Four New Sydney Wine Bars To See Out Summer

We – Sydney, Australia, the world – love venues that do the bar-or-restaurant dance. The format of a wine bar with a menu that’ll sort you out for dinner, too: the Bar Copains and Caravins, the Paradises and 40 Res-es. Well, on this list you’ll find one of those – along with three bar bars, where the drinks are the star and the food supports.

Soon we’ll have Caravin Deux – just one of the venues we’re looking forward to this year – in a Potts Point cubby, too. Until then, these four have you covered if you’re looking for somewhere new.

Aalia Wine Room, CBD

This Martin Place newcomer was always the plan for the Aalia team, the group also behind Nour, Joji, Ito and Henrietta. Find a seat in the glassy, two-storey space, where 31 wines are available by the glass, bolstered by Paul Farag’s snacky menu and schmick service. The kokotxas – Murray cod throats pickled with tamarind and Aleppo pepper – are a must-order, as is the sticky, caramelised fried Khorasan bread. Fattoush-topped crackers are fresh and bright, and the anchovy toast is revved up with muhammara. 

Wine flights deliver three 100-mill pours of your choice for $69 (or $99, if you pick from the premium menu), and somm-led tastings will be in the rotation soon. Lunchtime-only dishes include a cheeseburger, steak frites and fish shawarma. 

25 Martin Place, CBD
@aaliawineroom

Claret Club, Darlinghurst

A sommelier couple – Where’s Nick’s Bridget Raffal and Harry Hunter – have descended on Stanley Street, opening up a Euro-style bar with big Bordeaux energy. Spot the sweet, heart-shaped sign and you’ve arrived – wine (from locals, the team’s personal collection and Europe), upstairs-downstairs seating options and funky bits to eat (like anchovy-topped gnocco fritto, baccala mantecato and gruyere gougeres) await. Plus main-sized plates, if you’d like. 

You’ll always be able to drink claret, but a range of reds, whites, rosés, skins and fizz are here, too. All of it interesting and scrawled across a mirrored wall. 

The open, street-facing room is walk-in only, and you’re welcome to bring your pooch if you park up on the footpath. Upstairs, you’ll find tables to book, and, in the future, a courtyard and rooftop. 

77 Stanley Street, Darlinghurst
@claretclub

L’Avant Cave, Paddington

We met L’Avant Cave last year: a more refined, cheffier menu in the P&V Paddington courtyard. But in January, when Mike Bennie and Lou Dowling’s bottle-o moved out, the team redid the interiors, evolved the menu and opened the doors to L’Avant Cave proper.

It’s a destination in its own right, as well as a very nice holding space for Porcine upstairs. Banquettes, high-tops, a new mural by local artist Sam McAleer, menu blackboards and vintage posters have dressed up the space, and a new window seat looks out to Oxford Street. 

Build your own fruits de mer platter with Hill’s ever-changing mix of $12-a-pop snacks (think crumbed scallops, sardine-topped brioche and tartare), or pair your minute steak with frites and dressed leaves. Minimal-intervention wines arrive from locals and France, mostly – and are available at a reduced takeaway price, if you find yourself missing P&V.

268 Oxford Street, Paddington
@lavantcave

Winona Wine, Rozelle

Yes, Winona is a bottle shop. A very nice one at that – originating on the northern beaches, stocking a curation of funky, rare and easy-drinking wine and beer, plus boutique spirits, fancy pantry items and nice things for your home. Its third space (and first on the south side of the bridge) opens seven days a week, from mid-morning till late, with same-day delivery across Sydney. But Fridays are when it leans into wine bar territory.

Producers and local distributors host free weekly tastings from 5pm till 7pm. It could be Genie’s bottles, or Fox Wine Co’s Italian imports, maybe. Plus, keep an eye out for events like Smell the Rozes, a “mini wine fair” that took over the courtyard out the back. 

721 Darling Street, Rozelle
@winona_wine

Additional reporting by Alice Jeffery.