Different Drummer

2 for 1 cocktails?! I’ll take 10. This place caters to all sorts of people. Great for uni students on a budget (who still have a pretty expensive love for cocktails). The bar tenders know what they are talking about without being Wayne-​Kerrs. The place offers fresh pear juice too. Dayum

More of a wank than a genuine bar experience. Overpriced because it is located in Glebe.

One of my favourite places on the planet. Great drinks, ok prices, dark and just the right amount of dingy with a splash of romance…

Best night out in a long time! Incredible cocktails, friendliest bar staff in Sydney, a true surprise and a delight. Something I didn’t expect in Glebe. The food was fantastic too.
One of the best small bars in town.

One word: COCKTAILS.
DD has some of the best damn cocktails I have ever had. BF went to the bar to get cocktails for our table for 4 and returned 20 mins later. When asked about the wait, he explained that all the mixers and juices for the cocktails were made FRESH TO ORDER. How’s that for dedication to mixology and quality? All four of us passed around our drinks to everyone else for taste testing. All were so, so, so good. My fave was mine, some concoction of passionfruit and Frangelico– sounds a bit weird, but I’m telling you it could possibly be THE best cocktail I’ve ever had.
Cocktails are priced around $ 18 but you get a big glass filled with only the freshest ingredients. I can see why you’d come here for happy hour– what a bargain for the quality. Vibe is laid back and cool. Food was OK, but who cares when they make the cocktails ever?

My wife and I decided to walk into the Different Drummer not knowing about the venue or its food. We were attracted by the look and feel. Once inside, we were not disappointed.
The staff were really friendly, helpful, happy to walk us through the menu and make great suggestions on what to eat. There is plenty of room, and an upstairs area that is less noisy if you want to have a good conversation. The food was excellent, nice portions, and a competitively priced wine list to choose from.
The portions are quite big so start with a few shared plates and if you are still hungry keep ordering.
It is also priced very competitively, so you can adequately eat and drink between two people and have change from $ 100 to get a cab home!

Awesome place. Loved the fit out, a lot of cocktails being made… seems to be a great place for cocktails.

With the dozens of new cocktail and wine bars opening up in Sydney I can’t help but think of Different Drummer as somewhat of a grandfather of cocktail bars. It was around before the liquor licence rules changed, and even with fierce competition, it’s still kicking along showing the new kids how it’s done.
You can’t say no to the 2for1 cocktail happy hour (and a half) from 6 – 7:30pm every night. It’s always packed at this time, but the staff are quick so the line moves nicely.
I wouldn’t come back here for the food. The servings are tiny and the wait staff can be really rude — last time I was there I asked for some extra bread to finish the 2 plates of dip we ordered (half the dip still remaining) and they told me to go and order it at the bar! I nicely asked if he could just ask the kitchen… he came back with 3 tiny slices of turkish bread for a table of 6 people… WTF?
But I refuse to take many points off for the crappy dining experience, cos really, I’m here to drink my tasty martinis and margaritas at ½ price and mingle with friends. And for this, the drummer cannot be faulted.

So freakin’ good. Great service, good cocktails, friendly vibe.
This was one of Sydney’s first «small bars» and hasn’t changed much since it opened — it hasn’t needed to. The busiest and arguably the best time is happy hour which is two-​for-​one cocktails from 6pm — 7:30pm. It’s licensed until 2am, so it’s also a good last stop before heading home for sleepies.
Tapas is pretty damn tasty, but not incredible.
Book the roof — it’s rad. Or, if you’re super lucky and it’s not booked, wander on upstairs. There ain’t a lot of room, so don’t turn up unannounced with a large group if you want to hang together.

This by bar is one of my favorite bars in Sydney which we discovered last summer as my partner and I were walking past. It looked interesting, people were generally always there and the music coming out of it sounded great so we went and wow.
The drinks strong, the tapas good, and the atmosphere great. A lot of students/​internationals/​locals visit here, more of a younger crowd but everyone is always friendly especially the waitstaff.
Make sure you make it to happy hour (2 for 1 drinks) my favorites are the Motijos and the Choc-​tail I believe (it’s no longer on the menu but they still serve it). I also heard that they’ve begin to bring in a band to play one night a week. Take note, this place does tend to get busy but it’s defn worth a visit. As someone below me mentioned it reminds me of a little cozy bar in San Francisco and every time I hit Sydney I make sure to come here as much as I can.
The only problem I have is I wish they’d stay open a little later but aside from that I absolutely love it here.

We found this bar by chance. It was past midnight and we were on our way home.
We past the Different Drummer and thought «one more for the road «.
That became 2 Mojitos and a Gin and Tonic. Bar staff are very experienced and make great cocktails. As we arrived late we didnt look upstairs or out the back area. We stood at the bar and enjoyed the red ambience of the room. They stop making cocktails half an hour before the bar closes otherwise I would have had another Mojito they are so good.

