Opera Bar

The Opera Bar is Sydney’s best open-air bar. It has excellent views of the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. You can smell the salt of the harbour and watch ferries sail past. It’s an absolute pleasure drinking at the Opera Bar!

The drinks are not that cheap here, but the stupendous view and the excellent live bands more than make up for this. If I could only see one or two Sydney bars, I would put the Opera Bar on my list. Address: Sydney Opera House (Lower Concourse) Circular Quay.

The Opera Bar at the Sydney Opera House. Photo: Aschaf

Bondi Icebergs

Life is beautiful when you’re watching a Bondi sunset from the balcony at the Icebergs.

There are two bars within the Bondi Icebergs – a more expensive bar upstairs and a cheaper RSL (veterans club) downstairs. The two bars have very similar views. I wouldn’t say it’s worth paying the higher drink prices for the view from the upstairs bar. In its favour, the upstairs bar does have a few hanging chairs suspended from the ceiling by cables. These are a lot of fun to sit in and watch the sun go down, pina colada in hand. Whichever of the two Bondi Icebergs bars you choose, you will have a superb evening. The view really is that good. Address: 1 Notts Ave Bondi Beach.

Slip Inn

This is the bar where an Aussie real estate agent met the Prince of Denmark (no, not Hamlet) during the Sydney Olympics in 2000. She later married him and is now the Princess of Denmark. So I guess you could say this is the bar where fairytales come true.

The Slip Inn (love the name) itself is actually a fantastic summer bar. It has a large open-air courtyard which is perfect for enjoying balmy Sydney summer nights. Address: 111 Sussex St Sydney.

Beach Road Hotel

The Beach Road Hotel in Bondi Beach is one of the most fun and energetic of all the Sydney bars. There is a different style of music for each night of the week, much of it with live DJs.

If you’re a sports fan, the Beach Road is an exciting place to watch the bigger sporting events on a massive projector screen. For the bigger sporting events, such as the Cricket World Cup or the Rugby World Cup, there are free beers on offer until the first wicket is taken or the first try is scored. Try it out – you’ll like it. Address: Corner of Beach Road and Glen Ayr Ave Bondi Beach

If you want to see what a winter wonderland looks like, have a look at the Minus Five Bar Sydney. Everything is made out of ice – the seats, shot glasses and the bar itself. This article will ask whether Minus Five Bar Sydney is worth the $30 AUD entry fee.

Is Minus Five Bar worth the $30 AUD entry fee?

Let’s first consider what you get for your $30.

As its name suggests, the Minus Five Bar is chilled to minus five degrees Celsius (five degrees below freezing). You are provided with a warm, Eskimo-style jacket (see picture) before entering the bar.

As you enter the bar, it is an astounding sight to see the walls, bar seating, and cocktail glasses made of ice. Everyone is dressed in a similar Eskimo jacket it’s fun to see your breath in the air in front of you (if you’re from a warm climate). It is truly like entering another world.

You are provided with a free drink upon entry, and it is indeed a novel experience to drink from a glass made of ice.

A word of warning: because it is so cold inside the Miinus Five Bar, you are only allowed to stay for half an hour. (Even the bar staff only work in rotating one-hour shifts). You would not go to Minus Five Bar for a night out. Instead, you should treat it like a ride on a roller-coaster – something that only lasts a short time but is very memorable.

So, to answer our original question – is it worth the $30 AUD entry fee?

I would suggest that if you have a lot of money to spend then the Minus Five Bar can be a fun experience. If you are on even the mildest of budgets I would suggest giving Minus Five Bar a miss. It is a touristy experience, albeit a fun one, which does not provide a glimpse of the real Sydney or the real Australia. If you want a real Sydney experience at a bar, there is always the beautiful Opera Bar which has stunning views of Sydney Harbour and no cover charge.

Further Details

Address: 2/Shop 18, Opera Quays, East Circular Quay.
Getting There: Minus Five Bar is easily accessible via bus, train or ferry. Using any of the three modes of transport, disembark at Circular Quay. Walk for two minutes towards the Sydney Opera House. You will see the Minus Five Bar Sydney on your right-hand side.

Madame Fling Flong

Madame Fling Flong is a cosy and classy bar. Think sofas, board games and movie nights. This is the kind of bar that you feel like you can relax in, rather than the type of bar where everybody is trying to look cool.

Address: 169 King St Newtown.

Victoria Rooms

Bring back the British Empire! The Victoria Rooms bar is inspired by the grand colonial bars of the 19th century. Fantastic lanterns and screens dot the room, and the colonial armchairs evoke the days of another era.

Address: Level 1/ 231a Victoria St Darlinghurst.

Lord Dudley Hotel

This is a classic English-style country pub in the middle of one of Sydney’s more exclusive suburbs. With a decor of overstuffed armchairs, fireplaces and a dartboard, you almost wish you had a big-game hunting story or two to tell (no animals were harmed in the writing of this review). In short, this is a cosy pub that is perfect for a few rounds of Guiness or Newcastle Ale on a Sunday afternoon.

