Cantina Ok! is a 20-seat cocktail bar specialising in rare spirits from Mexico. It’s in a tiny garage at the end of a delivery laneway, manned by three jovial and variously bearded barmen in white aprons.

At 1950s Vegas-inspired cocktail bar Maybe Sammy, there’s a rotating tasting menu of $10 classic cocktails served in mini form. The space has plenty of green, pastels and gold, and bartenders kitted out in pale-pink dinner jackets. Plus, there's a $2 oyster deal on Sunday afternoons.

The first of three venues to go in at the refurbished Shell House in the CBD. It pulls inspiration from the grand eateries of Europe, with a daily Martini hour, lobster rolls, and a 2am licence.

A moody basement bar beneath Hinchcliff House in Circular Quay. Visit for a signature Negroni on tap, creative cocktails, and Sicilian-style bar snacks – all inspired by Francis Ford Coppola's landmark film, The Godfather. Open until late.

The Maybe Sammy crew's glamorous bar and restaurant on the 22nd floor of a luxe hotel. Come for interactive multi-sensory cocktails and a menu by a veteran Sydney chef that channels the glory days of Vegas.

A dramatic-looking, light-filled bar with its own soda-making plant. While wattle cola and smoked lemonade sound inventive enough, the boozy creations here are truly next-level: salted pina coladas; “breakfast” negronis; and a pitch-perfect homage to Black Star Pastry’s world-famous watermelon and strawberry cake.

Whisky, cognac and "shit tinnies" are your reward for finding this rowdy CBD bar. Just look for the three skulls and descend to the basement – you might be down there for a while.

Take the founders of Ramblin' Rascal, add a subterranean space and finish it off with a ’70s sheen and you have a guaranteed blockbuster cocktail bar. The vibe of the space – filled with wood panelling, plump leather couches and even a furry shag feature wall – is cool, easygoing and cheesy. A smooth funk and soul soundtrack rounds it all out.

Everyone ends up at Frankie’s eventually. The menu at this late-night parlour copped a serious revamp in 2021. Now it’s a snapshot of New York’s next-level pizza scene, which you can enjoy until the wee small hours. Just like in New York.

Below pavement level on King Street in the CBD there’s a den of New Orleans-inspired drinks, food and jazz. Pete Fischer is behind this small bar and it is the culmination of all his extensive bar experience to date, delivered with moody vibes and clever simplicity.

Little Felix is more than a waiting room for French bistro Felix. Thanks to a Cognac and Cointreau-heavy drinks list and a bar piled high with towers of French cheese cut to order, it's a destination in its own right. It’s all set in an opulent, pale-emerald room replete with comfortable dark-toned leather lounges.

Found on the third floor of the Republic Hotel, the bar is accessed from Tank Stream Way and then via a substantial flight of stairs. The climb reveals an open-air space that's admittedly more roofless than rooftop, but the air is cool and Pitt Street's skyscrapers wink down from above.

A classic CBD Friday afternoon atmosphere but with a more interesting beer list, and a mix of American and Italian sides such as lamb ribs with garlic and lemon; or smoky fried chicken wings.

Influenced by the soldiers and machines of the Second World War, Kittyhawk brings rye and rum cocktails to the business end of town. The bar’s concept imagines liberation day in Paris.

Bar Odessa, the plush basement bar at David Tsireka’s Greek restaurant 1821, was inspired by the history of the Greek Revolution. The bar is at the bottom of a narrow, dimly lit staircase. Once inside, Bar Odessa promises luxury fit for a Tsar with an extravagant suite of caviar alongside other Black Sea indulgences: pates, oysters and smoked fish.

Have dinner and wine upstairs, then head downstairs to party.

For seven years this spot was Shirt Bar but in 2018 it was reimagined as The Bandit’s Roost, a cafe and bar with a deli-style menu, an extensive whisky list and well-made coffee.

The bar, which opened in 2004 with an unassuming door and a notoriously misleading “Psychic” neon sign, was a pioneer of the city’s reinvented cocktail scene. It’s since come to be regarded as one of the best cocktail bars in the world, thanks to its well crafted but evolving cocktail list and switched-on staff.

To get to Bowery Lane, you step inside a set of office-like sliding glass doors. But rather than walking straight into another of Sydney’s sky-high office buildings, a sharp left will take you into what feels like a Manhattan loft.

Bar Topa is a pocket-sized contemporary tapas bar. It only accommodates 40 standing diners and a few on stools that are scattered about. It’s a place to pop into for a couple snacks before heading on to the next venue.

The 98-capacity venue is filled with brown-leather booths in front of bookcases, and foliage peeping from every nook and cranny. To access the drawcard rooftop bar you’ll need to climb another set of stairs (this space closes at 10pm). There’s more greenery and punters have 360-degree views of the city’s skyscrapers.

Matt Moran's extravagant table-service rooftop bar, with waterfront views and plenty of champagne.

The Push is an intimate bar beneath the Russell Hotel with a focus on cocktails and down-to-earth pub-food such as burgers and steaks.

In the first room you can get a lager or a G& T with your beard trim. But the main draw is room number two. Just behind the sound of buzzers and scissors is a dimly lit bar with a gin selection so wide you need a ladder to traverse it. Order the pepperberry spiced gin with a dirty tonic and pair it with a house-made sausage roll.

Almost everything about this place is authentically English, right down to the imported antique wallpaper.

A candle-lit den with “faded granny glamour” in spades. Lamps, mismatched armchairs and cheesy baked bean toasties are all comforting throwbacks, but the rum-heavy list of tiki drinks will really get you settled in.

A New Orleans-style cocktail bar, with an emphasis on rum.