Move aside Melbourne - at last, Sydney has its own small bars culture. For years, Sydney's potential for hidey-hole drinking dens was stymied by prohibitive licensing laws – bars had to apply for a costly Au$15,000-a-year hotelier's licence, and were forced to serve alcohol with food. As a result, big bars ruled, and even the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, agreed there was "a real call for smaller bars supporting a diverse, intimate and more civilised drinking culture". In July 2008, after a strong campaign led by Moore, a new "small bars" licence was introduced – drinking establishments could finally serve alcohol without food, and the licence fee was slashed to just $500. The result? A burgeoning boutique-bar scene. My guide around the new drinking dens was Myriam Thibault, a French expat living in Sydney and founder of mytinerary.com.au:
1. Small Bar, Central Business District
Opened in December 2008, this was one of the first small bars to open under the new licensing law, and is part of Sydney's Live Laneways project, designed to reinvent the unused alleys of the city in much the same way that Melbourne has done. It's set over three levels, all polished wood floors and wooden furniture; choose from the sandstone cellar, the cosy room upstairs, which has a few seats along the bar and a smattering of tables, or – if you're not too far gone to negotiate the precariously steep stairway at the back – nab one of the outdoor tables that spill onto the back laneway. Expect bottled beers from local breweries and good-value wines by the glass from Adelaide to Alsace. There's also live music every Thursday evening and bar food served until 10pm.
48 Erskine St; +61 2 9438 4559, smallbar.net.au
2. Bootleg Bar & Italian Food, Potts Point
It may only be a stroll from the city's famous red-light district, but this bolthole is about as homely and laid-back as a bar can get - tea lights flicker, soul music plays softly in the background, black and white photos of famous rockers frame the walls, and drinkers settle in to booths or bar tables. There's a good list of affordable wines, beer on tap and simple Italian dishes served until late – don't miss the special's chalkboard, with creations such as squid ink linguini with seared scallops and chilli.
175 Victoria Street, +61 2 9361 3884, bootlegbar.com.au
3. Pocket, Darlinghurst
Opened last summer, this drinking den is one of several new small bars to crop up in the Darlinghurst and Surry Hills area. It manages to be unpretentious and cool at the same time, with concrete floors and mix-match furniture, like 70s sofas, wooden benches, chesterfields and coffee tables. The walls are a mixture of exposed brick and Lichtenstein-esque murals, and the glass-topped bar doubles as a display case for various bits of art and knickknacks, as well as a bookcase with issues of National Geographic. Settle into a sofa and enjoy the funk play list over the sound system. They serve breakfast (eggs on sourdough) and dinner (chicken skewers, charcuterie plate etc), but their crepes – from savoury delights such as chirizo with spicy eggplant and feta, to calorific sweets like Nutella and strawberries – are to die for.
13 Burton Street, +61 2 9380 7002, pocketsydney.com.au
4. Shady Pines Saloon, Darlinghurst
Tucked away in a back alley parallel to Oxford Street with no sign (look out for the drab white curtains), this bar caused quite a stir when it opened earlier this year. Largely, because it's an unashamedly stylised country and western saloon bar straight out of a Spaghetti Western – small round wooden tables fill the darkened concrete room, overlooked by stuffed deer, carved wooden American Indians, "wanted" posters and a huge longhorn steer, which takes up almost an entire wall. Take a pew at the bar (three-quarters reclaimed wood from Arizona, quarter old basketball court) and ponder the drinks list: while a bourbon seems the drink of choice, the wine list is top-notch For a couple of weeks at a time, special bottles from a particular country – Portugal, Lebanon, Italy – are available by the glass.
Shop 5, 256 Crown St, [no number] shadypinessaloon.com
5. Sticky Bar, Surry Hills
There's something exciting about a hidden bar where you have to call the owner to get in. In this case, the owner is an Italian called Michael Fantuz (there's a phone number at the entrance, which you call to be let in), and the tiny, dark bar is tucked away in a room above his quirky-cool Table For 20 restaurant - where diners sit at two large tables and dishes of Italian-influenced food, cooked by Michael's mother, get passed around. Like the restaurant, Sticky has an everyone's-welcome laid-back vibe; sink into one of the deco armchairs or leather Ottomans and ponder over the all-Italian wine list on the blackboards (the specialty is the "sticky" dessert wine), or the Italian-inspired cocktail list, while listening to cool tunes; live music is played during dinner, which is piped upstairs into the bar.