Address: 236 Jersey Rd Woollahra.

Tillbury Hotel

The sight of a grand piano greets you as you enter the Tillbury Hotel and straight away you know that this is a classy establishment. Location-wise, the Tillbury Hotel is a stone’s throw from the harbour in Woolloomooloo. There is a fantastic open-air terrace upstairs which is perfect for enjoying the balmy summers Sydney is famous for. Live bands also make the Tillbury a choice pick for summer sounds.

Address: Corner of Nicholson St and Forbes St Woolloomooloo.

CherriJam

I love the Moroccan-inspired decor of CherriJam in Sydney’s exclusive Double Bay. It really sets the scene for a great night out. You almost expect camels to come barging into the bar at any moment. There are also some great live music at CherriJam. However, when the band finishes, the sound system often comes on far too loud. In summary, CherriJam is a great bar for a winter’s night out.

Address: 16 -18 Cross St Double Bay.

The Eastern

The Eastern is one of the new breed of Sydney bars. Classy and stylish, The Eastern helps to bring the Sydney bar scene into the twenty-first century.

The Eastern has four levels, each with a different look or theme. My favourite is Level 2 – the Ruby Lounge. Decked out pretty much all in red, the Ruby Lounge is stylish and trendy. The Eastern is a handy bar to meet people at if you pass through Bondi Junction regularly (which you will if you live in Bondi Beach and you work in the city).

Address: 500 Oxford St Bondi Junction (also accessible from within Westfield Bondi Junction).

Other bars such as the Opera Bar have better angles and closer proximity to the Harbour Bridge, but the great thing about the Blu Horizon Bar is the fact that it’s fully enclosed, which means it’s perfect in winter or in the rain.

The Opera Bar, by contrast, kicks ass in summer but it kind of sucks in the rain or in winter.

The cocktails at Blu Horizon are pretty good – as you’d expect at $20 each! I ordered a “Sex on the Beach” cocktail and it was pretty nice!

If you definitely want a table by the window to take in those gorgeous views, it’s best to visit Blu Horizon early in the week. Friday and Saturday nights are pretty crowded – still, that’s what you’d expect from a bar with a view this good.

Parking is achieved with a little effort – there is meter parking on Cumberland Street outside the Shangri La Hotel (formerly the ANA Hotel) or you can use the carpark on Harrington St ($16 per night) a couple of minutes away. If you really want the lavish experience you can use the Shangri La’s valet car parking service (a pricey $35 for non-guests).

Address: Level 36, Shangri-La Hotel (former ANA Hotel), 176 Cumberland Street, The Rocks, Sydney.

Having just moved back to Sydney after 2 and a bit years in Melbourne, I can say that Melbourne’s bars (and the AFL) are one of the best parts of that city.

Melbourne CBD bars like Lily Black’s, Murmur, New Gold Mountain and Double Happiness definitely give the city a stylish edge that Sydney can sometimes lack.

Fortunately for us Sydneysiders – and visitors to Sydney – there’s now a new, intimate, Melbourne-style bar in Sydney’s Surry Hills.

The bar’s name is Yulli’s and it’s directly opposite the Clock Hotel on Crown Street.

Yulli's Bar in Crown St, Surry Hills. Photo courtesy of Yulli's Bar.

Apart from being an intimate bar, one of the unique things about Yulli’s is that they specialise in beers from local NSW breweries.

On tap you’ll find boutique labels such as St Arnou Pilsener, Red Oak Irish Red Ale and Red Oak Organic Hefeweizen. If you prefer beer by the bottle, you’ll see names such as Cinnamon Girl Spiced Ale, Wicked Elf Pale Ale, Red Oak Chocolate Stout and Murray’s Pilsener.

I’m going to keep this post short, but basically if you’re looking for a more intimate bar experience then check out Yulli’s – you’ll be among the first of its patrons! Say hello to Carl and Danielle and Maz behind the bar.

Set in a huge converted wharf, the dramatic high ceiling and intricately patterned carpet will get you in the mood for drinking – although we’re not talking beer (although they do serve that).

Cocktails, mojitos and caprioscas are the drinks to order when at the Blue Bar in Woolloomooloo. Don’t order the caprinha – it was very strong the night I had one and tasted very alcohol-y.

If it’s beer you want you’re probably better off heading to the Tillbury Hotel (classy but more of a beer pub than the Blue Bar) or Bells Hotel (a real beer pub); both are across the street from the Blue Bar.

Talking point while at the Blue Hotel: Russell Crowe (yes he of the telephone-throwing fame) lives at the other end of the wharf. You can’t go and see his place as a locked gate is the only entrance to his part of the wharf. But you know he lives there just the same. (It might be easier to see him at a South Sydney Rabbitohs NRL game – he’s a part owner of that football club).

Foodwise you can order nice (but expensive) food inside the Blue Bar or you can go next door and grab a pie from the famous Harry’s Cafe De Wheels. I had a pie with peas (beef pie with peas and optional gravy on top) just last night and I loved it.