Young and Jacksons

Lunch in an upstairs dining room today for a special event. Loved the room itself which looks straight across to Flinders Street station. The food was a bit hit and miss, sadly. The bread and olive oil to start was lovely. The fried squid for entree was very nice too. The porterhouse for main was VERY ordinary, though. I asked for medium rare, but I got overdone and rubbery instead. Many people around me ordered the same steak and they got what I got. It was exceptionally ordinary, almost like the chef had no idea how to cook steak properly. At least the gravy, mash and carrots were ok. Despite the poor steak, service was good throughout and the staff did well managing such a large group. The wine list was nice here too. Overall, it was a nice event despite the poorly cooked steak

Great place to catch up for a late drink with friends. Food is hit and miss depending on who is cooking on that shift. sometimes, it feels like the steak is steamed and then slapped on the grill just to make grilled lines. The salmon dish was very nice, though.

A cozy and beautifully designed restaurant with a stunning view of Flinders Street. The staff were polite, helpful, and genuinely nice. We had booked the Cherie room, and everything was perfect—the food was excellent, and the service was great. Highly recommended!

Young & Jackson’s is an absolute Melbourne staple. Sitting right across from Flinders Street Station, it’s one of those places that feels woven into the city’s history. Whether you’re stopping in for a drink after work, catching up with friends before an event, or simply wanting to soak in the atmosphere of a true Melbourne institution, Y&J delivers every time. The venue strikes a balance between heritage charm and modern hospitality—beautiful old-world architecture paired with a buzzing, contemporary vibe. The range of beers, wines, and cocktails is extensive, and the menu offers something for everyone, from classic pub fare to elevated bites. What really sets it apart, though, is the sense of tradition. Locals know it, tourists seek it out, and generations have made memories here. Young & Jackson’s isn’t just a pub—it’s part of Melbourne’s cultural fabric, the kind of place you can return to again and again and still feel like it’s your first time discovering it

Dined here on Anzac Day. The service was a bit lacking, they took our food orders but didn't ask if we wanted any coffees or drinks. Took almost an hour for food to come and was mostly cold when it arrived. Toast came with eggs on top and butter on the side....The wait staff were quite short when it came to paying and was not overall a great experience.

The wine was great, and all the food was delicious. I also loved how spacious the place was – it made the experience even better!

Young & Jackson’s is one of those places that could easily lean into its own legacy. But instead, offers something much more down-to-earth than a passerby might assume. Despite its fame, central location, popularity, there’s nothing intimidating once you step inside. It’s extremely friendly and unpretentious (despite the renowned artwork). A great place to shoot the breeze over drink or meal, or watch the footy. The kind of place where you can chat quietly or dive into the sports fever — and either way you’ll feel accepted. Whether you're a regular or first-timer, you'll be welcomed.

This bar was the best find of the day. It had an old-world charm, with tables thoughtfully spaced throughout the spacious venue. The staff were incredibly friendly, making the experience even better.

One of the oldest pubs in Melbourne. The Princes Bridge Hotel was established in 1861 by the Tooheys brothers. They went on to create the Tooheys Beer brand. They sold it to Irish cousins, Henry Young and Thomas Jackson, who renamed it in 1875. The hotel and pub are actually composed of five buildings which have been integrated into one. Love the coffered Victorian ceiling tiles in the first floor pub. Guess what was playing on the big screen TVs? The Australian Open/AO. The hotel is also well known for a painting called Chloe. It originally hung in the National Gallery of Victoria, but the full length nude was quite controversial in 1883 and was removed after three weeks. It was bought by the hotel in 1908 for 800 pounds. It was damaged by an American serviceman who threw a glass of beer on Chloe during WWII. Interesting place to stop for some fish and chips and to soak in some history.

Delicious red wine with porterhouse steak, potatoes and salad. Brownie with cream delicious too. Very nice service! Love the various rooms and it also cuts noise level tremendously so our group could talk. Chloe photo a must see and to know the history.

