Sydney Bars and Restaurants That Are Undeniably, Unabashedly Romantic
Low lighting, jazz playlists, opulent cocktails — these date spots will help you to start planning the perfect Valentine's Day.
Alright, alright. So we've sat here all day grumbling about Valentine's Day, manufactured romance, disingenuous 'love' related holidays and the atrociously high price of roses. Words like 'phoney' and 'consumerist scam' have been bandied about. Pay no attention to the phones under our desk, messaging that special someone, planning a little get-together later on.
Sometimes you just have to lean into the gooiness of an occasion — and if you're on the hunt for a dimly lit restaurant or bar to spend the night, Sydney's got plenty. If we run into you at these undeniably romantic, unashamedly snuggly venues, don't be too harsh on us — we love love, really.
Below are the most romantic bars and restaurants you can book this Valentine's Day — or any day of the year when you want to impress that special someone.
Recommended reads:
The Best Restaurants in Sydney
The Best Bars in Sydney
The Best Wine Bars in Sydney
The Best Restaurants in Sydney's CBD
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RestaurantFelons Seafood
East Esplanade, Manly
Uninterrupted harbour views set the scene this Valentine’s Day at Manly Wharf’s breezy fine diner. Take them in as you and your person enjoy a three-course dinner menu featuring dishes such as grilled market fish and royal red prawn pasta, with optional shared add-ons like Sydney rock oysters and charcoal-roasted rock lobster.
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RestaurantOsteria Luna
68 King Street, Sydney
King Street’s cinematic underground Italian is open for lunch, dinner, and late into the night for its first Valentine’s Day. The velvet-draped venue offers an exclusive share menu that begins with a glass of Moët & Chandon on arrival, followed by dishes such as misto mare, conchiglie al forno and a stone-fruit torrone semifreddo.
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RestaurantGrill Americano
1 Chifley Square, Sydney
Melbourne restaurateur Chris Lucas' celebrated Venetian-inspired steakhouse has landed in a historic Sydney location.
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RestaurantGran Torino
24 Bay Street, Double Bay
Neil and Samantha Perry's contemporary ode to a golden age of dining brings big Italian flavours and seasonal Australian produce to a historic Double Bay location.
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BarClaret Club
77 Stanley Street, Darlinghurst
Two top Sydney sommeliers pour drops from their personal cellars at this cosy Darlinghurst wine bar.
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RestaurantVin-Cenzo's
174 Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst
This neighbourhood Italian by the Bar Copains crew transforms into a late-night supper club on weekends, staying open until 2am.
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BarLetra House
344 Kent Street, Sydney
This Valentine’s Day, the dimly lit underground wine bar is serving a multi-course, Spanish-inspired set menu. Begin with a glass of vermouth on arrival before tucking into a selection of tapas — including a caviar and queso fresco doughnut — followed by hearty mains and a few special add-ons along the way.
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RestaurantBar Copains
67 Albion Street, Surry Hills
Sharing is caring at this friendly neighbourhood wine bar.
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RestaurantLana
5-7 Young Street, Sydney
Settle in with your boo at Lana this Valentine’s Day for a five-course, nine-dish feast of contemporary Italian plates cleverly layered with Asian flavours. Highlights include tom yum spanner crab croquettes, tagliatelle alla kombu e pepe and a sultry chocolate and gianduja budino with sakura cha, cherry and shiso.
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RestaurantSOUL Dining
204 Devonshire Street, Surry Hills
Daero Lee and Illa Kim's original diner championing Korean classics with a uniquely contemporary flare.
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BarVermuteria
60 Kings Cross Road, Darlinghurst
Piccolo Bar's David Spanton brings vermouth on tap and salty nacks to a historic Kings Cross space.
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RestaurantKuro
368 Kent Street, Sydney
Two set menus are available this February 14, as Kuro’s intimate dining room transforms into a romantic oasis where every detail is curated for two.
