With Victorian Drinks And A Latin American Menu, The Freehouse Happens To Be Entirely Gluten Free

It’s no secret that Collingwood is home to some of Melbourne’s best hospitality players, with pubs, bars and restaurants aplenty. Its newest venue, opening today, is ready to fit right in, with a concept that sits somewhere in between its beloved peers.

With a 170-person capacity, The Freehouse is a true local: part dining room, part public bar, with pool and private event spaces. All of that, and the entire venue also just happens to be gluten free. 

Backed by gluten-free Mornington brewery TWØBAYS, The Freehouse is bringing something genuinely new to Melbourne’s drinking and dining scene.

TWØBAYS Brewing Co. founder Richard Jeffares explains the purpose of the venue—a concept he has had in the works since 2018—was twofold. 

“One was to be able to showcase TWØBAYS beers closer to the city and have it as an outlet from that perspective, but the big thing for me is that I just wanted to show people that gluten-free can just be done really, really well," he says.

Though the idea wasn’t just to cater to coeliacs or people living a gluten-free lifestyle; it was to create a venue that worked for everyone, no matter their needs. 

“You can come and play some pool. You can come and watch the footy. But if you want to and you're enjoying yourself, you can stay for lunch, stay for dinner, move to the back. You can have seated table service, or you can just stay at the bar and get handheld nibbles and share plates,” Jeffares says. 

Led by Head Chef Matt Kennedy (with experience spanning Mr Miyagi and Vue de Monde), the menu leans Latin American and is largely designed for sharing. Park up at the bar for easy snacks like cheese arepas and chorizo sandwiches. Settle in to the dining room, or perch yourself on a barstool with a view of the kitchen (the best seat in the house, if you ask us), for plates of crispy pork belly, Murray Cod ceviche, cast iron baked provolone and in-house dry-aged sirloin steak with chimichurri. 

The one food Jeffares is most excited about? The empanadas, loaded with 15-hour slow cooked beef brisket. 

“It was the one item that I said was non-negotiable,” he explains. 

Naturally, TWØBAYS beers take the spotlight on the taps, with 15 to choose from. 

“I get sick and tired of going to places with a gluten-free kitchen, but they don't have gluten-free beer on tap,” Jeffares says.

“It just seems sensible to me, and we know our beer stacks up.”

Non-beer drinkers won’t be disappointed, either, with a generous wine list, seasonal cocktails and even spritzes and martinis on tap. 

“All our drink list is Victorian only,” Jeffaras says. 

“They're all owned by families just like TWØBAYS. So they're all independently owned, and it’s just an opportunity to showcase our broader producers.”

While not exclusively Victorian, most of the food also comes from local suppliers, with triple-cooked Hawkes Farm potatoes and Otway Artisan bread on the menu. 

The Freehouse is now open from 12pm to 8pm, Thursday to Sunday, at 118 Rockeby Street, Collingwood.

Image credit: Thomas Groom | Supplied