Pocket Bar

Can’t believe it took us 6 months of living in Darlinghurst to finally find this great bar! The atmosphere is very relaxed with good music playing. My wife really enjoyed the cocktail options and the beer selection was small but well picked. The bartenders were great at explaining and creating drinks as well. We will be back more often for sure!

I was meeting a friend who was already seated with a drink, so I went up to the bar to order. «No, no, go back over there and let me come introduce myself and take your drink order so it seems more authentic,» I was told jokingly by the bar staff, who waited about a minute and then came up and acted like none of the previous conversation had occurred.
I loved Pocket Bar – intimate and quiet enough for you to have a conversation with the person you are with, a rarity in a lot of bars I’ve been to in Sydney, but packed with lots of cool people, so it’s not TOO quiet. We were sharing a couch/​table area with 3 other small groups and everyone was having a great time. There were also larger areas for the bigger groups. It’s also nice and dark, so your makeup looks great in the warm evening light.
Cocktails were great, refreshed often by bar staff and fairly priced. Loved the small bar feel without being too packed in – I will definitely be back for happy hour drinks or to meet up with friends for a casual night out.

Pocket is a small bar rocket!
I’ve been a few times now, including schedgied events and after-​work chill seshes, and it’s never failed to be a delight.
They must have the coldest beer fridges in Sydney, as I’ve never had a tiger so chilled before. The glass panelled bar provides a window of entertainment with all sorts of knick knack brick-​a-​brackery to take a guernsey at whilst you wait for that clever cocktail to slide your way.
From the well appointed stalls and entertaining bathroom walls, to the comfy lounges and sexy cocktails, this place just about has it all.
The bar staff are just plain cool and lack the ‘tude so prevalent at other places, which is a refreshing change of pace. The pocket is aptly named too. She has a strict capacity, which gets hit pretty quick, so get in early… and stay late!

Great crowd, ambience, drinks, etc… one of my favorite happy hour or relaxing night out spots

Ended up going here after we fell for their wonderfully unique and creative advertising in the form of a fake parking ticket on a questionably parked car. The food was good and edgy, and very well priced after we’d taken the 30% off! Drinks weren’t cheap but weren’t exorbitant for this part of town. We’ll be back next time they leave a generous voucher on our car — and maybe even sooner!

Have only been here once. A very pub-​like ambiance with eclectic furniture (ie mis-​matched). Grunge style. Not really my thing but the menu looked appealing. Had the brioche grilled toastie (slow cooked short ribs and blue cheese) and the karage chicken. The sandwich was pretty good. Tasty, tender beef and excellent fries. The karage on the other hand, was soft and mushy (bordering on soggy). Staff were really nice and friendly. Wouldn’t mind returning for a drink (and bite) sometime.

I love Pocket so much I wanna marry it. I try to meander down to visit my peeps down at Pocket every once in a fair bit, because the atmosphere is great, the drinks are class, and the staff are some of the coolest people in the biz. This place is an all rounder– I’ve had success at Pocket for the following:
First date drinks
Corporate merger celebration drinks
Break up drinks
Let’s celebrate my promotion drinks
Out of towner in town for just a day drinks
Oh that party was good but I want more drinks
Day after big party hangover drinks
…
Seriously, it’s intimate enough for two to feel cozy, and cool enough to impress your boss if he asks you to pick a spot for imbibing and chatting. They make a mean Bloody Mary, the scallops are amazing and don’t leave without asking Charlie or Joe for a hand crafted cocktail.

I’ve been coming to this place on-​and-​off since it opened, and while it hasn’t changed much, it was great to start with so that’s a Good Thing™.
The cocktails a finely made — they know their stuff as good as any in the city, and the drinks menu is fresh.
Just off Oxford St, this place has a great inner-​city vibe. It’s small and cosy without being squished. While great for catching up with friends, it’s also a good venue for events, so if you get a chance to hit one up here then you should totally go.
They (used to? It’s been a long time since I was there in the daytime) serve fantastic crepes (banana & chocolate was the best) during the day, along with Little Marionette coffee (one of my favorite blends).
It’s a small venue, and can easily fill up on the busy nights, and they definitely enforce the limit for number of people allowed inside at once.

