Bishup Abichandani hopes to open Weston Bull early in the new year. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Weston Creek locals shed a collective tear when it was announced in February this year that community favourite The Meating Room would close after 10 years. But there’s good news on the horizon with a new pub taking over the space early in the new year.
Bishup Abichandani is the co-director and head chef of the soon-to-be opened Weston Bull pub, along with business partner Mrinal Sudan.
Bishup told Region that he has a personal incentive to open a pub at this Weston Creek location.
“I was actually a regular at The Meating Room. I play indoor cricket upstairs and we used to come down for a beer after our game,” Bishup said.
“This place needs a pub and the community in this part of Canberra is amazing.”
He’s excited to be filling a need for local residents, something he’s already done with his other venue T-Bone at Coombs.
The 1 kg T-bone steak is the speciality of T-Bone at Coombs, but Weston Bull will raise the steaks with a 1.5 kg Tomahawk. Photo: T-Bone Coombs.
Weston Bull won’t be a carbon copy of The Meating Room: Bishup and his team are putting their own spin on things.
As his other business name T-Bone suggests, Bishup is a specialist in cooking steak: he spent several years working at upmarket steak house Otis with Damien Brabender, so he really knows his stuff.
The centrepiece of the Weston Bull menu will be a 1.5 kg Tomahawk steak to share with three or four people. Although Bishup said he’d seen plenty of macho guys at T-Bone try to tackle huge steaks alone to win bets, he was sure there would be a few misguided souls attempting to raise the “steaks”.
While the focus of the venue will be “good steak, good beer and good vibes,” there will also be pizza and burgers on the menu, along with a few Indian dishes which pay homage to Bishup’s heritage, like beef massaman curry and coconut barramundi.
There’s also a kid’s section on the menu and a kid’s room with a foosball table and air hockey, along with card games.
“There’s no age limit, there’s no dress code. We’re a family friendly pub: we just want everyone to come along and have a good time.”
Each night brings a different reason to come to the pub: bingo, live music or discounted meals – like $27 for steak, chips and a glass of house wine on Wednesdays.
There will be a mix of craft beers on tap from local breweries – Bishup’s favourite is the Ginja Ninja from Tumut River Brewing Co – along with well-known brands like Carlton to cover all bases.
Wines from Collector, Clonakilla and Nick O’Leary will be available, and there will be a mix of classic and signature cocktails and mocktails.
All things going to plan, Weston Bull should be open in early January 2026.
Weston Bull is located at 45 Liardet Street, Weston. It will be open Tuesday to Sunday. Follow Weston Bull on Facebook or Instagram to find out when it opens.
Original Article published by Lucy Ridge on Region Canberra.
