The VICE Guide to the Best Wine Bars in Sydney

The best wine bars in Sydney cover all ground, whether you’re looking for a swanky setting, an interesting selection of Australian natural wines, or the best offerings from Europe and beyond, there are plenty to choose from.

Here are our picks for the absolute best wine bars in Sydney’s CBD, Surry Hills, the inner west and beyond.

Four hundred bottles! My god. From Australia and beyond. Dear Saint Eloise is a sultry, sexy and chic wine bar in the Cross. The food is also both interesting and incredible. Highly recommend.

Shop 5 29 Orwell Street Potts Point

Another wine bar in the Cross, Caravin boasts only 24 seats and a constantly-changing selection of 50 bottles. It’s French themed, so you know it’s elegant.

Shop 2 9 Ward Avenue Potts Point

Buongiorno… Europa! This Italian wine bar holds more than 450 bottles by small-scale producers. Downstairs is a quaint little bottle shop with cured meats and upstairs is the restaurant with a la carte offerings.

239 Oxford Street Darlinghurst

Tucked down a Darlinghurst laneway, this wine bar may not be easy to find, but it is a classic. The name comes from a beloved brothel madam from the 1920s underworld, so it’s worth going just for that.

91 Crown Ln, Darlinghurst 

Far North Hope Street Radio… Freda’s is actually quite nice and not too terrible when you can score an al fresco table. The wine list is pretty good but what’s better is the people watching! 

191-195 Oxford St, Darlinghurst 

Yes, it’s a pub, not a wine bar, but we’d be remiss to not include the Old Fitz. It’s got a wonderful wine list and a fabulous menu. All the good things of a good wine bar, but in a pub. Adore!

129 Dowling St, Woolloomooloo

Can we call it a wine bar? Well… yes :) P & V are wine merchants who let you buy your wines at bottle shop prices and sit right there in their cute little courtyard to drink them. Fabulous.

268 Oxford Street Paddington

Tight, cosy, loud. This little Italian-style wine bar has an extensive wine list and a truly fine, seasonally rotating menu to go with. Sit up at the bar for an elegant and/or rambunctious date.

10 William Street Paddington

Upstairs at the dingy skater haven pub is a romantic and light-filled wine bar. It’s nice in a  bare and minimalistic way, but their wine selection is pretty damn good. Love the contrast in vibe betwixt upstairs and down.

106 Fitzroy St, Surry Hills

Wine bar for wine lovers, the name “copains” is the French word for friends and with its outdoor seating it’s a lovely afternoon stop in summer with your buddies. 

67 Albion St, Surry Hills

Situated in the chicness that is the Paramount House Hotel, if you’re looking for swank after-work wines then Poly would be the palace for it. They even have a delicious happy hour with discounted food items, cocktails, and what have you else. Very nice.

74-76 Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills

This Italian bar and restaurant may not be a “wine bar” per se, but their wine list is exquisite, curated with an emphasis on natural wines from Australia and abroad. The food is delicious, also.

133A Redfern St, Redfern

More restaurant with great wine than wine bar itself, this European-style locale is the picture of pure millennial elegance (Victorian core, stark white walls, light-filled).

92 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe

This gorgeous hole-in-the-wall is a bottleshop and wine bar, with bar seating and yummy snacks. Twelve wines are poured each night from female winemakers, the selection curated by owner-sommelier Amelia Birch. Women in STEM!

55 Enmore Road, Newtown

Relatively new, Odd Culture is a swank natural wine bar, its sunny outdoor tables perfect for a quick stop in for an afternoon vini in the summertime. At night, the energy is moody and electric.

266 King St, Newtown

Not technically a wine bar but we love it. This restaurant and sake bar is beautifully designed. The open kitchen ensures the ambiance is a ten, but it’s also sultry, dimly lit, sexy. Walk-ins only! 

146 King St, Newtown

This Spanish-inspired wine bar boasts delicious wine, as well as cosy outdoor seating for people-watching, or romantic peach-hued light indoors for intimate occasions. In addition to great wine and cocktails, Bar Louise has wonderful and fun food. Bread, gildas, olives… what more could you ask for?

135 Enmore Rd, Enmore

Marrickville’s favourite natural wine bar with more than 150 bottles selected on the basis of how natural they truly are! 

236 Marrickville Road Marrickville 2204

We even have you covered out west. This boutique wine bar is decked out in plush upholstery, decor just as exquisite as their wine and food options.

14-16 Woodriff Street, Penrith

If you’re looking for city spots, this Italian bistro has a curated wine selection featuring Italy and France’s finest, with a few Australian makers in for good measure. 

16-20 Curtin Place Sydney

Arielle Richards is the multimedia reporter at VICE Australia, follow her on Instagram and TikTok.