Coolabah Room: “Dinner first, cards after”
Come in off Mitchell Street, sit down to a proper dinner built on shearing-shed cooking, then walk through to the casino room at the back of Coolabah Room, where roulette, blackjack and poker are played on chips that are worth nothing outside the building. There is no wagering and no prize money, only a name chalked on the board for the winner of the night. There are no pokies and no gaming machines, and nothing is played online: you have to be here in person, and eighteen or over. A table for dinner and a seat at the cards are booked separately, so tell us which you would like.
“You can smell the roast from the footpath”
Step off Mitchell Street on a still evening and the roast reaches you first: lamb and rosemary, a tray of pumpkin going dark at the edges, bread coming out of the oven. The lamps are lit, the tables wear white cloths, and somebody near the window is halfway through a story. This is Coolabah Room, and dinner is the reason the front door opens at half past five.
Helen Burke started it with her Nan's rules for feeding a shearing shed: plain food, plenty of it, nothing wasted and the tea always on. The menu still keeps to them, with yellowbelly from the river, pies baked every afternoon and puddings that arrive with custard whether you ask or not.
Once the plates are cleared you can stay put, or wander through to the casino room, where the light drops low over green felt. Everything there is played with chips, in person, for the pleasure of the game. The dealers will teach you a hand, and nobody minds if you only watch for the night.
Shed-cook dinners
Roasts, pies and river fish, cooked fresh every afternoon
A felt room
Roulette, blackjack and poker, all played with chips
Adults only
Eighteen and over, with photo ID at the door
“Nothing wasted, tea always on”
Imogen Payne has the kitchen from mid-morning. Pastry is rolled by hand, stock simmers behind the pass all afternoon, and whatever came in from the river that day decides the fish. The pies go into the oven at three so they are still warm when the first table sits down.
It is cooking for people who have worked all day and want something that tastes of itself. Expect gravy, crisp potatoes, a vegetable that has been given some butter, and a pudding that makes the walk home feel shorter.
Pies at three
Beef, lamb or chicken, with a vegetable pie beside them
From the river
Yellowbelly or Murray cod, whichever came in
Puddings
Sticky date, lemon delicious and a proper pavlova
Mitchell Street, Bourke
43 Mitchell Street, Bourke NSW 2840
+61 2 6872 3957 · bookings@coolabahroom.com
Tuesday to Sunday, 17:30 – 22:30
Seven nights in Bourke
| Day | From | What is on |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | — | Closed. Bread, stock and a long tidy of the felt room. |
| Tuesday | 17:30 | Pie night, with roulette lessons at the wheel from seven. |
| Wednesday | 17:30 | Roast of the day, then two blackjack tables with explanations. |
| Thursday | 17:30 | Fish from the river, then an Omaha table and a small tournament. |
| Friday | 17:30 | Dinner, then sign-in for the weekly Texas Hold'em tournament. |
| Saturday | 17:30 | The long table, Seven Card Stud and Five Card Draw after nine. |
| Sunday | 17:30 | Sunday roast and an early finish, with roulette until close. |
The casino room, through the leather-store door
Behind the dining room is the old leather store, now a casino room of six tables: one roulette wheel, two blackjack tables and three for poker. We deal Texas Hold'em, Omaha, Seven Card Stud and Five Card Draw. The felt is green, the lamps hang low, and the chairs have arms because evenings run long.
There are no pokies and no gaming machines, here or anywhere in the building. The chips you are handed at the door are worth nothing outside it, nobody puts money on a result, and no prizes are given. All we ask is that you come in person, be over eighteen, and bring your manners.
Roulette
One wheel, dealt by Lisa Rossi most nights
Blackjack
Two tables, with a gentle table for beginners
Poker
Three tables, four games, one friendly rule book
A few frames from a normal week
Six things to know before you sit down
- Adults only: bring photo ID, because we check at the door and nobody is offended by it.
- Chips are for the tables and hold no cash value; they stay in the room when you leave.
- Dinner and a card-table seat are booked separately, so tell us which one you are after.
- Phones stay in pockets at the tables; the hall is the place for calls and photos.
- Be kind to the dealers and to each other, because a bad hand is nobody's fault.
- Nothing is played online, so the wheel, the cards and the company are here or not at all.
What guests ask before their first hand
Do I need to know how to play?
No. Lisa Rossi and the other dealers walk you through blackjack, roulette or Texas Hold'em at a quiet table before anything turns competitive. Most beginners begin with roulette, which asks for nothing but curiosity.
What are the chips worth?
Nothing at all. They are plastic discs we hand over when you sit down and count back in when you leave, so there is no wagering, no cash prize and nothing to take home except a good evening.
Which poker games do you deal?
Texas Hold'em most nights, Omaha on Thursdays, and Seven Card Stud or Five Card Draw on Saturdays after nine. If your table fancies a different one of the four, put your hand up and ask.
Can I just come and watch?
Of course. There is a rail along the roulette table, two chairs by the blackjack tables and a spot near the poker room door. Plenty of regulars started as watchers and found a seat by the third visit.
Is any money involved?
No money changes hands at the tables. Tournaments have no entry fee and no prizes; the winner of the night has their name chalked on the board and that is the lot, along with a round of applause.
Why are there no pokies?
No pokies and no gaming machines, ever. There are only cards and one wheel, and we like it that way. If you were hoping for flashing lights, the lamps over the felt are as bright as it gets.
Follow the lamps up Mitchell Street
On a dark night the road in runs dead straight, and so does the way to our step. Stack the two lamps and you will land at the door.
- Sight the lampsthe high lamp hangs over our verandah
- Hold the linekeep both lamps stacked down Mitchell Street
- Mind the kerbthe footpath dips beside the saddlery window
- Make fastyour table is held for fifteen minutes