Coogee Wine Room

While some wine bars might frown upon punters coming straight off the beach with their sandy feet, Coogee Wine Room – which is just a couple of hundred metres from the sand – encourages it.

The two-level bar is all polished-concrete floors, exposed-brick walls, a black steel-wrapped staircase. There’s also added hints of deep forest green, and warm timbers, leather upholstery and marble bar tops. The front bar seats 21 and there’s more space at the back for lingering over long lunches, plus the lounge space upstairs offers more intimacy and seats 48 people.

The wine list is just as considered as the interiors. There are around 400 bottles to choose from, with more than 50 varietals. More than half the bottles cost less than $100, with the rest of the list comprising of harder to find vintages. A Coravin system is used here, which drills through the cork of a bottle with a needle so wines can be poured without being opened. That means that a considerable amount of wines on the list can be had by the glass or half-bottle.

Former A Tavola chef Sandro Di Marino has created a food menu that complements the wine list. The menu here changes seasonally, but it always draws on the Mediterranean for inspiration. Past dishes have included Cantabrian Spanish anchovies with coffee butter, chargrilled octopus and lentils, and ricotta ravioli with basil and pine nuts. Cheese and charcuterie are also available, and for heavier appetites there’s a range of heavier dishes to complement the share plates.