Bar Allora Does It All: $1.50 Espresso in the Morning, Cherry-Topped Aperitivo Spiders at Night

There’s a bit going on at Bar Allora. The new bar and dining room just opened in a lobby space on the corner of George and Bond streets, the CBD’s buzziest patch, and it’s here for the city slickers from 7.30am till late.

The venue is a group effort, but the tone is set by the multi-award-winning Maybe Sammy team. It starts with $1.50 espressos and macchiatos, flowing to lunch and dinner services characterised by  ’80s Milan energy.

“My business partner Vince [Lombardo] said: ‘How much is a coffee in Italy? One euro’,” Maybe Group co-founder Stefano Catino explains. “So, one euro is $1.50 here. Why don’t we just charge the coffee like in Italy?”

Is it the cheapest in Sydney? Quite possibly. On George, definitely. There is a catch, though: it can only be enjoyed “al banco” – at the counter. “Only standing, and only espresso or macchiato. [If] you want a cappuccino, it’s five bucks.”

It’s a bit of fun – a consistent thread through the group’s approach to hospitality. Maybe Sammy may be one of the most awarded cocktail bars in the country (and the world), but it’s also known for its affinity for bubbles and pastel pink suits, and this vibe is seen through the drinks list.

The team wants you to order the Ragno, a sophisticated interpretation of the schoolyard spider. In place of Kirks creaming soda and a scoop of Peters Original, you’ll get ratafia and a house lemonade topped with lemon cream and a rosy cherry.

Maybe Sammy’s signature minis are also here – mouthful Martinis and teeny, interactive Negronis. Campari and vermouth arrive with a shaker of gin, ready for you to concoct your ideal spirit-to-amaro ratio.

Bar Allora’s flair harks back to the cocktail’s origins. “They say they used to have 20 a day,” Catino says, referencing Count Camillo Negroni, who’s credited with the drink after adding a dash of gin to his Americano after returning to Italy from England. “It wasn’t 20 of the normal form that we’re used to, the big glass. It was a little glass. That’s why, on the menu, we did quarter sips. And you can add gin as you like.”

There’s an enjoyable meeting of the Margarita and the margherita, with tequila, mezcal, basil and tomato in the glass or, if you’re after something light and refreshing, go for a gin and lemon, made with that house lemonade.

“Everybody thinks we drink Negronis all day long,” laughs Catino. “But we don’t! We drink gin lemon.”

It’s the first food-focused offering for the cocktail pros since they opened Randwick pizzeria Maybe Frank. Bar Allora is a venue from Table For, a hospitality group led by Accor. And this means Table For’s culinary director Rosy Scatigna is on board, with head chef Josh Donachie (ex-Jane, Jacksons on George, Re-) in the kitchen.

After a simple start (bomboloni, eggs, frittata, sandwiches), the ‘80s vibe continues in the pair’s lunch and dinner menu. The poached prawn catalana and the insalata russa have big retro dinner party energy, and there are snacks, pastas and a bistecchina, the thinly sliced steak paired with perfectly seasoned shoestring fries. (We asked the kitchen staff what powered the chippies and they wouldn’t say.)

Our picks? The double-fried eggplant fritti as a delightful two-bite starter and the swirls of spaghettone, which arrive drenched in anchovy butter and topped with lemon pangrattato.

“We really wanted to make people feel like you’re in a little corner in Milano,” says Catino. “And of course it’s better because we are in Sydney.”

Bar Allora
Corner of George Street and Bond Street, CBD 

barallora.com.au
@bar_allora