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The Best Bars in The Rocks for Cocktails, Historic Pubs and Harbour Views
Sip your way through the best bars in The Rocks, from underground cocktail dens to buzzy brewpubs steeped in history.
Sydney’s most iconic tourist precinct blends the city’s humble beginnings with a modern and continuously changing skyline. The best bars in The Rocks range from Maybe Sammy’s Rat Pack glamour on Harrington Street to Tailor Room, a twenty-seat cocktail room under the Argyle Stores arches. For history with your pint, Fortune of War is Sydney’s oldest pub, while The Glenmore Hotel’s rooftop comes with gorgeous harbour views.
These are the bars our editors keep returning to, from candlelit cocktail dens to on-site brewpubs.And, with the beautiful Sydney Harbour as its backdrop.
In This Guide:
Editor’s Pick: The Observer Hotel
Scotch eggs, whisky-glazed steaks and a sun-drenched conservatory are among the drawcards at The Observer Hotel, which has reopened in The Rocks after a three-and-a-half-year transformation. Inside, you’ll find antique-filled dining nooks, British pub classics and upstairs parlour rooms made for a little friendly competition, with an Irish coffee waiting at the bar.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Gastropub
Best For: Outdoor dining, Waterfront, Group dining, Locals
Best Cocktail Bars in The Rocks
Maybe Sammy
Maybe Sammy is constantly scoring new accolades with the help of their award-winning bartending team. You can expect exceptional hotel bar-style service, interiors influenced by 1950s Hollywood and Vegas glamour, and a cocktail list that oozes elegance.
Eight signature cocktails lead the main drinks list; all a modern interpretation of classic cocktails delivered with theatrical flair, and each named after some of the Rat Pack’s favourite haunts. Vintage Champagnes make their mark on the wine list alongside an international assortment of tasty blends. The beers are an all-Australian line-up and there’s also a healthy selection of spirits to choose from, too.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Cocktail bar
Best For: Cocktail lovers, Special occasion, Date night, Wine lovers
Frank Mac’s
Frank Mac’s is a vibrant gin-obsessed cocktail haunt with a bar stocked with well over one hundred juniper blends from all corners of the globe. The bar itself is a nod to co-owner Ciara’s great uncle Frank Mac, a cheeky colourful chap who was a staple at his village bar in Ireland.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Cocktail bar
Best For: Cocktail lovers, Locals
Tailor Room
Though it may have just twenty seats, this 24-square-metre room tucked under the historic arches of the Argyle building is doing a lot with it. Serving some of the most technically impressive cocktails in The Rocks, Tailor Room’s signature menu takes its cues from the building’s wool and textile heritage, with each cocktail evoking a different fabric through flavour and mouthfeel. Order the Velvet Martini at the red marble bar and let the bartenders do the rest.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Cocktail bar
Best For: Cocktail lovers, Date night, Special occasion
Need To Know: Just 20 seats in a 24-square-metre room.
Grain
Four Seasons’ very moody, dimly-lit bar, Grain, is a frequented watering hole near Circular Quay. Based beside the entrance of the hotel, the humble bar boasts bespoke craft beers and an impressive organic and biodynamic wine list. For those desiring a more potent dash of alcohol, there’s a wide range of international whiskies and classic cocktails with contemporary twists.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Cocktail bar, wine bar
Best For: Wine lovers, Cocktail lovers, Date night
Need To Know: Located beside the entrance of the Four Seasons hotel.
Best Underground and Secret Bars in The Rocks
The Doss House
Giving life to its historic digs, this ex-boarding house and opium den is now a cosy underground bar known as The Doss House. With a range of over 150 whiskies, you can decide to pair your drink with a delectable morsel from the share plate menu. This character-filled bar is a must-visit for history buffs, whisky enthusiasts and bar lovers alike.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Pub Fare
Best For: Group dining, Locals
Apollonia
Descend a blackened staircase, push through velvet curtains and find yourself in a candlelit Sicilian cave hand-carved into the sandstone of Hinchcliff House. Apollonia is one of Sydney’s most dramatic bars. The aesthetics are all red leather banquettes, brass and gold trimmings and a marble bar top, with a cocktail list divided into chapters of a Godfather love story. At midnight, the bartenders pour everyone a house Negroni, put on a song and toast the room. Open until 3am, six nights a week.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Cocktail bar
Best For: Cocktail lovers, Late night, Date night, Special occasion
Need To Know: Open until 3am, six nights a week.
