The Grey Lynn Returned Services Club — known locally as the Grey Lynn RSC — is a city-fringe club in the West Lynn Shopping Centre at 1 Francis Street, Grey Lynn. Its bar opens 365 days a year from 11am, set inside a fabulous old building that began life in 1902 as Richmond Hall, housing Grey Lynn School pupils before spells as a picture theatre and a film production studio. The Returned Soldiers Social Club was incorporated in 1937, and the club still reads the ode at 6pm nightly, dimming the lights as patrons stand and face the Honours boards.
Food is what the club calls Real Satisfying Comfort Food: fresh, reasonably priced bistro meals served Wednesday to Saturday. The bar pours tap beers and Guinness alongside craft and top bottled beers, non-alcoholic and low-alcohol options, soft drinks and juices, and a wine list that runs from Kopiko Bay house pours to Wither Hills, Church Road and a sparkling shelf including Deutz, Daniel Le Brun and Moet. Live bands play the downstairs bar every Friday night, and large flat-screen TVs show rugby, rugby league and boxing, with self-service TAB pods, gaming machines, a snooker table and two pool tables on hand.
Upstairs is a function venue with a large dance floor, full bar and restaurant and meeting facilities for hire — well suited to private parties, weddings, business socials or a dine-and-dance night. The club is family friendly (under-18s exit by 7.30pm), offers free parking in its large carpark and disabled access, and warmly welcomes visitors and new members.
Set on Francis Street in the heart of West Lynn, the Grey Lynn Returned Services Club — known locally as the Grey Lynn RSC — is many things at once: a warm neighbourhood bar, a comfort-food kitchen, a live music venue, a sports bar and a genuine piece of Auckland history. The bar opens at 11am, 365 days a year, closing at 9pm on Sundays and Mondays, 10pm from Tuesday to Thursday, and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Visitors and new members are always welcome.
The club's home is a fabulous old building with more lives than most. In 1902 it was Richmond Hall, housing the children of Grey Lynn School before a new school was built at Surrey Crescent. It then had its days of glory as a movie theatre and later a film production studio — an era when the controller of the old trams would reportedly ring the theatre to ask them to switch the power off, because screenings were draining the voltage and leaving trams stuck halfway up Queen Street.
In 1937 the building became the Returned Soldiers Social Club, incorporated that same year, and today it is the Grey Lynn Returned Services and Social Club Inc. Reminders of that heritage are all around: the Honours boards on the wall, historic photographs of 1902 schoolchildren on the club's website, and a nightly ritual — at 6pm the ode is read, the lights are dimmed and patrons stand and face the boards.
Downstairs, the kitchen delivers exactly what the menu promises: Real Satisfying Comfort Food. Bistro meals are fresh and reasonably priced, with the kitchen listed open Wednesday to Saturday from 1pm to 9pm — and the club notes that all menus and hours are subject to change, so a quick call ahead is wise.
The bar backs it up with a broad drinks list. Tap beers and Guinness on tap sit alongside top-of-the-range bottled and craft beers, non-alcoholic and low-alcohol beers and wines, and a large selection of soft drinks and juices. Wine drinkers are well catered for, with a list running from house pours like Kopiko Bay chardonnay, pinot gris and sauvignon blanc through to Wither Hills, Church Road and Tripple Bank; merlot, shiraz and syrah among the reds; several pinot noirs; rosés from Wither Hills and The Ned; and a sparkling lineup stretching from Lindauer by the glass to Deutz, Daniel Le Brun and bottles of Moët and Verve for celebrations.
Friday nights belong to live music, with bands playing the downstairs bar week after week — the club's online Gig Guide has the line-ups. Through the rest of the week, large flat-screen TVs carry live sport including rugby, rugby league and featured boxing bouts, while self-service TAB pods, gaming machines, a snooker table and two pool tables keep the room buzzing.
Upstairs, the club transforms into one of the city fringe's most flexible function venues, boasting a large dance floor with full bar and restaurant, plus meeting facilities for hire. It suits a private function, party, wedding, business social or a proper dine-and-dance evening, with bookings and function catering handled through the office.
The club is family friendly, though children under 18 need to exit the premises by 7.30pm, and the club reserves the right to refuse entry as the law allows. Free parking for guests and members in the large carpark, disabled access and toilet facilities make visits easy, and membership is set at $30 for Associates, $20 for Service and $10 for Returned persons — renewals can be paid online using your name and membership number as reference.
A community gem in Grey Lynn, supported by Lion Breweries and the Waitemata Board, the club marks Anzac Day each year with its own commemorations and welcomes the whole neighbourhood the rest of the year. Come for a bistro dinner, a Friday band, a quiet drink at ode time or an evening of pool — you will find a warm, friendly, spacious bar waiting.