Speakeasy Bar

Located minutes from Bondi Beach is a small neighbourhood bar called Speakeasy, and when I say "small", I meant it literally. With enough seats for only 20 people, this casual and unassuming wine bar was the perfect place for us to escape a cold and wet Autumn afternoon.   

The dim lit space is decorated with low comfy couches, dark wooden tables and chairs, mirrors and red lanterns that reminded me of acorns. The menu offers both local and international wine by the glass or bottle, each wine comes with single line of description giving you a quick insight to its tasting notes. There is also a handful of liqueurs and spirits listed on the gold menu pages, but you'll have to ask the waiter about beers. 

Food here is designed for sharing and are grouped into "Little bits" such as warm organic bread,  olives, muhammara; "Bigger bits" like Mushroom medley with zataar, pinenuts & shaved manchego cheese, Moroccan spiced chicken wings served with herbed yoghurt dip; and breakfast dishes such as Bruschetta with boiled eggs, roast potato, prosciutto and aioli for the weekends. Several cured meat and cheese plates are also on the menu while specials and dessert are written on the chalk board on the wall.

Wagyu beef, fig, pumpkin tagine

Looking for something to tide us over till dinner, we ordered the Chicken liver pate with sweet & sour onions & organic sourdough toast and warm organic bread with chalk board special Wagyu beef, fig, pumpkin tagine. The pate came in a jar with a layer of protective butter, it was soft and rich, spread smoothly across the toasts. The Wagyu beef was slow-cooked to perfection, the addition of fig, chickpeas, pumpkin and herbs gave the dish a beautiful spicy, yet fresh Moroccan flavour. 

I asked our waitress to suggest a wine to go with the beef and Postales’ oak aged malbec Patagonia from Argentina was poured, needless to say it matched the dish nicely.

It was its prohibition era name that drew us in, but once inside the wine and food kept us happy and its bohemian decor, in particular the large nude painting near the window made some great talking points. Small and intimate, Speakeasy is a great place to relax and catch up with friends over a glass of wine and a few delicious Asian and mediterranean inspired dishes. 

Speakeasy Bar: 83 Curlewis Street, Bondi Beach, NSW 2026