Glenrowan Pub Guide: Ned Kelly History, Menu & More

The Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro is the only pub in the town of Glenrowan, a small Victorian settlement whose name is forever tied to the Ned Kelly siege. Rated 4.1 out of 5 on TripAdvisor from 131 reviews, this country pub serves bar, international, pub, and Australian cuisine, and its Tuesday night specials have drawn consistent praise. This guide covers the hotel’s practical details—menu, hours, location—alongside the historical threads that connect today’s pub-goer to the events of June 1880.

Last checked: 2026-07-21

Address: 33 Gladstone St, Shop 3, Glenrowan Victoria 3675, Australia · Phone: +61 3 7047 5833 · Bistro opening (dinner): Tuesday to Saturday · Bistro opening (lunch): Saturday and Sunday

Why is Glenrowan famous?

Glenrowan’s fame rests on a single, violent weekend in June 1880. The Kelly Gang, led by Ned Kelly, took over the Glenrowan Inn on the night of 27–28 June, and the subsequent police siege turned the pub into a national landmark. As described in the Australasian Historical Archaeology paper, At the start of June 1880, Ann Jones was running a successful inn at Glenrowan, but by the end of the month her home and business lay in ruins. (Hayes, 2014) The siege ended only after police set the inn on fire.

The inn’s destruction doesn’t mean the pub tradition vanished. According to the KellyGang wiki, Mrs Jones rebuilt the inn after the siege and leased it to the police. Another hotel later rose on the site and also burnt down. The current Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro, at 48 Gladstone Street, is the town’s only remaining pub and operates today as a bistro with a varied menu.

The implication: Glenrowan’s fame is genuine and well-documented—the siege is confirmed by academic archaeology and multiple historical sources. The modern pub inherits that narrative, though the building is not the original.

What happened to the Glenrowan Inn?

The original Glenrowan Inn, run by Ann Jones, was a typical Victorian goldfields pub. Archaeological analysis published in Australasian Historical Archaeology notes that the inn had a dining room and that food-service ceramics were predominantly whiteware with bone china, porcelain, white granite, dyed-body ware and cream-coloured earthenware all represented in smaller numbers. This indicates a standard country pub kitchen.

During the siege, police surrounded the inn and, after hours of gunfire, set the building ablaze. The fire destroyed the structure and forced the Kelly Gang out, ending the standoff. The precise location of the original inn is disputed locally, but the current Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro stands on or near that site.

After the fire, Mrs Jones rebuilt, later leasing the property to police. That building itself eventually burned down. The current pub’s construction date isn’t documented in available sources, but it has operated continuously in some form for decades.

The bottom line: The Glenrowan Inn is gone—burned, rebuilt, burned again, and replaced. The modern Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro is not a replica but a working pub on the same historic ground.

What is there to do in Glenrowan?

Glenrowan is a small town on the Hume Highway, roughly 240 kilometres north of Melbourne. Most visitors come for the Ned Kelly story, but the modern experience centres on eating and drinking. The Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro is the primary gathering place.

Based on TripAdvisor reviews spanning 2014 to 2026, the pub offers a varied menu. One reviewer in April 2023 noted a Tuesday night menu was varied and all meals $15. The same review praised roast chicken and vegetables that were plentiful hot with vegies not being the boring usual. Another reviewer mentioned duck and slow-cooked lamb. The pub’s interior is described as interestingly decorated by multiple customers.

Besides the hotel, you can visit the Ned Kelly statue, the Glenrowan siege site markers, and the Baileys of Glenrowan winery for wood-fired pizza and live music on Saturday afternoons.

Sample itinerary: A half-day in Glenrowan

• Arrive around midday and head to the Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro for lunch (open Saturday and Sunday for lunch, Tuesday–Saturday for dinner).
• Order the Tuesday-night $15 special if you’re there on a Tuesday, or try the roast lamb or duck recommended in reviews.
• After lunch, walk to the Ned Kelly memorial and the site of the original Glenrowan Inn (marked by a small plaque).
• Stop at Baileys of Glenrowan cellar door (open daily 10am) for a tasting and wood-fired pizza on Friday or weekends.

Is the Glenrowan Hotel open today?

The Glenrowan Hotel & Bistro’s bistro operates on a regular weekly schedule: dinner Tuesday to Saturday, lunch Saturday and Sunday. The pub itself may have longer bar hours, but the kitchen follows this pattern. No official source confirms whether public holidays affect hours, so phoning ahead is recommended.

The phone number listed on multiple platforms is +61 3 7047 5833. The address is 48 Gladstone St, Glenrowan, Victoria, 3675.

The bottom line: For lunch, come on a weekend. For dinner, come Tuesday through Saturday. The bistro’s food is consistently praised as generous and fair-priced.