year. What you notice about Chuck (if you ever do get to meet him in person) is that he loves the art of beer. One would attribute beer to the following: for celebration, for “getting smashed”, or for calming the senses and refreshment. Chuck looks at beer by colour, the froth, the temperature, and how well it pair matches with food. Last year I was fortunate to take part in his beer tasting class at the Taste Festival in Sydney – I was stumbling around after that. One thing I remember him teaching me is that you shouldn’t complain about the unsightly amount of “head” or froth when served a beer – people feel “cheated” when their glass is not filled to the very top with liquid. It is about appreciating the “whole beer” as a piece of art, taking a look, sitting back, and then enjoying it with your meal by taking small sips (“sculling” is not ideal) – great words from a beer legend.

Icy cold glass of James Squire Amber Ale

The Generous Squire is the sibling of James Squire Brewhouse in Darling Harbour – a place that I frequented on many an occasion when living in Sydney. Why? Good food, good beer, good value, and good atmosphere – but even more especially so – I love my Golden and Amber Ales. On Tuesday I went to “the Squire” for lunch and to check out this new addition to Shafto Lane. The first thing you will notice is that there’s lots of wood. A lot of effort was put into the design – a modern look, with lots of windows and natural light, as well as space.

The front bar

Inside the Generous Squire

The brew room and upstairs

A massive amount of drinking occurred on the previous weekend, so much so that beer was in short supply. New deliveries of beer would arrive before the forthcoming weekend from the eastern states. Note: The Generous Squire will start brewing locally in the next few weeks. Luckily Amber Ales were still available on tap, so I ordered a pint, and the Squire’s Fish & Chips – “Golden Ale beer battered snapper goujons resting on summer leaves, served with fries”. The menu item for this dish noted that the Golden Ale would be an appropriate pair match for this dish – too bad there was none left on tap, with the limited supply reserved only for cooking in the kitchen.

The lunch menu showing the beer and food pair matching suggestions

The fish goujons were light and crunchy on the outside, and fluffy on the inside. These melted in my mouth and went well with the aioli sauce. The chips were actually fries, and had a nice golden brown colour – not too burnt, not too overcooked, just right. Although not suggested as a suitable match, the nuttiness of the Amber Ale paired quite well with this dish. Overall I was satisfied with my meal and I could not eat for the rest of the afternoon – the portions were generous. Maybe “generous” in The Generous Squire is there for a reason.

The Squire’s Fish & Chips

Resting on a bed of summer leaves

A large dollop of aioli sauce with fish goujons

I want to eat you little fishy…

Golden crunchy fries

Summer leaves with a light mustard dressing

The end result

The Generous Squire
Address: 397 Murray Street, Shafto Lane, Perth
Tel: +61 8 6311 7071
Web: www.thegeneroussquire.com.au

Opening Hours:
Monday – Saturday (11:00am – late)
Sunday (midday – 10:00pm)

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