Newtown & the Inner West
Swinging Earl's serves craft beers and killer cocktails to the Newtown hip-erati. It's hidden behind the down-at-heel facade of the Betta Meats butcher's…
Must-see nightlife in Sydney
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Newtown & the Inner West
This distillery has made quite an impact with its excellent gins – where better to try them than the place itself? The bar is appropriately industrial…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Tilly Devine was a notorious Sydney madam and crime boss in the '30s, and her namesake bar is hidden down a back alley, in true furtive style. The dark,…
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Newtown & the Inner West
Quite a way down Glebe Point Rd is an excellent independent bottle shop; turn right to find the convivial wine bar it runs downstairs. Staff will happily…
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Manly
Just along the wharf from the ferry, this remodelled pub is all glass and water vistas, with loads of seating so you've a good chance of grabbing a share…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
The 'Shakey' is a classic Sydney pub (1879) with art nouveau tiled walls, scuzzy carpet, the horses on the TV and cheap bar meals. There are plenty of…
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Sydney
A cracking pub, especially at weekends when it thrums with life all day, this is a real eastern suburbs favourite. The beer garden is among Sydney's best:…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Look for the unsigned wide door and enter this supremely cool brick-lined speakeasy. Ask the bar staff to recommend a whisky from the huge range on offer,…
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Sydney
One of the great pleasures in life is languoring in the pumping beer garden of the Watsons Bay Hotel, mere metres from the ferry wharf, after a day at the…
Newtown & the Inner West
Conviviality is assured in this craft brewery bar, where the beer, found on taps all over Sydney, is as fresh as you'll get. Basically, they've filled a…
Sydney
With numerous indoor and outdoor bars and restaurants, and a large kids' play area, this cavernous complex packs them in, especially at weekends. The…
Newtown & the Inner West
In groovy Erskineville village, this breezy little corner bar lures the neighbourhood's hipsters with food, cocktails (try the Full Scottish Breakfast…
Newtown & the Inner West
The Erko's art-deco glory is something to behold, and it also happens to be one of the area's best pubs. The wood-lined beer garden, local characters,…
Sydney
Paddington loves its quality Italian food and eagerly indulges in this minuscolo slice of la dolce vita on the fashion strip. There are excellent imported…
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Newtown & the Inner West
Somehow or other this teeny bohemian cafe squeezes in live music, spoken word, life drawing (7pm Thursday, $25) and eclectic events – witchcraft salon…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Sydney tapas legend Bodega moved in with wine bar WyNo in 2019. The petite space seats 28 at one long table and retains some of the Bodega favourites,…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Run by Porteño next door, this wine bar has its own character. Seat yourself at the long communal bar and ask the welcoming waitstaff to suggest delicious…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
The well-polished tiles of the facade and interior are a real feature at this elegantly refurbished historic pub. It's a popular pre-club venue for an…
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Newtown & the Inner West
Offering something for everyone, this excellent neighbourhood pub sums up the modern Inner West vibe. Sip craft ale in various indoor spaces, watch…
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Sydney
If you get lost in the tucked-away backstreets of Rozelle, you might find yourself chowing down in the beautiful Welcome Hotel’s acclaimed Italian…
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Newtown & the Inner West
A block back from the King St fray, the 150-year-old Courthouse is one of Newtown's best pubs, the kind of place where everyone from goth lesbians to…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Like the much, much hipper and better-looking Italian cousin of a Hard Rock Cafe, Vasco serves beer, wine and rock-themed cocktails in a room lined with…
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Sydney
This heartening backstreet social enterprise trains up young people as baristas, with a particular focus on refugee and disadvantaged communities. It's a…
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Newtown & the Inner West
Redfern shelters a cluster of offbeat hangouts for misfits, creatives, queers and subcultural scallywags, and the Tit is one of the best. A sexy, super…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Take the door marked 'restrooms' at the back of the main bar at the Kirketon Hotel and enter this sophisticated, black-walled speakeasy, where a team of…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
With no sign or street number on the door and entry via a shady back lane (look for the white door before Bikram Yoga on Foley St), this subterranean…
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Newtown & the Inner West
With a friendly, 30-plus local crowd, this is an excellent bar with street-side seating, local live music and a relaxing backyard area if you don't fancy…
Sydney
There's a kick to Paddington's weekend nightlife, and this bar-restaurant is a key player. Drinks and service are excellent, while chickens spinning on…
Newtown & the Inner West
The art deco Imperial is legendary as the starting point for The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. This old, late-opening LGBTIQ+ favourite…
Sydney
This spacious art deco pub is casual and unpretentious, and a fine place to sink a few craft beers, sip some Australian wines or join in nightly events…
Newtown & the Inner West
This historic corner pub has had a smart makeover and is all exposed brick and hanging garden these days, but the place still has plenty of old-time charm…
Newtown & the Inner West
You know you're in Alexandria when you're sitting in the middle of an industrial estate, staring at a tall corrugated metal wall, but there are plants and…
Newtown & the Inner West
This late opener is famous for its Wednesdays with Birdcage, one of Sydney's key lesbian nights. Over the weekend it features live music and DJs taking up…
Newtown & the Inner West
Band posters and paper lanterns decorate the black walls of this groovy little bar. Expect mellow bluesy/country/rocky sounds and cocktails based around…
Sydney
This enormous, rambling, rowdy complex packs in the backpackers for live music, open-mic nights, comedy and big-screen sports in the beaut beer garden,…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
All Sydney's small bars seem to be dark, candlelit speakeasies with a dash of gangster chic, so it's refreshing to find this light, bright cocktail spot…
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Newtown & the Inner West
The latest from the team behind Earl's Juke Joint, this is another nondescript facade that opens into a fantasy world you wouldn’t guess from the street…
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Surry Hills & Darlinghurst
Once a small corner pub, until it expanded into two neighbouring houses, the Dolphin's striking designer makeover means it deliberately looks like the…
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Sydney
This classic old Australian pub once stood virtually alone, wide verandah providing the shade for contemplating another slow-paced north-of-the-harbour…
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Sydney
This dingy, small, graffiti-strewn bar deliberately plays up its downbeat location at a corner of a multistorey carpark. The drinks, however, are very…