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RestaurantIl Baretto
338 Oxford Street, Paddington
The Surry Hills institution has relocated to Oxford Street.
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BarToko Restaurant
275 George Street, Sydney
From February 6–14, you and your boo can enjoy an 11-dish tasting menu, with highlights like scampi nigiri foie gras with truffle and soy jelly, grain-fed scotch fillet with wafu sauce and a daily-changing sashimi selection. The menu is available for lunch and dinner.
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BarPaski Vineria Popolare
239 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst
This two-storey wine bar in the former digs of This Must Be The Place hosts weekly wine tastings and boasts food from a former Ragazzi and 10 William Street chef.
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BarContinental Deli Bar Bistro
210 Australia Street, Newtown
Where drinking cocktails gets that much better because they're served in cans.
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BarGolden Age Cinema and Bar
Paramount House, 80 Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills
This revamped screening room and small bar brings a little old-school charm to a night at the movies.
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RestaurantEsteban
1 Temperance Lane, Sydney
Begin your Valentine’s Day experience with a palate-awakening rum-and-coconut cocktail, before a shared five-dish lunch or nine-dish dinner menu of contemporary Mexican fare.
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RestaurantBistecca
3 Dalley Street, Sydney
This underground CBD restaurant specialises in just one cut of steak.
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RestaurantThe Botanica Vaucluse
2 Laguna Street, Vaucluse
Love is in the air — and in the stars — at one of Sydney’s most swoon-worthy venues this Valentine’s Day, with a produce-driven four-course menu, as well as Billecart-Salmon rosé on arrival and short astrology and numerology readings available throughout the night.
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RestaurantChiswick
65 Ocean Street, Woollahra
Matt Moran’s enduringly charming garden restaurant is celebrating Valentine’s Day all weekend long. From February 13–15, the Woollahra venue is offering a four-course share menu of seasonal flavours, including stracciatella with grilled peach and marjoram, grain-fed scotch fillet with velvety bearnaise and a vegan pistachio tiramisu to finish.
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RestaurantNour
490 Crown Street, Surry Hills
Surry Hills’ hatted Middle Eastern fine diner presents a Valentine’s Day set menu, with highlights including tuna tabbouleh with horseradish cacik and sesame leaf, charcoal octopus skewer and a wood-fired chocolate halva for dessert.
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BarMille Vini
397 Crown Street, Surry Hills
This sleek Crown Street trattoria is plating up a decadent five-course menu this Valentine’s Day. Available for lunch and dinner, the menu includes caviar-topped kingfish tartare, saffron ristotto and the venue’s signature chocolate dome.
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RestaurantRovollo Restaurant and Wine Room
25 Martin Place, Sydney
Settle in beneath the ten-metre-long hand-painted ceiling mural and the dramatic lighting pendant adorning this elegant Martin Place restaurant for its San Valentino set menu. The five-course spread is available for lunch and dinner.
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RestaurantTOKI Bistro & Bar
100 Miller Street, North Sydney
It’s Valentine’s Week at this North Sydney hotspot. From February 7–14, Toki will present a five-course dinner menu blending the culinary traditions of France and Asia with seasonal local produce, with highlights such as scallop crudo, spiny lobster pasta, and flat-iron steak with truffle jus.
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RestaurantRasa House
639B New South Head Road, Rose Bay
Rose Bay’s welcoming neighbourhood wine bar offers a set share menu for lunch and dinner on February 14, spotlighting the venue’s signature Southeast Asian flavours.
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CafeThe Fenwick
2–8 Weston Street, Balmain East
Soak up the heritage sandstone surrounds of this waterfront Balmain beauty this Valentine’s Day with a four-course menu with snacks and sides.
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RestaurantBistro Bondi
17 Warners Avenue, Bondi Beach
This polished bistro from the Lox In a Box crew pairs Euro-leaning plates with a killer 70-bottle wine list in a relaxed neighbourhood setting.
