When asked by someone on suggestions for a place to bring a date to in Bondi Beach? Most likely the answer is Icebergs, which of course is absolutely gorgeous and going to impress anyone based on its views and reputation. For someone who wants to think outside the box, I put forward the trendy restaurant and bar Vue Bar as a great option. Vue Bar located on the Southern side of Bondi Beach offers pretty spectacular views over the Beach and the passers by down below on Campbell Parade from its heated bar terrace. This would be an ideal spot to dine for lunch with day time views over the beach or an early dinner to watch the sunset. The Bar has a really cool vibe with the walls on the stairway up lined with graffiti of famous quotes. The staff here are incredibly welcoming and attentive. The food on offer matches the overall quality of service and vibe. We ordered liver pâté which was served with beautiful bread and fresh pickles and olives on the side. Beautifully presented and tasted equally as good. The next item we received was the Sea Food Platter. This includes octopus, cod, prawns, calamari, oysters and served with chips. The quality of the sea food is really great. Served fresh and flavoursome and the chips are simply amazing. They are this places secret weapon for sure. The chips are cooked three ways and that’s what makes them amazing. Room for dessert was sparse but when Chocolate Mud Cake is on offer space must be create. The Mud Cake is perfect for sharing and comes served on warm chocolate sauce and along side delicious vanilla gelato. This dish was lick your plate good. Overall top experience from start to finish and will almost definitely be returning in the near future.
Marie G.
Place rating: 5 Randwick, Australia
This cool bar/restaurant is a hidden gem of Bondi Beach! It’s located on a sheltered rooftop showing breathtakingly beautiful views of Bondi beach. During winter they provide heaters to keep you warm so definitely try this place out all times of year. They provide good quality food. I ordered the seafood platter, beetroot and pear salad for main and chocolate mud cake for dessert! All very tasty and fresh. I’d recommend this place for a cosy, relaxed lunch or dinner !
Ashleen C.
Place rating: 4 Sacramento, CA
My new favorite place at Bondi, the location is great. It’s upstairs so you can sit back and enjoy the view and your meal with the ocean breeze. I did the service to be a bit slow but the good was good and even fellow diners were friendly and it seemed like at times you all were part of one big group which was lovely. I can’t wait to come back and try revisit this place.
Carl S.
Place rating: 4 Iowa City, IA
We needed a place to grab food later in the evening and most places had already closed. I believe Vue closes the kitchen at 9, but they were kind enough to keep it open for our orders. The seafood tapas we ordered were decent(especially the scallops in prosciutto!), so stick with those if you must choose. The land based ones were not bad, but nothing special either. The Papas bravas here were unusual and I didn’t care for them much. The atmosphere, view, and service makes this place a great stop!
F. G.
Place rating: 1 Sydney, Australia
1 Star service at 5 Star prices! It’s not that they weren’t friendly, but we went up to Vue Bar last night to celebrate my wife’s birthday, and was greeted by a slack-jawed backpacker in a T-shirt that just didn’t have a clue. It has a pleasant view, but the place was run by untrained, unprofessional staff. This is a bad reflection on the management. Prices were very high, but we were ready to drink the night away anyway, until we got our first drinks. The waiter only half-filled my glass of $ 9AUD Pinot Noir. As if that wasn’t bad enough, it tasted like it had been stored near the oven, and was of VERY inferior quality. After our first drinks we decided to leave. Then it took them ages to get our bill. How hard could that have been? At those prices, it takes more than a pleasant view to run a good restaurant.
Zvezdana O.
Place rating: 5 Sydney, Australia
What a fantastic spot! OMG, don’t tell anyone :( This is a gorgeous little tapas/seafood restaurant on the southern end of Campbell Parade with an epic view of the beach — it’s on the 2nd floor and all the seats on the balcony are facing the water. Nice touch. We shared a seafood platter and a salad — generous portion, well-priced, perfect spot, 5 stars. The one thing is that we were there at 12 on a Monday and according to the website, they don’t open til 4. Except they do. Hehe. My friend is a local and was like«Dana just looked you guys up and it says you’re closed! maybe that’s why you have no other customers?»… so um, yeah, they’re open. Really great spot.
Ali S.
Place rating: 3 Austin, TX
Food: I’m a little bit of a tapas snob, so with that in mind, I would say this place is fine. Calamari: This was the best squid I’ve ever had. It was truly incredible. The batter wasn’t that special, but oh the squid. So good. Mushrooms: There was nothing special about these. If you’re debating between this and the gnocchi(because of the gorgonzola sauce), go with the gnocchi. Gnocchi: The sauce was yummy and the gnocchi were also good. I’m not that familiar with gnocchi though, so I can’t compare it on a gnocchi scale. Risotto Balls: Waste of time and stomach space. Don’t do it even though they are cheapish. For the Americans who aren’t quite familiar with the Aussie beers, you should get the Fat Yak Pale Ale. It was great! Ambiance: Awesome. You overlook the beach on an upstairs balcony. It’s pretty romantic. Service: Great! We came in very late(when the place was completely empty), and they didn’t hesitate to serve us. Our server also didn’t make us feel guilty. We were very impressed.
Kristel L V.
Place rating: 4 Australia
My husband had selected this restaurant to take me to for a low-key birthday dinner and we both found Vue bar to be a fantastic dining experience. The outdoor seating area is beautifully decorated, and was heated so nicely that I forgot that my birthday was in July. The 2 person seating are placed on the same side of the table for a reason — so you can both enjoy the spectacular views of Bondi beach along with your cocktail and tapas. And yes, the view is truly magnificant! The arancini balls with salsa, calamari, and gnocchi were all beautiful tapas dishes and would recommend. You are looking to spend an average of $ 15 per tapas dish here — but the view, friendly staff, and tasty food make it a resonable amount to pay.
Joel Amigo H.
Place rating: 4 Sydney, Australia
I went here for a very relaxing birthday with a friend, such an unbelievable view was the present in itself, fortunately everyone had great conversations during the night, and we stayed on for a while. The view in combination with the food is a large draw card for Vue bar, although it was slightly on the small portion, and expensive side, which isn’t the greatest of combinations. I had the Garlic Prawns and Sea scallops, which were very tenderly cooked and wrapped in a beautiful creamy sauce. Even though we were a bit table, and ordered items which required changes from the menu, the staff were very friendly and competent. The food came out on time, and everyone was pleasantly surprised by the fast service, although a few mentioned they were still hungry due to the smaller portions.
Alice T.
Place rating: 4 Sydney, Australia
What a VUE! Yes this tapas/cocktail spot trades on a pretty blatant pun, but the view absolutely lives up to it. Sublime would be an appropriate way to describe it. Tapas is often a deceptively expensive dinner option, and Vue doesn’t buck the trend. But then again, just take another look at *that* view! That’s experiential dining. Try the arancini balls, the garlic prawns and sea scallops. Oh and leave room for some pizzas — the toppings are all deliciously fresh and help the cocktails go down oh so well.
John C.
Place rating: 4 Sydney, Australia
If it is a beautiful day like it was today, Vue bar is a perfect place to spend it. Yes it’s true, Vue is all about the view(I just wrote them a jingle), View is great if your with friends as they have Tapas, which really suits as you can order a few dishes to share and enjoy the view with a cocktail. Tapas can get kind of expensive, handily the Vue Bar also serves wood fire pizza, so a couple of those with a few tapas dishes works quite well to keep the dollars under control, then you just need to keep an eye on the cocktail count. If you really want to relax and show off Bondi, Vue is the way to do it in style.