Surry Hills' Long-Standing Bodega Tapas Bar Is Closing

Bodega has been cooking up tapas in its Commonwealth Street digs for 13 years. Now, it's shaking things up. Next month, owners and hospo legends Elvis Abrahanowicz and Ben Milgate (Porteño, Bodega 1904) are moving the restaurant into sister venue Wyno Bar and Shop just around the corner.

"Since [2017] when we acquired 121BC — which is now Wyno — it was always the plan for us to move Bodega there," says Abrahanowicz. "It's something we've been thinking about for a few years now and we were really just waiting for the right time."

Come August, the Wyno dining room will become Bodega 2.0. The 27-seat venue will be transformed to feel (and look) a bit more like Bodega, the space opened up and a brand new kitchen installed, too.

"We've been changing the space slowly over time and will add in a few more bits and pieces before reopening," says Abrahanowicz. "As it's small there's not too much you can do, but we're definitely bringing in that Bodega feel, so you'll 100 percent know you're at Bodega."

Bodega

As far as the food goes, the focus will still be on Spanish and South American tapas, but the seasonal menu will now change weekly. Two beloved Bodega dishes will remain regulars, though: the fish fingers (raw kingfish on charred toast, topped with cuttlefish and salt-cured tuna) and the banana split (a cake layered with flan and banana marshmallow, then sprinkled with salted peanuts and served with dulce de leche ice cream).

Wine drinkers will be happy to know that, while the bar will close, the Wyno bottle shop isn't going anywhere. That means you'll have plenty of top-notch bottles to choose from when making your tapas selection, too. And Bodega fans won't need to go without for long — the restaurant will reopen on Holt Street just four-to-five days after closing down on Commonwealth Street.

As for the existing space, it has been snapped up by the team behind Tokyo Bird and Osaka Trading Co. They're planning to open a new Japanese concept called Nikkei — but details on that one are still under wraps for now. We'll update you with more when the time comes.

Bodega Tapas Bar will closing its doors on Saturday, August 17. It's slated to reopen at 50 Holt Street, Surry Hills on Wednesday, August 21.

Top image: Wyno by Katje Ford