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Where Sydney’s Style Set Eat, Drink and Unwind During Fashion Week
For a between shows bite or a late night debrief.
Fashion Week has officially landed — and whether you’re dashing between runways at Carriageworks, loitering backstage with a strong oat latte in hand, or clocking street style from the front row of your favourite café, you’ll need a curated line-up of spots to wine, dine and decompress.
Because if there’s one thing the industry knows how to do (besides layering), it’s multitask — networking over negronis, trend-spotting between toast bites, and turning an espresso into a full-blown shoot location.
From moody bars to cult bakeries and all-day diners with quietly cool crowds, these are the places to be seen (and actually eat) during Sydney Fashion Week.
For Post-Show Small Plates and Natural Wine
Bar Alma, Surry Hills
Tucked into a quiet corner like a well-kept secret, Bar Alma is where you’ll find off-duty stylists, buyers and editors exhaling after a long day. The fit-out is dim, the menu leans nostalgic with a twist, and the vibe? Quietly glamorous.
Bar Copains, Surry Hills
Just a short stroll from Carriageworks, Copains is the kind of place that understands how to do fashion-adjacent dining — refined, relaxed, and heavy on the wine list. Come for the steak tartare, stay for the unfiltered chardonnay and effortless people-watching.
Ante, Newtown
This vinyl-spinning sake bar is small but mighty. Nestled in Newtown’s north end, it’s where you’ll want to decompress with Japanese snacks, natural wine, and a soundtrack curated entirely on wax. It’s intimate, elevated and cool without trying.
Jane, Surry Hills
Tucked into Bourke Street like a well-kept secret, Jane is where you’ll find off-duty stylists, buyers and editors exhaling after a long day. The fit-out is dim, the menu leans nostalgic with a twist (yes to the prawn toast), and the vibe? Quietly glamorous.
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For the Between-Show Recharge
AP Bread & Wine, Darlinghurst
A refined step up from the cult rooftop bakery, AP Bread & Wine brings sourdough, snacks and natural wine into a more polished, Parisian-feeling space. Whether you’re sliding in for a pre-show flat white and jammy egg brioche or circling back for a glass of pét-nat and anchovy toast after dark, it’s a fashionable pit stop that doubles as a street style runway in its own right.
Room Ten, Potts Point
Fashion folk have long flocked here for a reason. Compact, buzzy, and disarmingly low-key, Room Ten is where you’ll find models, photographers and creatives caffeinating before call times. The menu’s sharp, the crowd sharper.
Cordial, Newtown
Technically a wine bar, but open early for coffee and tartines, Cordial is your go-to if you’re in need of a quiet spot to take stock of the day (or regroup your team). Bonus points for interiors that beg to be Instagrammed.
For a Long Lunch That May Become Dinner
Bar Lucia, Potts Point
With its Spanish leanings and cinematic lighting, Lucia nails that sweet spot between long lunch and early-evening glamour. The tapas are dreamy, the vermouth flows, and if the vibe calls for dancing, you won’t be the first to start it.
10 William Street, Paddington
Tucked just off Oxford Street, this beloved wine bar is a Fashion Week staple for good reason. The chalkboard menu shifts daily, the pasta is legendary, and the wine list leans wild and wonderful. It’s where off-duty models, stylists and editors come to debrief, carb-load and raise a glass (or three) in between shows — often turning a quick bite into an hours-long affair.
Baba’s Place, Marrickville
It’s a warehouse, it’s a dinner party, it’s an ode to multicultural suburban Australia wrapped in plastic-covered tablecloths and nostalgia-soaked décor. Baba’s Place is where fashion meets food in the most unexpected (and photogenic) way. Come for the ‘suburban cuisine’ and natural wine, stay because the DJ just turned up. This is where the industry’s in-the-know crowd goes to let their guard down — and maybe end up dancing in the kitchen.
For Late-Night Decompressing (or Plotting Tomorrow’s Look)
Tiva, CBD
A subterranean velvet-clad haunt where the lights are low, the cocktails are strong and the clientele is distinctly after-dark cool. Whether you’re in the mood to celebrate a show or dissect it, Tiva delivers a sexy, grown-up place to do so.
Low 302, Surry Hills
Equal parts bar and music lounge, Low 302 is your go-to if you’re still dressed for the runway but looking to downshift. Live jazz, dim lights and a reliably fashionable crowd make this a favourite among Sydney’s creative set.
Bar Freda’s, Darlinghurst
This is where the fashion crowd really comes alive after dark. Equal parts gallery, bar and cultural hub, Freda’s is the unofficial Fashion Week afterparty — whether planned or not. Grab a negroni, follow the music, and let the night take over.
Whether you’re running on adrenaline, black coffee or a dangerous mix of both, these venues will keep your Fashion Week on track — and looking good while doing it.
Sitchu tip: Always book ahead (even at the spots that seem relaxed), and don’t be afraid to bar-hop — Sydney’s inner suburbs are made for spontaneous detours and second rounds.
Loving this edit of where to eat during Fashion Week and keen to explore the food scene further? Be sure to check our edits of the best new bars and restaurants in the city, too!
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