The Hot New Restaurant
The Love, Tilly Devine team opened its dream trattoria in April, and it’s one of our favourite openings of the year so far. Big, beautiful and with a pasta-heavy menu designed to share, a standard reservation here will do the trick for groups of up to 14. The private dining room easily handles groups of 20.

The Hot New Bar
You’ll get serious points for locking down El Primo – but not for its fun Mexican snacks, those hefty Margarita jugs or the cute karaoke room. It’s for having the hot tip on the brand new mezcal bar hidden at the back of the venue. There’s a party game inside that will shock you, although we recommend a private booking if you’re keen to give it a whirl.

The Classic Pub Lunch
The Forry is super versatile. If you’re after a long pub lunch with your team, the public bar menu has all bases covered; a mix of pub classics, upmarket dishes and plenty of vegan options. But you can also book out the private dining room, do a bottomless rosé brunch, or takeover the entire upstairs section for a catered affair.

The Not-So-Classic Pub Lunch
This beloved Sydney boozer takes a European-inspired approach in the kitchen. If your party is low-key, the tight pub menu downstairs has you covered. But for something a little more special, the dining room upstairs serves an extended bistro menu with a slice of candle-lit ambiance on the side. Either way, a stint here usually ends with plenty of drinks on the footpath outside.

The One That’s Good For Kick-Ons
The best part of the night usually happens at the bar you go to after the actual party. Toby Wilson’s sunny taqueria at the new-look Norfolk Hotel is a great party choice in its own right. But the upstairs section – complete with a disco ball and DJs till late – makes it a no-brainer for a late-night boogie.

The Private Dining Experience
Sydney’s favourite underground brasserie has four classy options for private soirées, including a cosy 10-seat dining space surrounded by wine bottles and a gorgeous cocktail bar up front. Our pick? The Theatre Royale, a beautifully restored theatre hidden beyond the main dining area.

The Bowling Club
It's hard to imagine a more magnificent spot in the world for a Christmas Party (and a game of barefoot bowls) than the Clovelly Bowling Club. With its ocean views, a dedicated function space and barbeque facilities, this one’s hot property for groups of up to 120.

The Other Bowling Club
If you’re serious about booking Sydney’s flashiest bowlo for Christmas, you’d better make a move soon. This one also offers ball-droppingly great views – with the added bonus of having multiple spaces and packages to choose from. So, burgers and bowls or a four-course sharing feast?

The Inner West Brewery
Most breweries are walk-in only, which is a bit risky when you’re planning a party. But Bob lets you book tables for up to 20 people, and the Australian-Chinese menu here is perfect fare for a shindig. Bob’s place is also dangerously close to a bunch of other local breweries if you want to turn your party into a crawl.

The Rooftop
Unlike our friends in the northern hemisphere with their snowy white Christmases, we’re fortunate to have warm and sunny end-of-year office parties. Hyde Park House’s rooftop, Slims, is an ideal spot for an open-air Christmas party. It has bookable sections for groups of less than 30, is easy to get to, and has cracking city skyline views.

The Catered Picnic
Booking a Christmas party is hard enough at the best of times. Why not keep it simple with a picnic in the Botanic Gardens, Hyde Park or The Domain? If that’s the plan, this gold-standard chicken shop will take care of the catering. Not only does it have a great range of dips, salads and sides; it’ll deliver the goods to just about anywhere.

The Thoughtful Experience
If you’re keen to do more than just book a venue and slap a tab on the bar (not that there’s anything wrong with that), why not take a distillery tour at Archie Rose? Groups of 25 can see how Archie makes its award-winning spirits; and finish with a guided tasting. Masterclasses, including blend-your-own gin sessions, are also available.

The One With All The Games
This ’80s-themed arcade bar – which has more than 20 arcade machines, dozens of board games and heaps of retro game consoles – is available for whole-venue hire. Look back on the year that was with a Zooper Dooper-inspired cocktail in one hand and a jaffle in the other.