I have indeed got a Pocket, got a Pocket Bar full of sunshine.
Pocket Bar has always been one of my favourite small bars in Sydney’s inner east recreational drinking zone; the intimate atmosphere, quaintly awkward layout and retro-​fitted décor make it a haven for those seeking a quiet night in before a big night out.
The venue is ideal for events. Top notch catering (the zucchini flowers will change your life. That’s THREE cheeses you’re eating, my friend!)
Despite the shape and location, guests will flock to Pocket Bar and undoubtedly appreciate the close quarters style event.
I’m yet to try the cocktails, but they’re an easy winner according to many friends.
Pocket Bar is a subtle ray of sunshine in the sometimes over-​crowded hot spots of Sydney’s inner east.

Tucked away on a corner down a short steep hill off Oxford street sits the marvelously cool Pocket bar. We had a hankering for a dinner of savoury crepes and oh my, did we get lucky arriving on a Monday night for their $ 10 specials. Excellent service delivered delicious chicken pesto, ham and cheese crepes, with a starter of fresh bread and hot ‘n spicy, hefty garlic prawns? The soundtrack for the evening, with classics from the 60s, 50s, 40s and yes, the 30s set a relax-​and-​let-​your-​hair-​down mood. The wall art is provocative and not necessarily family friendly, but a great stimulant for conversation.
Resist the wait staff’s suggestion for the $ 19 house martini, though… The atmosphere is good enough to make more reasonably priced drinks perfectly sufficient.

Awesome small-​ish bar that’s perfect for a first date or chill drinks with friends. It’s got a great vibe– think overstuffed chairs to sit in, great decorations and mood lighting that’ll make anyone look like a million bucks.
Expect to pay the same outrageous price for a cocktail as anywhere in Sydney, but expect the bar tenders to be so charming that you forget you’re taking out a second mortgage to pay for the drinks.
The cheese plate is a great way to nibble, but if you’re in the mood for something a bit more substantial try their «Weuben» — their take on the Reuben sandwich with wagyu beef. The sandwich comes with the perfect French fry as well (super important, especially when you’re drinking, right?) — shoestring gems delicately fried and salted within an inch of their lives.
Come early and don’t leave. You don’t want to be on the outside looking in at all of the people having fun without you.

A rather welcoming small bar with casual character. Ideal for a peaceful mid-​week vino with a friend. They also whip up Pocket crafted cocktails for under $ 11 — and thats not even a happy hour special.

This is a very very funky and cool place to hang.
It’s a small venue located across the road from «The Commons». It’s small but not too small.
Note: This is a place drink COCKTAILS AND CHAMPAGNE!
The wine list isn’t that nice and some can be more expensive than a cocktail.
It’s a grungy, graffiti art place with mis matched vintage lounge suites that makes a vampire living room look boring. If you don’t want to look at the patrons their is plenty of art and ketch around to keep you occupied.
Best of all they have thought about the lighting. So you can get dark and dingy by the DJ or light and bright at the tables by the entry and moody yellow near the bar.
Music is very much house, drum and beats.
I’m a fan!

On a Friday night this place is packed, which is great if you want to make eyes and rub shoulders with strangers. But if you’re after a quieter environment in which to be able to hear your drinking companions talk, then I’d suggest coming during the week.
There’s a terrific selection of tequila and gin, the icecubes ae large and chunky and the bar staff should be able to mix you up any number of cocktails — either those on the list, or an old time classic.

Really? I really haven’t written a review for Pocket? Because I just love this little bar! The name in itself make me want to pinch its cheeks (because bars should be objects and have cheeks… what?!).
It’s the same group that brings you Button Bar in Surry Hills and Stitch in the CBD. Yep, when they know how to do great small bars, they know how to do them well! I love coming here, especially on a cold night, and sip on some hot wine (gluhwein). I love coming here on weeknights, when it’s just locals. Pretty good food as well!

