Think Lui Bar and you’ll probably think that Skipper Josh has been at it again, or some other brave soul is testing the waters of tiki mania. But if you’re looking at the pictures on this page, you might be wondering if he’s a bit confused.
Venues
Venues
Things are looking up for Sydney’s North Shore. Whilst the area has always had some great pubs, things have been a bit hit and miss when it comes to smaller drinking around North Sydney.
But The Botanist looks set to change that.
Sydney is the new bar capital of Australia. Yes that’s right folks, after more than 13 years of publishing this humble little magazine and always referring to Melbourne as the city with the best bars I now feel it only fair to give credit where credit is due.
Monopole is the new Potts Point wine bar from Bentley owners, chef Brent Savage and sommelier Nick Hildebrant. While the focus might be on wine, the drinks list isn’t to be neglected: it’s one for the spirits geeks too.
With new bar legislation looking like it will come into effect in March, Adelaide looks set to become the next Australian cocktail destination. Looking to lead that charge is The Collins, the new bar opening soon at the Hilton, smack bang in the middle of the city. We got a look at the bar last week and were impressed with what we saw — the decor is sharp and the back bar is taking shape.
Beneath the Newmarket Hotel lies this quirky addition to Melbourne’s bar scene. From the Melbourne Pub Group and chef Paul Wilson, the emphasis is as much on food (see our bar profile this issue for a look at the kick-arse latin food) as it is on their 30-odd tequilas and mezcals.
Woolloomoo has a new bar brewing that’s a creative collaboration between Oscar McMahon from Newtown’s Young Henry’s brewery (pictured), Jack Brown (ex-owner Chingalings and hospitality business consultant), with Alex Watts and Nick Watney from Camperdown’s Runcible Spoon.
Get into part two of our look at the best experiences the bar world has to offer.
Perhaps food and drink got too serious there for a while, too self-referential. The experience became less about the company you kept and more about food for food’s sake. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a market for grown up food and drink – pounding back tequilas and tinnies of beer is not for everyone, after all. And it’s to those folks that Cellar Bar, Melbourne is looking. The place is grown up, refreshingly lacking in irony, and is a whole lot of fun.
I got to thinking the other day about what have been my favourite bar experiences over the years and I wondered what other people might say was their all time best bar visits – excluding of course those places that they either own or work at. So I asked!
For some 32 years or so, the space at 55 Riley Street (now home to the Parlour Group’s new bar, Riley Street Garage) was Frank Lowy’s parking space, said new owner Brody Petersen.
The Local Taphouse concept has been one of the instrumental players in bringing boutique beers to the the palates of the drinking public. We took a moment to sit down with team responsible..