A must visit for any tourist, go upstairs and see chloe. Words and more words, beer, pub grub

We enjoyed lunch at the oldest pub in Melbourne. It was very crowded, lots of bars in many rooms were very full. We ordered & paid from the app on our table. Our beers & water were brought to our table first. The fish j chips came :30 later. The portion was generous, there was enough for the both of us. Lunch was excellent, the side salad perfect, fish crispy & fresh & fries well done. I really enjoyed lunch. Cricket was on the big screen, I've never seen it played. Australia was beating the West Indies. Happy nobody here was smoking.

I had a beer at this awesome bar right across the street from the Flinders Street Railway Station. Great ambiance and a nice place to see enjoy a cold beer.

A very nice place for a drink and dinner while visiting Melbun. The service was excellent and the food was very good.

Our tour group of 16 enjoyed an evening meal here. We ate in the Chloe section of establishment. Young and Jackson is a series of quaint rooms where you can eat and drink. Our group had great service We had 5 entrees to chose from rump steak, grilled salmon, squid and pasta, chicken dish and a beetroot salad. All portion sizes were good and flavors were average. Pavlova for dessert was a nice end to meal. Worth stopping in if you find yourself near Fed Square.

Great dinner and historical location. Perfect menu and drink selection. Close to the tram.

Very tasty Angus Burger great pub meal and friendly service highly recommend this pub if your in the city of Melbourne it's opposite Flinders St Railway Station and good selection of beers

Another 'pop in if you're in the part of town' sports bars. Not worth travelling to or going out of your way to experience, but it's fine for what it is. It can get crowded and noisy, sometimes very noisy, and its popularity is no doubt partly due to it's location just a stone's throw away from Flinders Street station. They actually have a very good range of drinks here, better than you might expect, from vodkas to wines to beers. You'll be sharing the space with an eclectic range of people from passing tourists and backpackers, to professionals on their way home, to sports junkies, to the crazies that inhabit Swanston/Elizabeth streets. Pop in to say you've been there.

Shame, great location, great atmosphere- but don't order the parma. Looks like coles coleslaw on the side that has no flavour. If you work here, let's get some real salad please

I love dancing & singing along to a live cover band & generally you can't go wrong if you head to Young & Jackson for this on a Friday & Saturday night. It's a cheap & cheerful venue & if you have no expectations as such then I'm sure you won't be disappointed. I believe there is a good rooftop bar but I'm yet to experience this as it's usually closed by the time I get there. The place doesn't normally attract a crowd until after 11pm & even then it can be very hit & miss with sometimes large numbers and then on other nights it's surprisingly quiet. It's very much a mixed bunch of people attending Y&J and you can dress up or down without feeling out of place. I have sampled the bar menu on a couple of occasions & you get a decent plate of pub grub for a reasonable price. Plenty of beers on tap & the usual selection of spirits.

If you're a cider drinker you'll love this smallish area on the rooftop of Y&J's. It is quite small and on a hot day can get a little warm. But the sails keep most of the direct sunlight out. It seems to be a full smoking area, so if you're offended perhaps try somewhere else. As with little air flow at times, the smoke does linger. There are fans to give some air flow but they fall a little short on warm days. It's a lovely place to stop with a great selection of ciders. I'd suggest trying the Cranberry Cider for something a little different. Happy drinking.

Always a reliable stop as you head home from Flinders Street Station cold beer good ambience plenty of seating with great aircon! Big screen TVs plenty of sport and usual pub meals. Overall a good meeting point for social bevvie.

Came here for dinner during my visit. Given it's a hotel restaurant across the street from the major train station, I didn't expect much. It was our first day in the city, and we were starving, and it was walking distance from our hotel and had availability :) So honestly, I didn't expect much at all. It was better than I thought. My mom liked their fish dish and I got to check off my foodie list on the rare kangaroo meat! LOL :)

Since Young & Jackson has a bottle shop that is relatively unrelated to the actual pub, I feel it deserves its own business page. I come here every now and again when I'm buying drinks in the city and each time my experience has been decent. Ambiance: The place itself is really small compared to most bottleshops. This isn't surprising since it's only a small little store connected to the pub. However, the do manage to keep this place relatively clean. Customer Service: The people here are very nice and will pretty much always check your ID if you look relatively young. So to the youngsters who want to get some booze - don't try your luck with these folks. They're quite professional and know to do their job. The one negative thing about this bottleshop is that because it's so small, you hardly get any real variety. You get your decently popular ciders, beers, and Jack Daniels, but if you're say looking for a very specific type of ale, you'd be pressing your luck and I'd tell you to just try and look for what you need at a much bigger bottleshop. This is for those who aren't that picky.

