The Winery sits at 285A Crown Street in Surry Hills, a quirky garden wine bar built around a leafy laneway and a terrace strung with fairy lights. It is the rare Surry Hills room that works for a slow afternoon and a long dinner alike.
The draw is the setting. Where much of the inner city runs dark and narrow, The Winery opens out into greenery and daylight, which makes it a go-to for groups, dates and sunny afternoons that drift into evening.
The wine list is the point. The bar pours more than 30 wines by the glass alongside a euro-leaning menu, so the room rewards drinkers who want to work through a flight rather than settle on one bottle.
The decor leans playful. Part of the Keystone group, The Winery is known for its odd statues and collected curios scattered through the garden, which keep the space from feeling like a standard wine list and white tablecloth.
What to order is the by-the-glass program first. The rotating glass list is the best way to read the cellar, and the euro-style plates are built to share across a table rather than anchor a formal sit-down meal.
The crowd skews local and relaxed in the afternoon, then turns toward dinner and date-night tables as the light drops. Weekend afternoons in the garden are the busiest window, so a booking helps for groups.
Who would love it: wine drinkers who want range by the glass and a green, open room. Who would skip it: anyone after a tight cocktail bar or a late, loud night, since The Winery closes earlier than the area's bars and trades on calm over volume.
Best time to go is a weekday afternoon or early evening, when the terrace is easy to get into and the by-the-glass list has the staff's full attention. The kitchen keeps snacks running later than the main menu, which suits a drawn-out session.
The Crown Street setting keeps The Winery in the thick of Surry Hills, which makes it a natural pairing with the neighbourhood's cocktail and agave rooms a few blocks on. The garden is the reason to start here rather than end here.
The garden is the signature. The terrace and laneway, strung with lights and dotted with the bar's collected curios, give The Winery a daytime appeal that few inner-city rooms match, and it is the reason the venue works for groups and slow afternoons.
The list rewards exploration. With more than 30 wines by the glass, the room is built for working through a flight rather than committing to a single bottle, and the staff are used to steering drinkers through the cellar.
The food backs the wine. The euro-leaning menu runs to shared plates designed to sit alongside the glass list, and the kitchen keeps snacks going later than the main service for anyone settling in for the evening.
For more in the city, see the guide to the best bars in Sydney, the best wine bars in Sydney, the best date night bars in Sydney, and the wider bars in Surry Hills, Sydney. It sits alongside neighbourhood rooms like Tio's Cerveceria in Sydney and Poly in Sydney.
Sources: The Winery official site · Destination NSW · Urban List Sydney · Keystone Group. Editorially curated by Marcus Webb.
