The best restaurant bars in Sydney

Even the most cynical Sydneysider can’t deny the magic up here. Don’t worry if you’re not as bronzed and beautiful as the rest of the crowd – for every Bondi glamazon sinking a Spritz, there’s a trio of sweaty tourists fresh from a coastal walk taking a selfie on the balcony. And who could blame them? The views are even more dramatic from the bar than from the dining room, and look even better after a couple of signature No 8 cocktails.

Popping in to the bar at this big-ticket steakhouse is the equivalent of taking high tea at a five-star hotel and not spending the night. You still experience all the glamour and the polish, just without the financial commitment. At $22, David Blackmore’s full-blood Wagyu burger is still one of the best steals in town. For an extra fiver you can pair it with a glass of red, but you should probably go full Don Draper and order an ice-cold Martini.

Given that Warren Burns and James Bradey are some of the city’s most respected bar operators (they brought us Grandma’s and the Wild Rover), it makes sense that their first foray into restaurants is no slouch in the drinking department. Scoring a table isn’t always easy, but you’ve got a dedicated Negroni menu, Aperol Spritzes on tap and a Carrara marble bar that’s a destination in its own right to entertain you while you wait. Bonus points for the bargain weekday Aperitivo Hour from 4-6pm.

When it comes to bars and Bennelong, the question is: which one? You’re under one of the Opera House sails at one of Sydney’s finest fine diners, so the setting and service are epic no matter where you sit. If drinks are your primary port of call, head up the stairs and grab a low table by the expansive window for dead-on Harbour Bridge views. If food is why you’re here, the U-shaped Cured and Cultured Bar more than has you covered with an exceptional snack menu.

The mood in the front bar at Fred’s is decidedly dark and, er, moody compared to the bright, airy farmhouse fantasy dining room. But hey, that’s often what you want and expect from a bar, and the execution is just as professional. There’s also a whole other world downstairs at basement bar Charlie Parker’s, where the cocktails fuse seasonal produce and chef-like technique. The bottom line is it's hard to go wrong.

Bentley is widely regarded as one of the best places in all of Australia to drink wine. If that strikes you as a bogus claim, just look up how many awards sommelier Nick Hildebrandt has won for his show-stopping list. Whether you opt for a bottle or glass of something classic and precise or esoteric and cultish, quality and precision are never in doubt. The bar menu is equally considered – think white pea hummus and witlof, or kingfish collars with curry butter and fried buns.

The bar at Momofuku Seiobo might possibly be the best worst-kept secret in town. There are only five seats, all reserved for walk-ins, and if you don’t time your arrival perfectly (i.e. leave work early to get there half an hour before they open), well…tough luck. Get it right, however, and you’ll score a colossal fried chicken sandwich and a coconut turnover so good it will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.

Sure, the Newtown original rocks the bar vibe more than the CBD sibling, but this is a list of killer restaurants with killer bars, and the Phillip Street outpost of Sydney’s excellent deli-bar-bistro is very much a restaurant, as the roaring lunch trade attests to. Push past the tables and pull up a pew at the bar, though, to get your hands on a French dip or a trademark tinned Martini. Or, better yet, both.