I have to say, that for a pub that probably experiences more foot traffic outside than any other place in all of the state of Victoria, this place is pretty underwhelming. It's not the fact the it is a gods honest pub and needs to be anything other than a gods honest pub. It is just that it's a pretty average pub if you ask me. There is nothing innately wrong with Young & Jacksons. It sells the usual range of pub beers and even has two bars as if you wanted the choice??? But one can't help get the feeling that the owners don't know what they want with this establishment and aren't prepared to put any thought or money into what could easily be a goldmine. The carpets are gaudy and red, like they have been ripped out of an old cinema, the veneer is patterned in fake Victorian lattice and there is artwork on the walls that look like they were commissioned by a porn star wanting to put them up on the walls of his Victorian mansion. They have live bands from time to time on a makeshift and awkward stage set in front of a television, which I guess, you could watch some sport on if there were any sort of sufficient seating facing it. Look don't get me wrong. This place is perfectly fine to go have a pint or two in. I would even consider getting a bite to eat if I was starving and couldn't be bothered hopping across the road for some Lord of the Fries. But honestly this place has nothing special other than the fact that it has one of the best locations in town and does absolutely nothing with it.

Head up stairs at the Young and Jackson and enter Chloe's bar. There is a great restaurant semi fancy but casual enough to feel comfortable.Great food here and a great view of Flinders St station. There is always something new and exciting to on the menu. Staff very friendly. Reasonable price for the 5 star service you receive. Chef never lets us down everything we have ever eaten there is always spot on.

Hard not to find something to like at Y&Js. There's a sportsbar room, quieter front bar, restaurant, the classier Chloe's Lounge next level up, and then the cider rooftop bar. Plus its perfectly positioned right near Flinders St station so makes it an easy-to-find meeting spot for all. Now, Swanston St is pretty much an eyesore of fast food outlets and drunken riff-raff, and some colourful characters can walk in off the street from time to time, but they mix in with the suits and Guernsey-wearing sports fans to create a good melting pot of Melbourneness. Meals are so-so. Pretty standard pub grub offerings - huge parmas. I tried to branch out with a slow-cooked beef brisket open-sandwich and it was fine. Nothing amazing, but I wasn't expecting it to be. Meals are a little steep at around $25 each, but it is prime tourist trap real estate. Y&Js has upped its beer game in recent years, with some of their taps changing over monthly, and there's no frickin pokies, which counts for a whole lot in my eyes.

This place is a landmark/institution and should only be judged as such. It has over the years served as a great meeting/waiting point to grab a couple drinks before going further into town. It's huge. Several floors. And a rooftop terrace which is actually quite nice. And they have a lot of good ciders and beers on tap and reasonable prices. Never tried the food. I'd never make this my final destination for the night. But as an institution, Y&J's is as much part of Melbourne as Flinders St station is.

The pub at the heart of Melbourne is home to Chloe. Head upstairs at Y & J to meet her. This pub could not be any more central. Across from Flinder's Street Station and Fed square and at a crossroad between Flinders and Swanston streets this is the place weary Melbourne travelers head for a drink en route. This pub has a bistro, pub, brasserie and small bottle shop so whatever your mood there is no reason not to quench your thirst here. To mix it up a bit I headed to the brasserie on a beautiful sunny morning for a breakfast meeting. The poached eggs and tomato were perfectly cooked and the coffee decent. The service was attentive and not at all intrusive and the wooden floorboards, dark furnishings and bar lit by the sun made it a bright and refreshing place to enjoy the bustle of Melbourne's rush hour. Young & Jackson could rest solely on its location and iconic status, but it sets the standard for Melbourne CBD pubs.

