Nice staff, needs VB on tap. Needs an outdoor area!! See less

Hi there, I would like to please share my experience about my Birthday dinner booking last Saturday the 10th July 2021 so that it might not happen to anyone else and that management are made aware of how their staff handle the reservation process. I made a reservation for my Birthday dinner 6 weeks ago for 15 people in the upstairs dining room . I specifically requested the upstairs dining room and made sure I made my booking early so not to miss out on the upstairs dining room. I was assured by the lady taking the reservation that upstairs was free and that they would confirm final numbers on the day – 10th July. I had a missed call on the day with a voice mail ONLY asking we confirm numbers. I arrived with my guests on the night on July 10th , we then grabbed a drink at the bar . One of the bar staff ladies asked that we take to our table, I said no worries we have a table booked upstairs and that we will head upstairs now. The lady advised No, you are now booked in the table in the corner downstairs . I said no there must be an error as I have upstairs booked. She said no there is now a function in the upstairs space and we had to put you downstairs. I said if I wanted to book a pub table in the corner, that is what I would have booked. Instead I wanted to book an elegant , intimate Dining space in a more refined area. Myself , my guests were all very dressed up as this is where we thought we going . Other people around us, had more casual clothes on which is fair enough as they were in the more casual downstairs dining space. This was my special Birthday night, no phone call prior to the night was made to specifically to me to let me know that The National Hotel wanted to use the upstairs space for more people in a function. Every Birthday is special no matter if it is a 18, 21, 40 , 50th or any year. I make my birthday dinner special every year no matter what the age. My night was somewhat spoilt, there wasn’t any communication , or discussion prior to my night to me , if I had been advised I would have booked another venue elsewhere. But the National wanted to keep my booking and the 15 paying guests so they didn’t miss out on the funds on the night. In the end I didn’t make a scene, I didn’t ask to speak to management , I did not want to embarrass my guests, or embarrass the girl at the bar as it wasn’t her fault she was just advising us n the night our table was in another space. We ended up staying, ate a lot, drank a lot and would have spent over $1000 dollars on the night. The food on the night was great and everyone enjoyed their meal , but clearly the reservation service is lacking, also the way staff handle such as my issue is clearly lacking. No one came to our table from management on the night to see if we were happy or ok. This isn’t customer service ,it is a poor example of what not to and what should be done. I have been coming to the National Hotel for the past 25 years , right from when it was a grungy band venue, to dim sim night, to trivia on a Wednesday night and now that we are older to a nice dining venue. Unfortunately I will not be back to the National Hotel and neither will any of my guests , we will celebrate my birthday, or another special occasion at another Geelong Local business that will look after their customers a lot better with more professionalism , transparency and care. Thank you. See less

Amazing service!!!! We held a baby shower at this venue over the weekend. The service from all of the lovely staff was incredible! The staff went above and beyond to give us the best day! Everyone that attended the shower was very impressed with not only the event space, the food was amazing!!! If you are thinking of holding an event at the national, do it!!! You won’t be disappointed, our day was beyond perfect!!!! See less

My brother and his girlfriend had a last minute change of venue for their baby shower. The National totally went above and beyond to help them make it happen! Their “nibbles food” was absolutely amazing and the staff were all so very friendly and helpful. The venue itself looked absolutely amazing. 💗 See less

Great meal and service. Express lunch menu was good with nothing over $20. Will definitely return. See less

Great pub, awesome rooftop and friendly staff. See less

First time at the National Hotel and loved it. The bar staff are amazing the finger food to die for! See less

Walked here from our hotel for lunch with a friend. Great service but the food was a big surprise it was delicious , I had the steak sandwich which was fantastic lovely tender meat well seasoned bacon and salad. Thoroughly enjoyed a meal here recently. A variety of price and cuisine options and lots of wine by the glass to enjoy, particularly from local wineries. Central and easy enough to get a park nearby. Bar downstairs and restaurant upstairs that was popular with families. Would gladly return. See less

Great service great food love it great pub friendly clean come back again one of the best pubs in Geelong cheers See less

Food and service was amazing. Great staff, so friendly. Very welcoming. The pork sliders were the best. Real chicken for the amazing Parmi, it was amazing too. I highly recommend this venue. See less

It's that time of year and our social club chose the Top Deck of The Nash for A Friday afternoon Christmas function on 4th December. It was brilliant.... the 2 young staffers (male & female) sadly I've forgotten their names, who took care of us were superb...prompt with the food and remembering what each of the 40 of us wanted to drink....couldn't recommend the venue too highly nor praise the service too enthusiastically....and NO I'm not related to the staff members so the praise is completely bias free. See less

We had lunch here. I loved food here, my calamari were crunchy and salad was really good. Staff was friendly. We were served very fast. See less

We had lunch at the newly renovated National, gone are the bad old days of grungy patrons. It's now lovely, where you can bring anybody and have a great time. We ordered from the lunch express menu, I had the steak sandwich, it was good. The service was also good, the rooftop terrace is worth a visit. I'd definitely recommend the National for meals and a drink. See less

I recently had a function at The National Hotel and the hospitality was excellent. The venue itself is well designed to fit both small and large groups. I have also popped in for a beer and meal before the footy, where I found it had a great vibe and the meals were delivered promptly. See less

Beautiful rooftop, service, drinks and food . See less