Everything has a price.  The owners of newly opened bar Pawn and Co have taken that theory to the extreme by putting everything in the bar up for sale.  Pawn and Co overlooks Chapel street and straddles the divide between the hipster-fied Windsor end and the flashy South Yarra end.  I was invited to the launch party last week and while the bar was filled with the beautiful people that dwell in this area it also had a little bit of a grungy feel to it reminiscent of the old Chapel Street pawn shops in Windsor thanks to the piles of old suitcases, lamps and even a morgue table which all come complete with price tag so you can buy them.

Fish and flaxseed ball at Pawn and Co

It’s a fun idea for a bar and I am sure they will make some good money from slightly worse for wear people deciding they must buy the stuffed albino kangaroo.  It would be a bit of a shock when you wake up in the morning.

Everything at Pawn and Co has a price tag – even the waitress’ leather pants were for sale (seriously)

The bar staff at Pawn and Co know their stuff and all the cocktails I tried were brilliant.  For gin lovers go for The Pink Fox which is made with Beefeater gin and amaretto liqueur and given some kick with lemon and fresh passionfruit.  Meat-and-Three-Veg’s favourite was the Scotch, Pimms and ginger beer combination.  It was a little bit Boardwalk Empireish.  Best of all the bar is licensed until 7am which is seriously dangerous.

Trays of beef bacon cheeseburgers ready to go at the launch

The bar food is predominantly sliders and while these mini meatballs and burgers go some way to soaking up the booze you would have to eat quite a lot of them to fill up.  The best were the classic beef bacon cheeseburgers ($5.50) which came with cheese, pickles and a spicy pulled pork tomato sauce on a roll.  These were very moreish and the perfect late night snack.   But the fish and flaxseed ball ($5.50) was dry and almost inedible despite a slick of pesto sauce on top and the quinoa, roasted eggplant and soy slider ($5.50) crumbled apart so it was difficult to eat.

Cocktails with a price tag at Pawn and Co and looking from the outside in

Focus on the booze not the food at Pawn and Co and you’ll have a great night (or early morning).  You might even come home with a stuffed kangaroo.

Gourmet Chick was invited to review Pawn and Co.

Essentials
Details: Pawn and Co, 8/402 Chapel St, South Yarra VIC 3141 (Ph 03 9827 0608) Open Thurs – Sun 7pm-7am.
Damage: Reasonable but on this occasion I did not pay.
6/10