May 2011

Raising The Bar

With new licensing laws now in full effect, Sydney’s bar scene is booming, as we discover during our round-up of what’s hot after hours

WORDS MICHELLE WRANIK
PHOTOGRAPHY HELEN CATHCART

HUNKY DORY SOCIAL CLUB

There’s more than a good dose of New York’s East Village about the rooftop at Hunky Dory Social Club. Beneath the glow of the advertising billboard, cluster of lime trees and a Bird of Paradise potted plant, it heaves on weekends with hipsters, willowy models and celebrities like Baz Luhrmann and Hugh Sheridan.

Twenty-something Melburnian entrepreneurs Richard Garland and Chris Cinerari launched the three-level terrace bar and restaurant (Bruno’s) in February after negotiating 18 months of red tape.

As they waited, they went wild sourcing the bar’s unusual furnishings and fittings “from all across the eastern seaboard”; including a full-sized taxidermic peacock, original convict bricks (with love hearts chipped in) and two gothic Parisian lamps.

The vibe is young and flippant, with an impressive cocktail menu, cleverly presented inside vintage Little Golden Books. “We thought it’d work for people on an awkward first date,” explains Garland. “It’s something to talk about.”

GARDEL’S BAR

Trying to snare a table at the sizzling Argentinean restaurant Porteño is no mean feat. But those who have to wait to be seated should kill time upstairs at one of Sydney’s most sophisticated cocktail bars. Named after the legendary tango crooner Carlos Gardel, it’s a sultry offshoot of the buzzy restaurant, with plush Chesterfields, armchairs and intimate nooks.

Owners Elvis Abrahanowicz and Ben Milgate scoured markets in Buenos Aires for authentic pieces such as the antique foosball table, while a portrait of Gardel himself hangs on the wall near the bar. “You can’t walk into a café or bar in Buenos Aires without seeing a picture of him on the wall,” says Julian Serna of Pure Drinks Design, who was brought in to give a delectable South American spin to the menu.

Try the La Boca, which is a tangy kick of Herradura Blanco tequila and Aperol, mixed with orange and spice jam, and honey and ginger syrup.

STITCH

Hidden beneath a mock alterations shop complete with sewing machines, balls of yarn and fabric hanging askew, Stitch is one of Sydney’s newest and most clandestine small bars. “I think I have Australia’s biggest collection of Singer sewing machines,” laughs co-owner Karl Schlothauer. “I did a road trip to Melbourne to get 10, and bought more from the outer suburbs of Sydney. My sister brought some from Brisbane too.”

Cocktails reign supreme at Stitch because mixologist and co-owner Christophe Lehoux is particular about his tipple. Try a Negroni, served with love and a paddle pop stick for stirring. As far as bar snacks go, the focus is on American diner fare. Order the curly fries for a salt fix — the basement bar cooks up about 50 kilograms of the fries a night.

THE NORFOLK HOTEL

It’s the latest drinkery to open on the “Cleveland Street Cluster”, an edgy area on the outskirts of Surry Hills. With a tongue-in-cheek menu featuring Jack Daniels and Coke slushies, largeritas (that’s beer margarita, for the uninitiated) and Bloody Marys served in recycled Campbell’s soup cans, it didn’t take long for The Norfolk Hotel to become the pub of choice for Sydney’s artfully dishevelled hipster crowd.

On weekends, the beer garden is packed with fashion denizens sharing jugs of beer, soft-shell tacos and tequila slammers. While they ditched the poker machines, co-owners James Miller (Ruby L’otel) and Jamie Wirth (Flinders Hotel and Duke Bistro) have retained the essence of the gritty pub. It’s been glammed up with new furniture, and attracts Aussie actors like Brendan Cowell and Emma Lung, but old-timers still patronise the bar. And Wirth says they are more than welcome.

He says: “We love that mix: a 50-year- old couple drinking wine, an old dude in the sports bar watching TV, and people outside drinking and eating tacos.”

GRANDMA’S BAR

“There’s no place like home — except grandma’s,” proclaims the menu at this kitsch city bar, where cocktails are served on doilies and punters knit as they drink. Owned by childhood pals Warren Burns and James Bradey (both 30), the bar is a tiny basement space with barely enough room to swing a crochet blanket. Relax on retro sofas and take in the 1950s and ’60s op-shop decor — with some of the furnishings even pilfered from the houses of the pair’s grandparents.

“Grandma’s was always the place you wanted to go to as a kid,” explains Burns. “We wanted to create a home away from home.” Gran’s menu leans towards Tiki- style cocktails, along with a 52-strong rum collection. The boys also mix up a mean bowl of communal punch, popular with the relaxed, post-work city crowd.

“Most nights there will be at least one person knitting,” laughs Burns. “After they’ve had a few drinks, later in the night it can get a little bit wayward, but if you think about it, that’s really part of the fun.”

LOVE TILLY DEVINE

Matilda “Tilly” Devine was one of Sydney’s most infamous brothel madams who may have solicited customers in the same Darlinghurst laneway, but don’t let that put you off. This 40-seat wine bar is a secret haunt for sommeliers and industry types with its 300-strong wine list with categories like “challenging, unusual”.

Everything is hand-picked by co-owner sommelier Matt Swieboda, while artesian salamis, marinated sardines and slow- roasted octopus are dished up by chef Tim Webber. The pair went solo after working in Sydney’s top restaurants. “We have a sliced meat plate from Pino’s La Dolce Vita Fine Foods, which works well with a new syrah we have from Saury in northern Rhône,” says Swieboda. “It’s peppery, and there’s a lovely charcuterie aroma already in the wine; stunning.”

TAKE ME THERE

HUNKY DORY SOCIAL CLUB 215 Oxford St, Darlinghurst, tel: +61 (2) 9331 0442
GARDEL’S BAR 358 Cleveland St, Surry Hills, tel: +61 (2) 8399 1440 STITCH 61 York St, tel: not listed
THE NORFOLK HOTEL 305 Cleveland St, Surry Hills, tel: +61 (2) 9699 3177
GRANDMA’S BAR Basement of 275 Clarence St, tel: +61 (2) 9264 3004
LOVE TILLY DEVINE 91 Crown Ln, Darlinghurst, tel: +61 (2) 9326 9297