Franklin Bar & Restaurant

Verdict

Franklin is not just a bar with food on the side. If you've been once and filed it away as a casual drink stop near the waterfront, you're underselling it. As a date night venue in Hobart, it's one of the more considered choices on the 30 Argyle St strip — the kind of place where the evening has room to breathe rather than rush.

What to Expect

The space at Franklin has shifted in recent years from a looser, more casual format toward something with more intention behind it — the kitchen and bar program working together rather than operating as separate departments. That evolution matters for a two-person evening: you're not choosing between a good drink and a good meal, you're getting both in the same room without compromise.

The aroma that greets you is one of the more reliable signals that the kitchen is serious , wood smoke and something low and slow, the kind of scent that sets expectations correctly before a menu arrives. For a returning guest, the advice is to spend time at the bar before moving to a table. The bar program rewards the curious, and if you've only ordered wine before, it's worth asking what's being made with local spirits or seasonal produce.

As a date venue, Franklin works well for the mid-week visit when it's quieter and conversation doesn't require effort. Weekend evenings are busier, and while the room handles it, the dynamic shifts. If intimacy is the priority, Tuesday or Wednesday gives you the better version of this place. Booking is easy , no weeks-in-advance scramble required, which puts it ahead of several Hobart peers on accessibility alone.

For comparison across other Australian bar programs with this level of seriousness, 1806 in Melbourne, Bowery Bar in Brisbane, and Bar Leather Apron in Honolulu operate in a similar register , venues where the bar is genuinely the point, not decoration. Franklin sits comfortably in that company. See our full Hobart bars guide, full Hobart restaurants guide, full Hobart hotels guide, full Hobart wineries guide, and full Hobart experiences guide for broader planning.

Practical Details