Hugos Lounge

Those who know me know how I feel about the Cross and everything about it and these feelings are mostly not great. This is coming from someone who spent many years going out in the Cross very often and these days I really haven’t got much of a desire to go there at all, especially on Saturday nights.
However, I have to admit Hugos still remains a very decent place and one of the few worth going. Although a bit pretentious, it’s not often crowded and seedy like most of its neighbour bars/​clubs and the fact that you can order a pretty good $ 5 pizza is a major winner. For those of you who don’t know, if you book your birthday at Hugos, you get free pizza for the group till 10 pm and everyone gets a complimentary drink too — not bad at all if you ask me.
I’d probably give it 4 stars if it wasn’t for the music — way too much rnb for my liking.

I was going to give good old Hugo’s 3 stars, but then I thought about the fact hat it has kick ass cocktails and great pizza and the fact that I mentioned to one of my friend’s that the talent here is pretty consistent, if you are at all ambiguous about what I mean by that, I mean, every time you come here, there are almost always cute guys to look at and talk to. That, sadly, is more or less unheard of in Sydney. I can’t think of any other place in this city that I would describe as having «consistent talent»… LOL.
I wonder what their secret is to luring them in? Do they have a mailing list? Special invite only?
That said, Saturday night was no different, but they were all very generic, so who cares. Yeah I know, I know, there is no pleasing me. Then we got bored and left.
Hugo’s is pretty frou-​frou and the crowd is as you would imagine at any frou-​frou place. Lots of pretty girls in short, tight dresses, pretty boys that are fun to look at, etc. Everyone trying really hard to look aloof and ultra chic and fabulous, some more successfully than others. You know, the typical scene. It can be fun. Or not if you don’t like house music, $ 20 cocktails and people who take their carefully rehearsed trout pouts far too seriously.

Only Thursday or Sundays will you find me at Hugo’s Lounge.
Once a month, on a Thursday, they hold Brazilian Forro parties where a group of Forro musicians get together and perform. It’s great live Brazilian folkloric music and everyone just gets up and dances Forro on the dance floor. Dates vary but the best way to find out about them is to subscribe to the Facebook group and find out the events that are going on.
Every Sunday, it’s «Sneaky Sundays» beginning at 8pm. It’s $ 5 entry and $ 5 pizzas and select drinks. Honestly, I come here to stuff my face with pizza… haha! I won’t even lie about it because their pizza is pretty good and even tastier when you know you’re getting it for over half off.
It definitely does get pretentious and I can only imagine it on Friday or Saturday nights which is usually why I try to go on other nights to avoid it. It’s a good place to check out when you’re in the Cross.

Overrated. Too pretentious for my liking in general. It’s the type of place that while you’re waiting to get in you watch a dozen idiots try to jump the queue (because they think they’re hot stuff) and get denied.
So you’ll go ahead and queue here forever just to pay a cover (that you don’t want to pay) and then go queue again at the bar to buy your overpriced drinks. Not my idea of a fun night out. I know Sydney can be expensive but some clubs aren’t worth it.
I was here for ‘Sneaky Sunday’ with Sneaky Sound System one weekend end of last year and I will admit, that was a fun night. I probably wouldn’t choose to go here again, without a reason.

Hugo’s Lounge remains one of the busiest, hottest spots to be in Kings Cross. Although it is one of the few places I’d go to on a Saturday night in Kings Cross I’d just give everybody a word of warning before they decide to line up here. There is a cover charge, the place is packed to an annoying capacity, everybody is obnoxious plus the drinks are overpriced. If you want a great cocktail, want to hear yourself talk and need personal space then head downstairs to Hugo’s Bar Pizza — much MUCH better.

Another part of the Hugo Empire, Hugo’s Bar Pizza sits underneath Hugo’s Lounge in King’s Cross. It is very popular, and rightly so, given its relaxed yet elegant atmosphere, delicious food and excellent service. Unusually for Sydney, Hugo’s boasts an open fire place, complete with comfortable sofas to provide a cosy atmosphere for pizza-​eating. They also have a beautiful al fresco terrace for when the weather hots up and a fireplace is no longer necessary or bearable. The food is chic, home-​style Italian with award winning pizza (it’s fairly impressive that Hugo’s won ‘Best Pizza in the World’ at the 2005 New York Pizza Challeng… bet that pissed off some Italians).
But the menu is so much more than just pizza. A plethora of quality Australian ingredients are used in dishes such as fig, mozzarella and prosciutto salads, Mooloolaba prawns, scallops, antipasto, pumpkin tortellini, saffron fettuccine, salmon and poussin. Even the pizzas are more intriguing than usual: pork belly, wagyu bresoala and slow roasted lamb as well as the more typical prosciutto, pepperoni, mushroom. If you can fit it in, I highly recommend the goats curd cheesecake with passion fruit and white chocolate: unbelievably smooth and creamy. Of course, with their reputation for fabulous pizza, it comes as no surprise that they offer a chocolate and hazelnut pizza with banana and vanilla gelato. Everything here is seemingly simple, yet masterfully cooked and served. The service is efficient and very friendly, and this makes a brilliant place for a relaxed meal with friends.