Gorgeous little small bar that reminds me of some of the best in San Francisco.
Chose this place to meet a friend before dinner and when we ordered it was really busy and too noisy for us to hear what the bartender was saying to us. I thought he was saying that Happy Hour was over to which we shrugged and said OK. But it turns out that he was saying «Happy Hour is still on — do you want two of each?» So I found myself with two Charlie Chaplins and by the end of it, a grin from ear to ear: D
The Different Drummer has a Happy hour and a half from 6pm till 7.30pm. Have yet to come here for the food but if their cocktails are any indication, they will be effing amazing.

This Glebe institution is well known to the locals, but an undiscovered secret to the rest of the crowd. If you’re looking for a nice intimate spot for a drink with friends or a nibble tapas this is the place for you. Cocktails are between $ 10 to $ 15 and your mixers and beers are average for around $ 7. The cocktails are really unique concoctions. Some nights they have live music which is great and others they have a DJ. Food-​wise, there is a considerable selection of tapas style dishes. I recommend the deep fried camembert or the chorizo. The bar is decorated nicely, with a dim ambience, red light, but nothing special.

This place was one of the first small bars on the Sydney bar scene. Such a funky little bohemian bar and tapas restaurant to suit most types of people.
The mixed crowd is made up of young suit-​clad professionals enjoying a beer by the bar after work; alternative sneaker-​wearing uni types utilising the happy hour cocktails; and middle aged Glebe-​ians enjoying some Tapas and a vino.
This is a great place to meet friends or wind down after a busy day. There are several different areas tucked away in this creative space with dining tables upstairs, a small covered courtyard area outside and bar-​stool seats inside. The dim lighting and soft tunes make for a great atmosphere.
The Moroccan lamb skewers and the goats cheese and cabbage tuscan tortilla are highlights from the tapas menu. Washed down with some happy hour cosmopolitans made by a highly-​skilled bar tender. I highly recommend this brilliant bar to anyone in the the area.

This gorgeous, funky bar, is cosy and intimate with low level, scarlet lighting and mellow, soulful tunes.
During happy hour (2 for 1 cocktails) the Different Drummer patrons prop up the modestly sized bar and it takes a while to claw your way to the front of the masses to be served. The cocktails are well worth the wait though.
My picks are the classics: Long Island Iced Tea, or Mojito, or try the Charlie Chaplin, a delectable combination of Plymouth Sloe berry gin, apricot brandy and lime, or the Dark and Stormy, with Appleton VX dark rum, muddled fresh limes topped with ginger beer… mmm!
Get away from the crowd around the bar and head upstairs for a table. The city skyline view from the top floor balcony is lovely. With only one bar, located back down on the street level — navigating your way down two flights of narrow stairs for drinks after a few cocktails is a bit daunting and can be a bit tricky if in killer heels. Handy hint, if you head to the bar stock up.

Something tells me that the Different Drummer dances to its own beat. Small, dark and moody the bar exhibits exposed brick walls, red-​hued lighting and a bohemian soul. The lively and loud bar is most popular during happy hour-​and-​a-​half (6 – 7:30pm) where 20 – 30 something-​year-​old-​patrons are invited to sip on freshly shaken 2−4−1 cocktails. Worthy of a taste is the Red Corvette, Mojito and Long Island Ice Tea (for its alcoholic content alone) but the Vanilla Sour is definitely something to shout from the rooftop about. The perfect mix of sweet and sour, I could die happy after drinking one of these fellas.
The bar really comes into its own once the happy hour crowd has left. Relaxed, intimate and a little bit sexy, you can choose to spend your time in the front bar, back courtyard or somewhere up the spiral staircase. These days there is a separate area for smoking, meaning you can enjoy your cocktail minus the side of cigarette. Bonus!
As for the tapas, portions are small and prices are high. I would suggest dining somewhere else and saving Different Drummer for your before or after dinner cocktail.

On busy Glebe Point road is a fantastic little cocktail bar called The Different Drummer. It’s quite narrow and at its peak does cram them in there but the cocktails are popular (and good!) so it’s worth being squashed in there especially in two for one peak hour!
The main bar area is as you walk in so if that’s full you’ll have to squirm your way through to the back where there is a little courtyard. If you have no luck there then wriggle back to the front and head up stairs. There’s a narrow and windey stair well that will get you up there. It can be a challenge when you head back down though. Especially after a cocktail or few!
Up there is another small bar and a little courtyard (yes everything is little, small or narrow!) with some very nice city views.
If you need something to soak up the cocktails then you must check out the food menu as there’s some great share plate options on there. I reckon this place is a must see.

If you ever find yourself in Glebe on a Friday or Saturday night past the witching hour (midnight), head over to the Different Drummer for a nightcap. In a bohemian little neighborhood, this cocktail bar brings a twist of sophistication and class, but not in that pretentious way.
Inside there are a lot of good features. I particularly enjoy the black spiral staircase that leads to a secret upstairs which, if you’re lucky, houses a ping pong table. If you’re after a more intimate feel, head to the back tables and sit next the fishies in the large aquarium.
The bartenders at Different Drummer really know their stuff and have the shaker shakin’ guns to prove it. I tend to always order a Manhattan, and although you’ll pay a pretty penny, it’s worth every single last cent. It’s also worth noting that this bar is the only one on the Glebe strip that is licensed to stay open past midnight… cheers to that!