Arguably Melbourne's most iconic pub, Y & J has been a local pit stop and drinking hole for Melbournian's for over 100 years. Little has been changed to the exterior or decor since the last World War, so the whole building hails back to a bygone era of Victorian elegance. The facade of the building still maintains the startling magnificence it has done for a century, and although the reds and golds of the interior may be fading and have seen better days, I'm so happy Young and Jackson, being as historic as it is, has retained the historical significance of the building. Mainly, so as people like me can wander around and imagine what these walls have seen and heard throughout the years. I love the grandeur and history this hotel represents, and I'd hate to see it changed - any of it. Being opposite Flinders st station, Y&J is often packed, particularly the bottom level. But the staff are always pleasant, drinks a lot cheaper than the bars over at Fed Square and the atmosphere is, truly Melbourne. The different mix of people make sure of that!!

Okay, okay, so it's the most famous pub in Melbourne and an enduring icon... But let's put that aside and look at it for what it really is - just another bloody pub. It's not all bad - the pre-football / post-work crowds on Friday evenings give the downstairs bar an excited buzz, but it thins out by 7.30 and you're left in quite an ordinary bar with a random selection of out-of-towners who don't know where else to go. Up on the rooftop is usually a lot better - the wee little courtyard has high walls and when it's quiet it feels like your own private cider-garden, but if it fills up it's downright claustrophobic. I've never eaten anything more than a basket of chips at Y&J, so I won't comment on the food, but nothing about the place screams 'gastropub' so try the restaurant at your own risk...

Roof top cider bar people. This is the only cider only roof top bar in Melbourne. Yep that makes it pretty damn special. 8 ciders on tap. 25 bottled ciders Hot mulled cider Cider sorbet Cider spiders Pear and apple pies. Oh my!

The food was good. I shared grilled fish and chips. Came with a wonderful salad. The greens were fresh and tender. Being an American I needed some translation on the menu items. Like halloumi, and fried kipfler chips. Service was little slow but I think we were not familiar with the way things are done here. I would return for another meal

While I cannot speak to the food as I was only there for drinks, I can tell you that the rooftop bar (which is located on top of a hotel) and cider were both on point. As mentioned in other Yelp reviews, the rooftop area is a bit on the smaller side, but I found it not too be too busy, and most people are friendly enough to share some of the sitting space with you as it is fairly communal. There are shaded areas, and in the instance it is a hot one, there are fans as well. And again, if you are a cider fan, they have not a couple, but EIGHT ciders on tap. Cider Fans rejoice! :) So if you are in the Finders Street Station area and are looking to grab a quick drink outdoors, I highly recommend this gem.

Stopped here after my first day arriving in Melbourne thirsty and hungry after a lot of walking. Was right down the street from my hotel. Sorta upper class pub/restaurant with a ton of history evidently and some painting of some nude broad on the wall named Chloe. Really nice draft selection with many local brews. I ordered from the bar menu a three slider burger thing and while waiting got get myself a pint. Holy crap expensive here. Then the wood plank arrives and its one slider worth about three bites. Not sure if I was supposed to get one or three. Then considering the price of the pints, I end this costly little snack lunch and exit for my hotel. Summary is yeah, cool place but not sure the system they have here or why the prices are so crazy.

Convenient location, traditional club atmosphere, lift to upper floors, superb food. Meeting place of choice. Liz P.

A good tourist pub and for a quick beer in town Upstairs is recommended for a quiet beer and meal.the best feature of this pub is Chloe

You typically associate Young & Jackson's with rowdy nights out or killing time waiting for a train. I have been guilty of this. But ladies and gentleman... here's a hidden secret about Y & J - $35 express lunch. Yes. Selection from a limited menu, a glass of wine and beer plus coffee + treat. The day I went: Beef Cheek with a white chocolate mousse and fairy floss. Get a window seat and you have one of the best seats in Melbourne for lunch. Perfect for admiring Chloe or the watching the heart of Melbourne pulsate.

Great central location and always a go to when meeting friends in the city. I am not the biggest advocate for the downstairs bars, but I love the cider bar upstairs. What a fantastic range of cider to pick from and all fantastically priced! Going here in winter is a must as they do all the warm apple ciders, my fave being the apple pie hot cider, ohh so yummy and just warms up my insides. The downside is unfortunately there is no view as the walls are very high so at times can feel a bit cramped. If you are a cider lover like myself it is so worth a visit.