Bar 1880
You need to know where you’re going to find Bar 1880, and that’s the whole fun of it. Hidden in Bulletin Place, in one of Sydney’s oldest buildings, this is a cocktail bar in the purest sense. Follow the golden arrows upstairs to The Press Room, settle into a plush velvet seat and work your way through a menu of carefully conceived classics and signatures.
Sitchu Tip: Try the Smoking Revolver or the Paperboy Colada… they’ve become cult orders.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Cocktail bar
Best For: Cocktail lovers, Date night
Need To Know: Entry is via Bulletin Place. Follow the golden arrows upstairs to The Press Room.
Best Historic Pubs and Brewpubs in The Rocks
Fortune of War
Sydney’s oldest pub (which has clocked up nearly 200 years in business) came back swinging in 2025 after a major renovation that somehow managed to make the old girl look better than ever. The 100-year-old red oak bar has been lovingly restored, a new 60-seat Bistro 1828 has been added, and live music runs Wednesday to Sunday in the original main bar. Despite the facelift, Fortune of War is still a country pub in the heart of the city. Long may it reign.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Pub fare
Best For: Locals, Group dining, Weekend plans
Need To Know: Live music Wednesday to Sunday in the main bar, plus a 60-seat bistro on site.
Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel
An oldie but a goodie, Sydney’s oldest continuously licensed pub, the Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel, is now also an award-winning brewery. Historic and trendy at once, the pub has an old-world English charm, harbour views, and a loyal bunch of locals.
Sip on one of the six 100% natural award-winning mainstay ales or sample one of their smaller batch seasonal pours – all of which have been brewed in-house. If beer isn’t your thing, opt for the fruity Nelson Nudie cocktail instead.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Pub Fare
Best For: Locals, Waterfront
Best Bars in The Rocks With Harbour Views
The Glenmore Hotel
This oldie boasts some of the best harbour views in the area and is one of our favourite rooftop bars in all of Sydney. The Glenmore Hotel offers gourmet pub grub that will satiate all cravings as they live and breathe the mantra, ‘classic pub food with a twist’. But it’s the electric atmosphere that you really can’t beat with tourists and locals alike all flocking here for a golden hour bevvie and good times.
Suburb: The Rocks
Price Guide: $$
Cuisine: Gastropub
Best For: Outdoor dining, Waterfront, Group dining, Locals
Frequently Asked Questions about the Best Bars & Pubs in The Rocks
The best bars in The Rocks include Maybe Sammy on Harrington Street for award-winning cocktails served with 1950s Hollywood glamour, and Tailor Room, a twenty-seat bar under the arches of the Argyle Stores with a fabric-inspired cocktail menu. For something historic, Fortune of War on George Street is Sydney’s oldest pub and was renovated in 2025. The Glenmore Hotel on Cumberland Street is the pick for rooftop harbour views.
Fortune of War on George Street is widely described as Sydney’s oldest pub, with nearly 200 years of trading behind it. It reopened in 2025 after a major renovation that restored its 100-year-old red oak bar and added the 60-seat Bistro 1828, with live music in the main bar from Wednesday to Sunday. Nearby on Kent Street, the Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel holds the title of Sydney’s oldest continuously licensed pub and brews its own award-winning ales in-house, so history lovers can easily visit both in one evening.
The Glenmore Hotel on Cumberland Street is the standout for harbour views, with a rooftop bar that draws both locals and visitors for golden hour drinks alongside classic pub food with a twist. The Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel on Kent Street also has harbour views, combining old-world English pub character with six award-winning mainstay ales brewed in-house and smaller seasonal batches.
For a date night in The Rocks, Tailor Room is an intimate choice: just twenty seats in a 24-square-metre room under the historic arches of the Argyle Stores, with a cocktail menu inspired by the building’s wool and textile heritage. Apollonia sets a more dramatic scene, with candlelight, red leather banquettes and a cocktail list told in chapters of a Godfather love story. For something with more polish, Maybe Sammy pairs 1950s Hollywood and Vegas glamour with theatrical, award-winning cocktails named after the Rat Pack’s favourite haunts.
The Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel on Kent Street, Sydney’s oldest continuously licensed pub, pours six 100% natural award-winning mainstay ales plus smaller seasonal batches, all brewed in-house, with the fruity Nelson Nudie cocktail for non-beer drinkers.
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