Grandma's Bar

Sydney's bar entrepreneurs have become a lateral-thinking lot. A dark alley was once a place for drunks to take a leak in, now it's the perfect pop-up haven. A harbour island was once a mundane tourist spot, now it's a hot new cocktail bar. A basement was once a musty place to store stuff in, now it's the next "retro-sexual haven of cosmopolitan kitsch and faded granny glamour", as Grandma's claims to be.

GRANDMA MIGHT NOT APPROVE of drinking and debauchery but she'd at least appreciate the decor in this tiny spot underneath a guitar shop in the heart of the business district. Retro couches and bar stools fill the concrete space, complete with the odd crochet blanket, daggy mugs and a basket of knitting needles and yarn. So far, punters have knitted about 80 communal centimetres. "A few people had clearly had a few drinks; it's very holey in some parts," says Warren Burns, who opened the bar six weeks ago with James Bradey. "We're going to keep it going then hang it up on a wall so that everyone is a little part of Grandma's."

COCKTAILS ARE THE PREFERRED DRINK. There are five pages of them. The writing on the menu is tiny and trying to read it in the dim light is headache-inducing but if you squint hard enough you'll see some creative drinks such as the Fufi Juice (gin, elderflower cordial, lemon juice, grapefruit bitters and egg white, $16), the batidas (a Brazilian milkshake that comes in many flavours such as passionfruit or banana with cachaca, tropical fruit, condensed milk and sugar, $16) and the Nuclear Daiquiri (overproof rum, green chartreuse, Velvet Falernum and fresh lime juice, $18). There's an emphasis on old-school tiki drinks, tropical concoctions and revamped classic rum-based tipples. The cocktails are strong and intricate. Some, such as the Basil Grande (vodka, strawberries, basil leaves, Chambord, Grand Marnier and cranberry juice, $16), are a little thin but most are chock-full of big flavours and made smoothly. The ever-changing secret-ingredient punch ($14) is also a winner, served in a kitsch mug that would make grandma smile.

THE WINE MENU IS UNUSUAL too. There are six whites and six reds but no labels listed, only grape varieties and price. This is so people can suggest wines they really like or a new variety they're keen to check out. "We'll put it on for a couple of weeks," Burns says. "We'd like to keep it as open as possible for change." In the food department there's just a couple of retro snacks that will change regularly such as jaffles (with a fab Japanese mayo dipping sauce), biltong and curried cashews (not as horrid as they sound).

EGALITARIANISM IS A RUNNING THEME, from the open-slather wine list to the crowd. On a Saturday night there are drinkers of all ages and shapes, which makes for a fantastic, welcoming vibe. Weeknights attract a mostly after-work crowd but Burns is starting to see a more varied bunch migrate into the CBD after-hours. It's due in no small part to the cheery, casual bunch of guys behind the bar. They're super-friendly and genuinely cool. This is a trip to granny's place I'd happily make again.

YOU'LL LOVE IT IF you like a bar that thinks outside the box.

YOU'LL HATE IT IF food is as important as drinks on a night out.

GO FOR creative cocktails, jaffles, the daily punch.

IT'LL COST YOU cocktails $14-$18, wine by the glass $8-$9, jaffles $7.50, beer by the bottle $6-$15.