Claret Club Brings Big Bordeaux Energy to a Charming Stanley Street Space

There are no cocktails at Claret Club. “In some ways we’re very particular,” co-owner Bridget Raffal says. “But it’s really a choose-your-own adventure sort of menu.”

You might be familiar with Raffal’s work from Marrickville wine bar Where’s Nick, where she joined founders Julian and Dominic Abouzeid as a co-owner in 2020. At Claret Club, Raffal teams up with her partner and fellow sommelier Harry Hunter to deliver a Euro-inspired wine bar for the Darlinghurst crowd.

“The notion of a ‘claret club’ is so old-world and stuffy. We really wanted to reclaim that,” she says. “We want to do what we do best and what we’re passionate about, which is making fine wine accessible.” 

With about 30 wines by the glass on offer at any one time, Claret Club is a wine bar in the purest sense. Pours start at $15 and span local pét-nat, chardonnay and verdicchio, to zingy jacquere and textural pecorino from further afield. A claret will always feature (it’s currently Josh Cooper’s from the Macedon Ranges) but you can expect a range of reds to appear: pinot noir from the Yarra Valley, a Sardinian nascimento and a classic montepulciano d’Abruzzo make the opening line-up, etched on the mirrored wall. 

As the Club’s physical cellar grows, so will the wine list – the couple anticipate having up to 800 bottles on the menu when they hit full stride. And they’re passionate about local drops. “A lot of our really good friends are winemakers and they make some beautiful things, so Australian wine features heavily on the list. But then it’s complemented with our personal collections, which come mostly from around Europe,” Raffal says. 

The charming Stanley Street space is divided into a few different sections: the downstairs wine bar is (and always will be) for walk-ins, and there’s dog-friendly dining on the footpath outside. The upstairs dining room seats 30, with reservations welcome. A courtyard and rooftop are on the cards too, so expect more al fresco sips and snacks in the future. 

“One of the drawcards of the space was that we could introduce a bit of fluidity and spontaneity back into the Sydney dining scene, where things are often very regimented and planned,” Raffal says. “People can wander down from the city or around the corner from their homes and grab a seat. We want it to be a watering hole for the community.” 

The food echoes the broadly European vibe – the only direction Raffal gave head chef Andy Buchanan (ex-Dry Dock) was “a menu that works with wine”. Small plates scrawled on the chalkboard downstairs currently include gnocco fritto topped with anchovy and sage, pig’s head croquettes with salsa verde, and baccala mantecato (a nod to Bar Vincent’s iconic dish, RIP). If you’re after something a bit more substantial, a rich plate of confit duck is dotted with pickled cherries and served with dressed radicchio, while the market fish comes accompanied by sauce vierge, where whole cherry tomatoes dance with fresh herbs. 

In the lead-up to the new year, the team is serving a five-course set menu for bookings in the main dining room. But the intention is to move to à la carte across the board. “Upstairs will naturally be a little bit more formal. The building itself has such lovely old bones and beautiful leadlight panels that instantly creates that atmosphere.” 

Claret Club
77 Stanley Street, Darlinghurst 

Hours:
Tue to Sun 5pm–11pm
Please refer to Instagram for up-to-date holiday hours

claretclub.com.au
@claretclub