From David Lynch-inspired basements to gritty 1970s discotheques, Sydney's underground bar scene has never been stronger heading into spring 2026.
Dining Desk is a contributing writer covering eat-drink and public affairs for The Sydney Times.
Sydney's basement bar scene has matured beyond novelty into a genuine nightlife tier, with three new openings in 2026 redefining what an underground venue can deliver beyond aesthetic.
Descend the stairs to Vespertine and you enter a vast, cavernous basement bathed in glowing red light, plush velvet banquettes and neon-lit spaces that shift colour from pink to purple to blue. Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt, the duo behind the Bentley Group, designed the venue as a bar they would want to visit themselves, rejecting the timber-and-antiques formula of traditional hotel bars.
The venue sits back-to-back with Ashe, the group's South-East Asian grill, in a heritage sandstone building on the corner of Angel Place. Savage says he would order the La Morena, a nutty, nougat-flavoured cocktail made with tequila and walnut amaro, while Hildebrandt gravitates towards the Chartreuse slushie with tarragon syrup, apple and lime. Three cocktails are kept on tap, including a blood orange Americano and key lime margarita. The food menu spans caviar service, oysters and casual bar snacks, with King Clarence and Ashe chef Khanh Nguyen reworking familiar favourites such as prawn toast and banh mi.
A trio of ephemeral hand-sculpted glass neon red lights shaped like squiggly lines dangle over the bar, their gentle curves echoing the sound waves from the performance stage at the front of the room. The stage is flanked by two custom Martin Audio speakers, with 40 more scattered throughout the room. Hildebrandt describes it as one of the best sound systems you will find in a bar in Sydney. Live acts range from improv jazz groups to a DJ spinning funk and neo-soul, with music every night of the week. There is no cover charge and no bookings for the bar. Open Sunday to Wednesday from 5pm until 12:55am and Thursday to Saturday from 5pm until 2:55am.
According to the Watoday Vespertine coverage, the venue opened in July 2026 as the Bentley Group's first dedicated bar.
The Hideaway arrived in Bondi Junction in June 2026 as a multimillion-dollar underground restaurant and cocktail bar inspired by New York after-hours dining culture. Mitch Rose designed the subterranean space to evolve with the rhythm of the evening, starting with early-evening service and building into a more energetic nighttime offer.
Accessed via a dual-entry staircase, the venue channels the spirit of basement steakhouses and dimly lit bars where energy builds as the evening progresses. The cocktail offering includes spritzes and oysters early in the service, progressing to martinis and late-night pours. A dedicated wine cellar and food menu curated by chef RJ Lines, previously of Automata Restaurant, focus on produce and house-made elements including dry-aged beef and Oscietra caviar.
Rose wanted a space where people could come anytime, day or night, and get away from the world. The venue fills a genuine gap in the Eastern Suburbs, where residents have historically had to travel into the CBD or Double Bay for a comparable after-dark experience. Located at 195 Oxford Street, Bondi Junction, The Hideaway positions itself as part of the precinct's broader evolution as a dining and nightlife destination.
According to the Bars and Cocktails Hideaway coverage, the venue draws on New York's late-night culture rather than Sydney's traditional pub model.
Odd Culture Group opened Razz Room in April 2026 beneath York Street, creating a dual-purpose venue that splits into two distinct moods. Upstairs, a warm-toned bar lined with timber and burnt orange caters to early evening crowds with a looser, social feel designed for post-work drinks. Downstairs, a sunken dancefloor shifts the energy entirely, hosting DJs and live performances from 7pm each night with a soundtrack spanning disco, funk, soul and house.
The venue draws from the grit and glamour of pre-mainstream disco, taking cues from New York spaces like Paradise Garage and The Mudd Club. Banquette seating surrounding the dancefloor keeps the connection between performers and patrons close, while rugs and velvet upholstery offset concrete floors and sandstone walls. The bar offers daiquiris, oysters Rockefeller, prawn cocktail and what the team claims is Sydney's best cheese toastie. A daily Velvet Hour from 4pm to 6pm drops daiquiris to $13 alongside sharing plates of caviar-topped eggs and cheeseburger dip.
Open Sunday to Wednesday until 12:55am and Thursday to Saturday until 2:55am, Razz Room has a 4am licence that positions it as one of the latest-operating venues in the CBD. According to the Secret Sydney Razz Room coverage, the venue launched with free daiquiris for the first 100 guests each day across its opening weekend.
The three venues demonstrate a clear shift in Sydney's underground bar philosophy: away from exclusivity and towards immersive, multi-layered experiences that reward curiosity rather than membership or reservations. Each venue targets a different demographic and time slot, suggesting the market can sustain multiple concepts rather than cannibalising a single trend. The success of these openings comes as Sydney's hospitality sector adapts to changed consumer behaviour after several years of disruption, with operators investing in atmosphere and programming over pure foot traffic. For more on Sydney dining and nightlife, see Eat & Drink.
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