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RestaurantFred's Providore
109 Cronulla Street, Cronulla
By day, it's a cafe and providore — by night, a moody bistro and wine bar serving caviar crumpets and pouring 16 wines by the glass.
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RestaurantInfinity by Mark Best
108 Market Street, Sydney
After nearly a decade away from the pass, one of Australia's most celebrated chefs has scaled the lofty heights of Sydney Tower's sky-high dining room with an all-Australian menu and drinks list.
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BarAster
117 Macquarie Street, Sydney
For a low-key — yet seriously chic — Valentine’s Day, head up to InterContinental Sydney’s rooftop bar. You and your boo can enjoy one of two refined pairings: half a dozen oysters and two glasses of champagne, or 10g of caviar with brioche and a half-bottle of
Ruinart Blanc de Blancs. -
CafeLoulou Bistro, Boulangerie & Traiteur
61 Lavender Street, Milsons Point
This Valentine’s Day, start with a glass of Moët & Chandon on arrival before tucking into a three-course share menu that includes classic steak tartare, soufflé au fromage and confit duck leg with rhubarb.
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RestaurantFlaminia
61 Macquarie Street, Sydney
Giovanni Pilu’s Circular Quay restaurant presents a four-course menu inspired by the seaside flavours of Italy this Valentine’s Day. Highlights include gamberi alla catalana, paccheri allo scoglio and fresh strawberry and ricotta cheesecake to finish.
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RestaurantAria
1 Macquarie Street, Sydney
Take in the sweeping Sydney Opera House views from Aria, which is celebrating Valentine’s Day from February 12–15. The five-course menu begins with a flute of NV Louis Roderer on arrival.
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BarIcebergs Dining Room and Bar
1 Notts Avenue, Bondi Beach
A Love Song Dedications-inspired soundtrack sets the scene on February 14 at this Bondi institution, which is serving a one-night-only menu of Valentine’s specials, including caviar martinis, tableside champagne service, and a raspberry eton mess for dessert.
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RestaurantDean & Nancy on 22
2 Hunter Street, Sydney
Enjoy mid-century decadence and modern details at this high-rise cocktail joint.
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BarNick & Nora's Parramatta
45 Macquarie Street, Parramatta
Enjoy incredible views, a luxe 30s-inspired fit-out and a covetable Champagne collection.
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BarDear Sainte Éloise
5/29 Orwell Street, Potts Point
Enjoy a Valentine’s Day spread of individual bites and shared plates. Start with the inventive Fish on Chip — confit ocean jacket cheek with pilpil and smoked salmon roe on a potato crisp — before moving to larger dishes like prawn raviolo in broth and Maremma duck with currant grapes and wattleseed.
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RestaurantRagazzi Wine and Pasta
2-12 Angel Place, Sydney
Slip into the Angel Place stalwart this Valentine’s Day for a multi-course set menu that includes tuna crudo with buttermilk, apple and salmon roe, hand-pinched, scallop-filled faggotini finished with butter sauce and caviar, mezzaluna short rib in a burnt onion brodo and a Cherry Ripe-inspired tiramisu.
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BarThe Cumberland
17–19 Central Avenue, Manly
This Manly cocktail bar is hidden behind a fridge — with 250 different whiskies, creative cocktails and plenty of snacks.
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BarEau De Vie
285 George Street, Sydney
Once 13th on the World's 50 Best Bars list, Eau de Vie's second iteration features inventive takes of espresso martinis and old fashioneds.
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RestaurantCho Cho San
73 Macleay Street, Potts Point
Options abound for lovers this Valentine’s Day at Potts Point’s vibey izakaya. Choose your favourites from the à la carte menu, or let the kitchen decide for you with one of the venue’s famed banquets or the one-day-only Valentine’s Day menu.
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Bar10 William St
10 William Street, Paddington
This lively Paddington stalwart is a portal into some of the best wine, pasta and snacks this city has to offer.
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RestaurantBennelong
Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point, Sydney
Bennelong's food is somehow just as show-stopping as its views.
Top image: Pellegrino 2000