Eau De Vie

Overview

Following the world-altering whirlwind that was 2020, award-winning Eau-de-Vie closed down, promising to return in the near future. While it took a little longer than expected, the sleek cocktail bar that was once 13th on the World's 50 Best Bars list has officially reopened to the public in Sydney's CBD.

The Speakeasy Group (Mjølner, Nick & Nora's) and its directors Sven Almenning and Greg Sanderson have revived Eau-de-Vie at the Brookfield Place development inside the Beneficial House site at 285 George Street, joining Shell House, Romeo's, Edition Coffee, Gojima, NeNe Chicken and PappaRich in the complex.

All of the class of the original Eau-de-Vie is on show at the new opening with moody lighting, a smooth jazz soundtrack, the signature Whisky Room and private whisky lockers within the building's basement.

The cocktails are built to impress, starting with the Hall of Fame section of the menu featuring Almenning's signature Smoley Rob Roy which combines two types of whisky, Diplomatico Mantuan rum, sweet vermouth and orange bitters before being served under a cloud of smoke.

There's also a tangy take on the Moscow mule made with yuzu curd and your choice of rare aged spirit, Eau-de-Vie's famous old fashioned served hot or ice cold, and the Espresso Zabaione which reinvents the espresso martini with cold drip coffee, maple syrup, saffron and vanilla mouse and a touch of liquid nitrogen. All of this is on just page one of the ten pages of cocktails on the menu.

A considered list of snacks, both raw (oysters, tuna tartare) and cooked (lamb croquettes, wagyu beef cheek pastry) are available at Eau-de-Vie, but if you find yourself hungry, you should head upstairs to the bar's lavish sibling venue The Sanderson.

Appears in:

Sydney's best Underground Bars for 2023