Out on the streets, snapping some intrepid Unilocal street pics for your viewing pleasure, and I spied the news vans and the police cars outside Hugos. «Ah,» I thought. «Perhaps a violent crime has been committed. Maybe I could get a scoop!» I wasn’t sure if scoops were still generally scooped, but if they were, I was ready. Standing directly opposite the long stairway, my eyes could make out the phrase «Kardashian Kollection». I was significantly less interested in getting my scoop on.
Hugos was probably the first adult bar that I ever went to, the first one which made me realise «These are some grown-​up people here and I am so glad that I didn’t wear a t-​shirt». And sometimes, you get sick of wearing jeans and sneakers. Although not as aggressively socially mobile as The Ivy, I know some people feel that Hugos can be … putting on airs, so to speak, but I like it. It has a good mix of open air seating and an indoor dancefloor area; Hugos also does a special on pizzas on Sunday evenings, making it a prime choice for a chilled out session.

I always seem to end up here post ‘Kross’/ Potts Point dinner. Must be something magnetic about that illuminated marble bar… like a shining beacon in the night, and somehow my Tanq ten and tonic with a wedge of pink grapefruit looks so pure and magical lit up by that thing… like it could undo the damage already caused throughout the course of the evening with its cleansing purity. Maybe if I didn’t always head out for post Hugo’s round three…? If you’ve never had an Amaretto Sour, have one here. And if you’re already a fan, get here and have another one. Get the barman to give you a lesson in Old Fashioned — made with sweet tequila love. And if you’re gonna eat pizza, come with another who can make the ordering decisions for you — because it’s too damn hard. And I’ve been told the gluten free bases could turn a wheat addict coeliac. Vegos? Try the Mushroom — wild mushrooms, taleggio, goats curd and caramelised onions. Carnivores? Go the pork and veal meatballs, shaved parmesan, tomato and oregano salad. But there’s something about a fig, gorgonzola and pancetta trio that gets me EVERY time. Bases are thin and crispy so you can squeeze in more than usual. Wash it all down at the magic bar.

Glide your way up the stairs until you reach Hugo’s Lounge and find yourself in a gourmet pizza haven. Hugo’s is simply buzzing with an energetic vibe on a Sunday evening, attracting crowds of people from all over Sydney. The $ 5 gourmet pizzas (see photo) and cheap cocktails are a major attraction.
Located opposite the famous World Bar, Hugo’s is both elegant and a destination to see and be seen on a Sunday. Whether you want to dance or sit, Hugo’s has both. Start the night out in the lounge and snack on pizzas before you make your way over to the bar and order one of their amazing «slushie» cocktails.
The venue is absolutely packed, making it difficult to keep your drinks steady. (I once sloshed my drink everywhere after a guy bumped into me). If dancing is more your thing, head to The Club (situated beneath Hugo’s). While Hugo’s calls for a fun night out, its limited space is a major drawback.

Visits to Hugo’s Lounge bring back university year memories when my girlfriends and I would frequent their regular ‘Sneaky Sunday’ night event, complete with $ 5 pizzas and cocktails from 8−10pm (does anyone remember the deliciously sweet ‘Pash’? My liver still gurgles at the thought of it).
Nowadays, return trips are made whilst extremely inebriated in search of a late night venue where audible conversations aren’t completely out of the question, and for a boogie on their bump ‘n’ grind, disco ball-​illuminated dancefloor — all the while avoiding the throngs of pushy man packs and shaking off the door girl’s icy, youre-​not-​cool-​enough-​for-​here attitude (I was once given a membership card for the bar, which has yet to provide any queue-​jumping benefits).
Otherwise, a safer bet is a pizza-​filled dinner in the adjoining Hugo’s Bar Pizza — try the wild mushroom topping with caramelised onions, taleggio and goat’s cheese — for a much more civilised, relaxed affair.

Hugos Lounge has always been a big name in Sydney nightlife. This marvellous lounge is located on Bayswater Road, very close to the heart of Kings Cross. Hugos is complete with music from great DJs, a fine line-​up of great cocktails and award-​winning gourmet pizzas including my personal favourite — classic Margherita and Prosciutto pizza!
Weekends are never dull as Hugos is open from Thursday to Sunday from 8pm to 3am. Sunday tops each week as the amazing trio of Sneaky Sound System pumps up the crowd with excellent music. I don’t know what it is but they always seem to know how to host a good party!
So if you’re up for a one-​of-​a-​kind party experience, be sure to check out Hugos Lounge. I’m pretty sure you’ll come back for more!