I've long been a fan of Young and Jackson. But no longer. I arrived and ordered a beer with burger trio which was suppose to arrive on pAddles. 3 sliders and 3 small beers. When it arrived the waitress brought just the burgers with an empty paddle where the beers should be. I asked where are the beers and she said... You go get it from the bar yourself. I asked her if she was sure and she said yes. I walked to the bar with my empty paddle to which the guy behind said. No the bar pours the beer and the waitress brings it out. Simple mistake but the waitress had the cheek to look annoyed. She slammed a tray down and walked off. Very rude of her. I should have asked her name but she was short had dArk hair and a pony tail. She should either be trained properly or sacked. She is obviously new as all she has been trained to do is bring food out... Disappointing all round

Skip the main bar and head upstairs to the rooftop cider bar! The cider bar is small, but so much nicer than the main bar. They have a good selection of ciders and it's really nice up there (in good weather). It's worth a try...

Cider bar is a winner, Chloe's rooms are nice, and the food is pretty good too. I've been coming to Y&Js about once every three months for a while, and I like it more every time. The rooftop cider bar is a brilliant additional, and has certainly found a niche of its own. On a summer day/night, it is a truly enjoyable spot. Even in winter it can be good, but the high walls that keep out the wind and block the view also block whatever sun there may be. The downstairs bar has two long service areas, and feels like it has changed little since opening. I love the feel of it, and that it transforms from watering hole to bar when a live band performs. If you have not done so yet, go visit Chloe on the middle floor next time you are in the city, it's worth it just to say you did.

There's a cider lover's oasis on the roof deck. They serve traditional pub fare--decent fries, too. I had a strawberry cider (weird, right?). In fact, I had two. You won't find anything that really stands out to make this place exceptional, but if you're looking for no-fuss place to meet some mates for a pint, you won't do wrong in hitting up Young & Jackson.

My two most prominent memories of YandJ's: The hopeless alcoholic who staggers around outside drinking wine from a 2-litre milk bottle hurling abuse at passers by AND The homeless man loitering around inside who grabbed me by the arm and told me my hair looked "dry and ratty". Uhh, thanks for the fashion tips, buddy. This pub is all historic and blah blah blah but it's just too big, too noisy, too ordinary for me to care to patronise it. There are soooo many better places in Melbourne and quite frankly I would rather go virtually anywhere else than this pub.

The pub meal we had here was awful! I'm shocked at how good the food is upstairs with "Chloe" and how terrible my calamari salad was downstairs at the pub. I probably ate 1/4 of the salad? Best part of the meal was my Appletizer. Hubby had the parma and said it was terrible and luke warm. So disappointing.

I still remember the days when I was in Melbourne with a group of friends staying at a backpackers on Flinders Lane, and how we would come to this pub to buy beer and to have a couple of drinks in the sports bar. However, it wasn't until recently that I realised that they actually had a second floor, and a pretty famous painting hanging in one of the bars. Okay, Chloe may be naked, but since it is a painting they seem to be able to get away with it (though they have photoshopped some clothes onto her for a couple of posters - I doubt they would do it to the real painting though). When I discovered the painting, I also disovered the cider bar on the roof, which I thought was awesome. For a while I didn't come here because, well, I didn't like the sports bar on the ground floor, but upon discovering the rooftop garden my opinion has changed quite a lot. It is convenient, and even has some decent house brew on tap.

Great pub which changes depending on the time of day. They have awesome cover bands after 11 on Saturday night and that's when the place really comes alive This place has the best Guinness on tap of anywhere in Melbourne. Very close to flinders street station and restaurants or for a cheap quick feed, McDonald's and hungry jacks next door Only concern is the price for a beer but I suppose you pay for the location. Security on the door are surprisingly friendly and enjoyable to talk to. The food looks good but I haven't tried so i can't comment on quality or price but there is always a lot of people eating. Can get very busy especially after 5 on a Friday and all day Saturday around lunch time. Great to go with a group of friends for a wild night or just by yourself with a newspaper during the day.

Walk into Young & Jackson and you will see your typical pub- beer stained carpets, old men and sports on the TV. Look a bit closer though, and you will realise they have quite to beer and cider collection on tap and your usual fare pub meals which are rather nice. The real treasure though, it upstairs. Head upstairs to the roof for the best (and only) rooftop cider beer I have been too! The atmosphere is great and the variety of ciders makes any cider lover happy. I visit this place every time I'm in Melbourne.

