The Thames Workingmen's Club — known to locals as the 'workies' — makes its home in one of Thames' most graceful old buildings: the former Cornwall Arms Hotel, one of the ninety-odd hotels that serviced the community during the gold rush days and beyond. You'll find the club at the northern end of town on the corner of Pollen and Cochrane Streets, and whether you're a member or a visitor on your way around the Pacific Gem (the Coromandel Peninsula), you'll find a great bunch of people inside.
The kitchen serves dinner on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday nights from 5pm until about 7.30pm, with bar meals on Wednesdays from 5 to 7pm and other times available by arrangement. The week is full of club traditions: raffles every Tuesday and Thursday from 5pm and Friday from 6:30pm, the handle draw at 5.30pm on Thursdays, housie on Tuesday and Friday evenings, and a memory quiz for teams on the first Monday of the month at 6:30pm, when the restaurant and bar are open.
A ClubsNZ-affiliated club, the workies runs active 8 Ball, Darts, Fishing and Housie sections, and new members are always welcome — just ask at the bar for an application form. Trading hours vary by day, from a 1pm start on Tuesdays and Fridays to 2pm starts on Mondays, Thursdays and weekends, with the club open until closing through the week; note that hours may vary at the discretion of the duty manager.
On the northern side of Thames, where Pollen Street meets Cochrane Street, stands one of the town's most graceful old buildings. It began life as the Cornwall Arms Hotel, one of the ninety-odd hotels that serviced the community during the gold rush days and beyond. Today that same historic building is home to the Thames Workingmen's Club — known to just about everyone in town simply as the 'workies' — and its long history is part of the appeal: a hotel that once served a gold-rush community now serves it in a different way, as a place where people gather for meals, games and good company.
The club is affiliated with ClubsNZ, part of a national network of clubs, and it runs on the things that have always made New Zealand club life tick: a kitchen that opens for dinner a few nights a week, bar meals midweek, raffles, housie, and a calendar of sections and social nights. It's the sort of club where the week has a shape — dinner here, raffles there, housie after. Whether you're a Thames local or a traveller on your way around the Pacific Gem, the Coromandel Peninsula, the club makes a simple promise: you'll find a great bunch of people inside.
Food follows a weekly rhythm. The kitchen opens for meals on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday nights, serving dinner from 5pm until about 7.30pm, and meals at other times can be arranged if you phone ahead — handy for groups. On Wednesdays the bar takes over, with bar meals available from 5 to 7pm.
Around the meals, familiar club traditions play out through the week. Raffles are drawn every Tuesday and Thursday from 5pm, and on Friday from 6:30pm, with the handle draw following at 5.30pm each Thursday after the raffle. Housie sessions run on Tuesdays from 5pm to 6pm and Fridays from 6:15pm to 7:15pm — an easy, social way to spend an hour.
Once a month, the club asks the big question: how good is your memory? On the first Monday of the month at 6:30pm, teams get together for the quiz night, with the restaurant and bar open. Phone the club on 07 868 6416 for information. The invitation is simple: get a team together and join in the fun.
Beyond the dining room, the club's sections give members plenty of reasons to keep coming back: an 8 Ball section, a Darts section, a Fishing section and a Housie section, each with its own regulars. The club's events page and notice board list what's coming up, so it's worth a look before you visit.
Membership is open and genuinely encouraged. New members are always welcome, and joining is as simple as asking at the bar for an application form. There's no fuss to a night at the workies — order dinner on a Friday, buy a raffle ticket, call numbers at housie or test your memory at the monthly quiz. For many in Thames, it's simply where the week happens.
Trading hours run Monday from 2pm to 6pm; Tuesday from 1pm until closing; Wednesday from 4pm until closing; Thursday from 2pm until closing; Friday from 1pm until closing; and Saturday and Sunday from 2pm to 6pm. Note that opening and closing hours may vary at the discretion of the duty manager, so it pays to phone ahead if you're timing a visit around a meal or a draw.
Whether you're stopping in for dinner, staying on for the raffles, or curious about joining a section, you'll find the Thames Workingmen's Club at 407 Cochrane Street, Thames — the corner of Pollen and Cochrane Streets. Call 07 868 6416 or email [email protected].