EAT > Bar Topa, Sydney (14/20)

“Lets have a quiet night, just a glass of wine and some tapas”. Famous last words as we ambled down to Bar Topa which sits in amongst the throng of busy restaurants in the Merrivale owned “Ivy” district off George Street in Sydney’s lower CBD towards the rocks.

Bar Topa is a smart tapas or pintxos styled bar, it is not as full on as Bar Topa or as big as Ash St Cellar around the corner. This actually feels like it is run as a small business by a team that care about you, the wine and the food. The same kind of place you find in San Sebastian or Girona, great food, great wine great atmosphere.

FOOD >

On the night we dined (it is walk in only, so no need to book) we slipped on to a bar stool at the end of the counter. It is an excellent position to watch the kitchen grilling octopus ($23) and making a classic warm from the oven potato tortilla ($12) it was a generous serve. It is a place to get a few dishes to share and so we were also quick to order the Jamon ($34) which was melt in the mouth perfect

The menu can be found on a board on the wall there are lots of delicious bites to choose between and easy to keep grazing on one plate after another. The white anchovies ($26) and cheese ($10) were both delicious and came with plenty of bread to soak up the flavour.

There were three types of croqueta ($8) on the menu very classic and very tasty, sweet peppers ($14) were roasted on the grill and served with oil.

And the cheese cake ($14) at he end was a classic basque variety and was just the thing to round out a delicious meal.

Image Credit | Crispy Almanak & Bar Topa

WINE >

The wine list was not extensive and most people come for a glass of something Spanish. We enjoyed a Rioja that was fair but definitely not memorable and there was nothing on the list that jumped out as a must try, so this was a slight disappointment but it did not really impact us.

CONCLUSION >

That plan for a quiet night changed up quite quickly when by change a friend popped in and sat right next to us in the last counter seat. More wine and plenty of laughter and that kind of sums up Bar Topa it is a place you can just pop in have a snack but you just might find a friend and make a night of it!

Food 4/5, Service 3/5, Wine 3/5, Room 4/5 = 14/20.