Known to locals simply as 'The Woody', the Woodbourne Tavern & Motel is a family pub and restaurant in the centre of the Renwick community in Marlborough. Two large bars — a sports bar and a lounge bar — give plenty of room to relax, with two big garden bars for summer days and a roaring fire for cold winter nights. As the sign says, you're always welcome at the Woody.
The tavern is family owned and community focused: siblings Rowan Ingpen and Stacey Goodwin run it alongside their parents Richard Marlow and Adrianna Ingpen. It stands on the site of the original Shaw's Hotel, which was lost to a fire, and the Woody has been an important part of Renwick ever since.
Meals are served daily from 11am in the Main Bar or back Lounge Bar, and the fully licensed Woodbourne Tavern Family Restaurant opens Thursday to Sunday from 5pm, with breakfast, full, kids' and takeaway menus. The Woody also runs Renwick School's Friday takeaway lunch service and hosts functions for up to 160 guests, with a room that's free to hire.
Between drinks there are two full-sized pool tables, a touch-screen jukebox with over 10,000 songs, a self-service TAB terminal with free WiFi, an 18-machine gaming room, big screens for live sport and races, and The Bottle-O Renwick bottle shop.
On High Street in the Marlborough town of Renwick, the Woodbourne Tavern & Motel — known to just about everyone simply as 'The Woody' — is the town's family pub and restaurant. With two large bars, a sports bar and a lounge bar, there's plenty of room to relax: through summer the crowd spreads into two big garden bars, and on cold winter nights there's a roaring fire to gather around. As the sign says, you're always welcome at the Woody.
The Woody is genuinely family owned. Siblings Rowan Ingpen and Stacey Goodwin run the well-established tavern alongside their parents, Richard Marlow and Adrianna Ingpen, and the family lives the same laid-back Renwick lifestyle their regulars do. Rowan is a volunteer firefighter and a busy dad of two; Stacey is a mum of two who spends her weekends following the kids' sport; Richard is an avid fisherman who's happiest out on the water. The tavern itself stands on the site of the original Shaw's Hotel, lost to fire long ago, and the Woody has been an important part of Renwick ever since — a piece of local history that still pours the drinks.
Meals are served every day from 11am until late in the Main Bar or the back Lounge Bar, and to the side of the tavern sits the fully licensed Woodbourne Tavern Family Restaurant, open Thursday to Sunday from 5pm until late — any other time, welcome by reservation. Breakfast, full, kids' and takeaway menus are all on offer, so the kitchen covers everything from an early feed to a proper pub dinner. The restaurant can also be booked for fully catered functions, business breakfasts, morning or afternoon teas, lunches and dinners.
Fridays come with their own local ritual. The Woody runs the Renwick School takeaway lunch service: families complete the online order form before 9am on Friday morning, choose from chunky chips, curly fries, hotdogs on a stick, battered sausages, fish bites, hamburgers, toasted sandwiches and more — including the much-loved Woody Pack combo — and the lunches are delivered straight to the kids at Renwick School. For plenty of Renwick youngsters, a Woody order is the highlight of the school week.
There's plenty to do between rounds. Two full-sized pool tables and a touch-screen jukebox loaded with more than 10,000 songs keep things lively, while big-screen televisions throughout the tavern show live races and every sporting fixture that matters. Racing fans get a self-service TAB terminal, a dedicated TAB area and free WiFi for betting through the app, and the gaming room features 18 machines associated with the Lion Foundation. Out the front, The Bottle-O Renwick is the tavern's own friendly bottle shop, with great offers whenever you drop in — this weekend or any time.
Functions are a genuine specialty. The Family Restaurant seats up to 50 guests with its own private bar and facilities, while the large Lounge Bar handles bigger crowds — up to 100 seated or 160 standing — with its own bar, private garden bar access, a full PA system, a screen and a stage area. Best of all, the room is free to hire, which makes the Woody a remarkably good-value setting for weddings, 21st birthdays, kids' parties or any other large gathering. Email the team for function ideas and menu options.
The tavern's efforts have been noticed further afield, too: the Woody has once again been selected as a finalist in the NZ Hospitality Awards, and the family is quick to ask locals for their vote.
Open from 8am every day — until 11pm on Monday and Tuesday, late from Wednesday to Saturday, and 10pm on Sunday — with hosts Richard, Rowan and Stacey on hand, the Woodbourne Tavern & Motel is something like Renwick's living room: relaxed, unfussy and always welcoming. Follow the tavern on Facebook for live updates and upcoming events, or give the team a call on 03 572 8007.