I first came here as a tourist a few years back because my best mate thought no Melbourne tour could be complete without seeing Chloe. She is a lovely lady but my younger self didn't really appreciate her like I do today. Recently I took a friend for a viewing and he was underwhelmed as well. Maybe Chloe takes a while to grow on you. Anyway Young and Jackson is a good enough pub not to need a painting of a naked lady to draw you in. If Chloe is keeping you company at her bar upstairs the red carpet and leather couches make you feel like you're in a smoker's club - minus the smoke these days of course. The Long Room with it's wooden interior is a bit less refined and serves as the sports bar of the pub while the main bar can be a mix of anyone at anytime. In Chloe's bar you can have a go at the tapas menu with a more traditional pub menu of hot dogs, chips, wedges and pies in the other two bars. Chloe's bar also serves guest beers on tap that change fairly often. With it's prime location across from Flinder's Street Station, Young and Jackson's is definitely worth a visit for a more old world feel than its competitors across in Fed Square.

Established in 1861, the faded elegance is showing its age. Located on a busy intersection, across the street from a train station. A typical pub with grub to match. Lots of teen and young adult backpackers crowded into the place to gawk at painting of the Victorian lady in deshabille. Don't really remember much since it was our first meal after a long travel day from Sydney. We ate at the downstairs cafe. I had the fish and chips that was just OK. All I wanted to do was eat and get back to the hotel to sleep. This is where I learned that Foster's isn't as quintessential an Australian beer brand as those TV commercials proclaim. This is where I discovered real Aussies drink Victoria Bitter, Carlton and Tooheys.

Great food and a great menu. The place it huge and each area caters to an different style and environment you are looking for. The staff is nice, friendly, and helpful. The tea is good, and my food once again was great. Definitely should have gone here more while i was in Melbourne.

It's always a good place to have the last 1 - 5 beers before hopping onto the metro/tram and heading home. And besides this it's a good pub you shouldn't miss.

A surprisingly decent bar in the heart of the CBD within a couple of steps to Flinders station. A huge selection of beers for a Melbourne bar and at least one on cask (hand pump). I was there on a Saturday night and people were streaming in from a game or something so it was pretty crowded. Exemplifies many of the best qualities of Melbourne's good bars (a small group as far as I can tell). Many of the bar (or hotels) seem pretty specialized in terms of ambiance or clientele. For a city this size there are surprisingly few bars in general and even less that fit my American sensibilities. I am basically looking for a place with an actual bar that one can sit at (not just a long serving station), a good number of beers, preferably relatively dark, and a good mix of people. A place to sidle up to the bar, get a beer and maybe end up in an unplanned conversation with the bartender or another patron. A lot of the the bars around are either fancy cocktail bars or hotels that seem to actually be like hotel bars in Europe, antiseptic with little atmosphere, a little too fancy, and either catering to people attempting to impress dates or footy watching. Now, there is nothing wrong with this in principle, but I am sometimes just looking for a bar to get a beer and hangout. Young and Jackson's fits the bill. It is not exactly a "dive bar" in the American sense, it is fancy and overly lit. But, at least when I was there, it seemed to be populated by an interesting diversity of people that led to some good conversation and people watching. The bartenders were nice and very helpful, suggesting different beers and seeming genuinely friendly. The prices are pretty good by Melbourne standards and, as others have noted, its location makes it a perfect stop before getting on a train home. The place also has a lot of history as some of the other reviewers have noted. Overall, very solid choice in the CBD.

This pub has some hightlights, but not enought to compensate for their unprofessional and rude security.

Good selection of beer. Fun atmosphere. Bar keeps a tony surly... But overall fun spot.

I'm not sure how many Melbourners use Yelp - but for the tourists, do go to Y&J. Its on Flinders in the CBD near some arty square. They sell beer and good bar food (try the spring rolls with bay bugs!). Then upstairs they have Chloe (a painting, but oh so much more) and an open air (OK no view, but there is air) cider bar - more cider than you could ever wish for!!! In ten days, it seemed I went to Y&J (at least) 10 times. It's good.

If you go here make sure to head upstairs to Chloe and sit in the ridiculously comfy chairs...then go up one more level and take in the roof garden!