122 Anzac Avenue,
Auckland Central
Auckland,


(09) 368 7829

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4 out of 5

There's a lot of ‘Irish’ bars in Auckland, but actually the city's most authentic Irish drinking establishment doesn't even look that ‘Irish’.

Sure, Fordes Front Bench offers Guinness on tap and Irish stew is one of three items on the concise menu, but what makes it the real deal is the charm and wit of publican Thomas Forde.

He's been in New Zealand a few decades now, but his lilting Irish brogue is still largely intact as he personally greets drinkers on a humid Auckland night when the weather is more like the tropics than Tralee.

Forde's a bit of a political animal—he stood unsuccessfully as an independent candidate for Auckland Central during the last General Election—and replacing the usual Irish tat of antique sewing machines and faded pictures of boozy Irish poets is an informal museum of Kiwi politics.

An overflowing bookcase has seemingly every New Zealand political book of the last three decades, and around the walls are maps and posters charting recent elections.

Strategising of a different sort is encouraged with a few chess boards set up for play. A roll-call of New Zealand's earliest Prime Ministers is featured in sepia photographs, but there's no sign of (allegedly) my distant rellie, Sir Harry Atkinson, PM four times from 1876 to 1891.

Behind the bar, Forde keeps things wisely non-partisan with both Lion Red and Tui on tap. Independent types may wish to try Voter's Real Ale. Choosing a wine is more straightforward than understanding MMP with just six wines available by the glass.

Like any good pub in Ireland, Fordes caters to a huge range of drinkers. During the year Forde's is a big student hangout, and tonight, a few academic types are dispersed on the mismatched sofas and random tables amidst old copies of university newspaper Craccum.

Builders from nearby apartment buildings have challenged the off duty barman to a game of pool, and a couple of older drinkers are deep into books and beer. You get the feeling that almost anyone would be welcome.

More than anything, Forde's Front Bench feels like the slightly ramshackle living room of a good mate. Sure, there's views of Auckland harbour from the huge picture windows, and a kitschy Malaysian restaurant out the front, but when the gregarious Forde is personally making sure everyone feels at home, it's authentically Irish in a way most 'Irish' bars will never be.