New Brisbane

When I first moved to Brisbane, The Exchange, also known as “the stocky”, was one of the first places people told me to check out. Unfortunately they closed their doors for renovations a week before I arrived and it took over a year for them to re-open. But since they’re relaunched and with many of my Thursday and Friday nights spent out in the Brisbane CBD, I’ve often had a chance to swing by the new Exchange Hotel and this is a report of what I’ve discovered.

The Exchange Hotel
131 Edward St
Brisbane 4000
Ph: 07 3229 3522
F: 07 3221 1621
E: trav.white@thexchange.com.au
W: www.theexchange.com.au

When you walk towards the Exchange and peek in through its massive street-front windows, the first thing that comes to mind is elegance. While not lavishly decorated like Cloudland, there’s a certain austere charm that is evoked and which puts me in mind of the sort of New York cocktail bar you see in movies like Hitch. The downstairs lighting is seductive, without being overly dark or glaringly bright, and the feature lighting accents the bar perfectly, completing the dark, alluring feeling that envelopes you as you step through the door. Like a good cocktail bar, the downstairs area also features lots of comfortable seating to complement its standing space, although I think some U-shaped couches or some booths in the far corner, nearest the windows, would go down REALLY well - currently they’ve got some comfy stools you can pull up, but it makes you feel like your back is exposed to the entire club.

Also downstairs are some pokies and a brighter lounge area, but the real reason people go to The Exchange is upstairs. In what seems to be a growing trend amongst some of Brisbane’s hottest new venues, the primary feature of the renovated Exchange is its massive rooftop balcony. Perfect for mingling with friends or blowing off some workday steam in a hugely social environment, the volume of the music here is perfect for conversation and with plenty of standing and seating room, it’s no surprise that this has become a popular after work hang out, most nights of the week.

Weather has also been taken into account for the design of the upstairs balcony and there are plenty of places to go when the rain comes in. The smoking area, for example, is close enough to the rest of the bar to keep the smokers from feeling segregated and features numerous umbrellas to duck under on some of those stormier Brisbane nights. Behind the main bar is a small lounge, perfect for hiding from the rain or for sneaking in to get a drink when the main bar is busy - however, with the quick and friendly staff that work behind the counter, I’ve very rarely had to wait at any of the bars, even on their busiest nights. Off to the side is their covered function room, which is open to the public on the nights when it’s not booked out, and this has proven to be a popular place to hang out, even when it’s not raining.

Highly recommended, The Exchange is an excellent place to spend your night out, whether it’s to blow off some steam or for a fun night out with friends.

The upstairs balcony also features a massive 6m x 6m television, projected onto the wall, where you can find football games playing on Monday & Friday (and Saturday?) nights, Season 2 of Underbelly playing on Monday nights (including free popcorn and movie ticket give-aways), as well as the odd special cinematic event. And if you’re not there for that, it’s still a damned cool place to hang out.

My opinion is that the Exchange embodies two of the biggest trends that seem to be capturing Brisbane’s nightlife scene. The first of these is is the upstairs balcony bar, the second is the seductive lounge concept and they pull both off spectacularly. Unlike other balcony bars, like Fridays, the night isn’t over when the weather turns wet. And, unlike most lounges, which serve complicated cocktails that slow down bar service, or lack seating, there’s more than ample bar staff, serving up drinks quickly and efficiently (and at a reasonable price) with loads of places to sit with friends. And the proof of the popularity of these concepts is that they’ve been able to pull in a really broad demographic, ranging from the younger university crowd to the older after-work crowd, both of which have seemed more than capable of co-existing in the same space.

Highly recommended, The Exchange is an excellent place to spend your night out, whether it’s to blow off some steam or for a fun night out with friends. With reasonable entry lines, reasonable prices and a great atmosphere, there aren’t many other places in the downtown area that can match the experience you’ll have at the Exchange.

– Ross