Ok… so most of the time, I come here with my mum… but it’s still cool!
Such a great little bar in a handy location (unless you’re walking downhill from Oxford St in really high heels… gah!). Inside is arty, dark, charming and just plain good. If you’re arriving early in the evening, grab a couch or set up at a table near the front… and if you’re late, just be happy with whatever space you get… it’s all good… but small and popular.
The cocktails are delicious, there’s a great range on the wine list and everything I’ve tried from the food menu is y-​u-​m! Skinny, young, artsy types are scattered throughout the venue to serve you and make sure the drinks are flowing… I’ve never encountered an unfriendly face.
When I’m with mumsy, we’re usually there for a few glasses of wine and a snack after work… it’s a great place to hang around and chat (great place to bring a date too! The moody lighting works for everyone :-p)
When I’m with a group, we’re there for the cocktails… serious business… and have had great nights laughing, flirting and enjoying the ambience… Pocket attracts a great crowd.

If you’re feeling like a fancy cocktail (and I am right now) they have a menu that reads like an encyclopedia and history book. The names are quite descriptive but I’m pretty sure the names were different in the era of the original drinks. The circa 1935 amilto chico is a pioneer tequila cocktail but they added pomegranite juice to modernise. There is another really old one called the ‘corpse reviver’ that has gin, lillet, lemon, cointreau and abisinthe. The ‘delicious sour’ supposedly originated from a 1892 punch recipe that has applejack, peach brandy and lemon juice. I have a few favorites (which in no way indicates how much I drink because really this is a perfect stop-​along-​the-​way bar. And in my pre-​YELP life I would have had about a million check ins because no matter what you feel like, this place has it. I usually just ask at the bar or a waitress and they offer suggestions. Really, the menu is an encyclopedia and you need a flashlight.
My favorites:
‘bunga bunga’ — amaretto, frangelico and tuaca — nutty but creamy.
‘morning dew’ - (if you like coconut) — gin, st germain liqueur, lemon juice and coconut.
and when you don’t feel like the sugar hit: ‘dandy germain smash’ — grapefuirt vodka, elder flower, basil and mint.
Of course you can order them by name or just try something new by describing what you want. I dare you to have only one. Oh yeah, did I mention the price? Who cares. They are that good.
Small warning: expect it busy on Friday/​Saturday night. But you don’t want to sit down those nights anyway.

«It’s so dark in here. My night vision is worse than a redheads. Where are you guys?»
«Look for the gaggle of girls just behind the bar.»
This is deceptively difficult. There are gaggles of girls everywhere. (Incidentally, ‘gaggle’ as a collective noun applies only to the start of a night. At the end of a night, the collective noun is ‘smear.’)
Place is packed. And why the damn hell shouldn’t it be? Pocket Bar nails the Goldilocks formula; not too big, not too small, but just right. I’m a dude and the barmen even charmed *me*. One dude saw me, banged his fist against his chest and threw me a flying peace sign. That’s the black guy greeting. He thought I was a black guy. I felt two inches taller. And longer. Wahey! But listen: he made me feel cooler than I was and that’s all I cared about.
Hannah’s right, getting stuck outside is a fate worse than death because the wait to get back in sucks, but as far as I can tell that’s the only downside to this place, which isn’t a bad problem to have all things considered.
A sweet sweet bourbon for intestinal fortitude and it’s on into the gaggle.

Great lil pub in Darlinghurst! Been here a few times, great atmosphere. A bit «divey,» with lots of personality. Their restrooms are really interesting — there’s grafitti and funny messages to read while you pee. It’s a bit weird cause the bathroom is unisex but its pretty interesting.
The wine and drinks are good. Can get pretty busy so you do wanna get there early enough to snag a table. The snacks are pretty good and the staff is friendly.
Overall a great after work place to chill out, have some snacks and drinks.

Pocket Bar is another entrant into the tiny bar with bric-​à-​brac decorations, possibly-​antique-​but-​definitely-​old-​timey furniture, and a black and white pop art design for the interior walls. But this is a good thing: I know a lot of people are mourning the loss of Dr Pong’s, but I was always a bigger fan of Pocket Bar. I know, I know, I love board games and the family photo albums of strangers as much as the next person, but I much prefer Pocket Bar.
This is a tiny nook of a bar; it isn’t cramped, but in the cold light of day, it took five minutes and a Google Maps search to accurately locate it. One block off Oxford Street, down the road from The Gaff, this is a very chilled and laid back bar. In summer this is a particularly nice alternative to the tourist traps on the main street, best suited to kicking back with a gin and tonic to hold court.