182 Campbell St, +61 4 1609 6916, tablefor20.blogspot.com
6. Fico, Surry Hills
With no signage, no website and masked windows, Fico is a place you seek out rather than stumble across. Owned by the people behind Italian trattoria Il Baretto, just up the street, this is very much a chic, but cosy, wine bar, with around 30 varietals offered by the glass (there are also a couple of beers and other tipples on the menu). Small and intimate, with low hanging crown bulbs, deep-cushioned couches and calfskin ottomans, there are lots of little alcoves, perfect for a tête-à-tête. As would you expect from Italain restaurant owners, the food is stellar, too, with a selection of dishes such as Roman-style ravioli (stuffed with prosciutto and mozarella), and there's a free antipasto plate with the first glass of wine between 6-7pm.
544 Bourke St, Surry Hills; +61 2 9699 2133, ficowinebar.com.au/fico/frontdoor.html
7. Name This Bar, Darlinghurst
This bar opened December 2009, and, having not yet decided on a name for it, the owners asked the public for their ideas. Along with suggestions for everything else - the bar erected an "ideas wall" on which patrons were invited to scrawl their thoughts. In the end Name This Bar – its working title – won out. The temporary "ideas wall" has been given permanent status, alongside other mismatched lounge-style decor. There's a decent wine list, happy hour with Au$5 bubbly cocktails, cider on tap and cheap eats - mezze, dips and dumplings - but it's the live art wars (two street artists in a "graffiti battle') and weekly jam sessions that many people come for.
197 Oxford Street, +61 2 9356 2123, namethisbar.com.au
8. Mille Vini, Surry Hills
Housed in a small building that was a stonemason's workshop and bookmakers in previous lives, this buzzing wine bar-cum-restaurant retains an industrial feel with exposed sandstone walls and roof beams, mixed with sleek dark-wood furniture and hanging lamps. The name of the bar means "a thousand wines'", and there are, unsprisingly, 1,000 wines, as near as damn it, to choose from lining the floor-to-ceiling shelves and sourced from every corner of the globe. It gets busy, so arrive early and settle in for the night. A big glass cabinet showcases the ingredients that make up the spuntini (Italian tapas) – cured meats, zucchini flower, blocks of cheese and fat olives.
397 Crown St, Surry Hills, +61 2 9357 3366 [no website]
9. Delicado Foods, McMahons Point
On first impressions, you could mistake this place for being just another bottle-shop - a beautiful one at that, wood-clad with a huge wrought iron chandelier. Walk through the little doorway at the back, however, and you're in the most charming restaurant-cum-deli-cum-wine bar in Sydney. This is a Spanish place through and through, with Flamenco black and red walls, a deli counter stocked with Spanish meats and cheeses, a menu heavy with seafood, chorizo and paella, and a stunning range of Spanish wines, unmatched in Sydney. Buy wine for your meal from the bottle shop, or come between 4pm and 6pm for wine tastings (Au$35, or Au$45 with cheese).
* 134 Blues Point Rd, +61 2 9955 9399; delicadofoods.com.au
10. Fix St James, St James
Originally a restaurant, Fix St James reinvented itself into a wine bar-cum-Italian bistro under the new small bar licence. And it works. The wine is definitely a highlight, "dedicated to hands-on-makers, small growers, crazies and fanatics", with little-known varieties and producers from Australia and beyond. Come just for a drink - during the week, its banquettes buzz with post-office Sydneysiders doing just that – or a meal, too. Owner and sommelier Stuart Knox knows his plonk, and will happily suggest wines to match your food. Go for the "quick fix" menu of five dishes, which are chosen by the chef, a steal at Au$44.
* 111 Elizabeth Street, + 2 9232 2767; fixstjames.com.au
mytinerary.com.au offers a half-day tailor-made wine tour from Au$99 per person (0061 1300 951 138, ). Virgin Atlantic (08448 747747, virginatlantic.com) flies from London Heathrow to Sydney from £848 return. For more details visit australia.com
Getting there: Qantas (qantas.com) from London Heathrow to Sydney from £749pp. Valid for departures 16 April-20 June 2011. Offer ends 31 January 2011.
Further information Tourism Australia, australia.com