Where to Eat Dinner When You're Having an Alcohol-Free Night
These seven spots serve up standout non-alcoholic tipples for when you're off the booze.
Where to Eat Dinner When You're Having an Alcohol-Free Night
These seven spots serve up standout non-alcoholic tipples for when you're off the booze.
Dry July may've come to an end, but for those who want to keep the detox going, these are Sydney's top spots for a non-alcoholic tipple. Whether it's for health benefits or you just don't like alcohol, there's nothing limiting about not drinking. And Sydney's extensive array of bars and restaurants offer everything from the norm to the whacky when it comes to mocktails.
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Aria may boast an impressive wine list, but if you’re off the booze you can still enjoy an equally fine dining experience. Accompanying the recently revamped menu is an extravagant non-alcoholic pairing with drinks such as blood orange and curry leaf tonic; a lemon, wattleseed and pineapple cordial; and an apple sorbet with mint and wasabi soda. Finish with a glass of caramelised apple, macadamia foam and tonka bean while enjoying sparkling views of Sydney Harbour and the Opera House.
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Gelato Messina isn’t just experienced in delights of the frozen kind, and it’s making that clear at its Messina Creative Department. Next to the Darlinghurst ice cream shop, a hidden space plays host to a seven-course sensory dining experience from Thursday through Sunday. The Creative Department pairs the experimental tasting menu with a variety of non-alcoholic beverages, ranging from burnt watermelon kombucha or a signature Seedlip cocktail, to hōjicha tea with shiitake oil. Unfortunately they don’t take walk-ins, so you’ll need to book your space via the website.
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Putting the P into experimental, PS40 has combined a passion for science and soda in Sydney’s CBD. The drinks menu is based around house-made sodas, which are happily offered with or without alcohol. A smoked lemonade soda is given its smoky notes at LP’s Quality Meats before being combined with fresh lemon, rosemary and Margaret River pink salt. A natural cola (PS40 Wattle Cola), on the other hand, packs a punch with a blend of cola nut, cassia bark, nutmeg, lavender and vanilla bean.
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CBD vegan favourite, Bodhi Restaurant offers a range of vegan mocktails designed to complement its menu of yum cha and pan-Asian tapas. Menu favourites include the California Dreaming, which contains house-made blood orange syrup shaken with fresh lemon juice, aquafaba (a vegan egg white made from legumes) and a spritz of soda; and Riders in the Storm, made using cloudy apple juice shaken with muddled limes, passion fruit, fresh mint and sugar syrup, finished off with a spritz of soda.
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Although well-known for its house-made pickles, cheese and charcuterie, Nomad also hides an array of imaginative mocktails on its well-versed drinks list. Made from in-house syrups, Nomad sodas take on a Middle Eastern approach with syrups such as pomegranate and cinnamon or peppermint and fennel, and if you’re not quite ready to give up the booze then you can spike a soda with your spirit of choice. For something with a little more kick, the Blue Mountain Gold mocktail made with creamy coffee, rosemary and dried orange is a hit, and the Nomadic Iced Tea made with lemon verbena, pomegranate and lime, is an ideal cool-down after devouring the restaurant’s signature dish of spiced cauliflower.
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With a focus on a fresh and healthy menu, the Three Blue Ducks Bronte is making sure it shines through on the drinks list as well as the food. Luckily, going alcohol-free doesn’t mean missing out on your favourites. And if you’re after a spicy pick-me-up then order a virgin bloody mary. Made with house-made hot sauce, tomato juice, chilli and lemon, it packs one hell of a punch and is sure to liven up the dullest of days.
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Copenhagen might have Noma’s seasonal juice pairing, but Sydney has Momofuku Seibo’s alcohol-free drinks pairing. There’s no chance of missing out on your five-a-day with its exquisite array of juice-led drinks. They change often but past offerings including an infused Earl Grey caramel tea, blueberry and raspberry vinegars, and a savoury onion juice made from caramelised layers of a burnt and smoky onion.
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