The Smoking Panda

The Smoking Panda has been my go-to place for my work trips to Sydney, so you can imagine my joy when I returned after 2 long years and walked through the very-familiar doors! Travis and team are friendly and welcoming, as always! Love their food and super cosy environment. Had their lunch specials (for ribs) and it's so good + value-for-money! Do pop by if you are near the Town Hall tram station - They are just a quick 3-mins walk away!

This place is great for small groups, recommend booking if you are more than 4x as it is a smaller space & not exactly the type of place you would stand around and drink at. I’ve been here quite a few times over a few years. Cocktail list is rather small but if you request a cocktail that isn’t on the list they can normally accommodate the usuals. Food - the potato skins were nice however the portions was small. Chicken wings not too bad as well. Overall not bad place, however the table service could do with a little bit more attentiveness at some times. This place is accessible via stairs, not sure if there are lifts, but haven’t had to use them before.

Located a floor above the streets of Sydney, this joint is an easy and relaxing place to have a drink with some friends or by your lonesome at the bar itself. The staff are friendly and easy going, plus they make some excellent cocktails. The smoky glass concoction "Pearfection" was a lovely spice rum, with some chardonnay, a full pear, and served from a glass encased with smoke. Well recommended if you want somewhere to go around Town Hall and you're unsure of a place to head too.

Smoking Panda is a must visit cocktail bar in the heart of the city. The decor is a little odd, it reflective of an old school Chinese restaurant with a sprinkle of the sunset strip. They serve up some of the tastiest bar bites you will come across. Even better, they now have a specialty cocktail menu paying homage to a classic, the Old Fashioned. With 228 different types of Old Fashioned's to be precise. This is partly due to Smoking Panda having the largest collection of bitters of any bar in Australia. Smoking Panda is serving up the Old Fashioned with a range of spirit's including vodka, rum, gin and all types of whisky including a quality collection of scotch, bourbon and rye. There is surely an old fashioned to suit anyones taste. If Old Fashioned's are not your thing, there are plenty of other drink options, with beer, wine and a range of cocktails. If you are a whisky fan you are in for a real treat. The smoking panda 2.0 is a must, if you are an Old Fashioned fan. With Iain the bar keeper going all out on this cocktail, without blowing out the price. Not only does Somking Panda have an amazing drink list, the food on offer is sublime. The menu reflecting the decor, with a mix of American and asian selections, perfect to enjoy with a few bevvies. The sticky USA pork ribs were mind blowing, it would be almost impossible for the meat to be anymore tender. We were surprised the meat was still hanging onto the bone. The sticky BBQ sauce was damn tasty too. On par were the Panda Kuro prawns coated in a bamboo charcoal infused panko crumb, there bad boys were incredibly more-ish. Other notables include the sliders, the devil wings and the Panda San choy bau with a Smokey asian sauce, this dish perfectly sums up The Smoking Panda. With a great drink selection, including an impressive list of whisky and bitters. This combining this with some rediculously tasty food. The Smoking Panda is up there on our favourite bar list and is well worth a visit.

Up a somewhat non-descript set of stairs you will find this awesome cocktail bar that is open late. Great drinks are always made to order by the friendly and knowledgeable bar tenders. Food options are nice and there to help you keep drinking with a nice back wall of alcohol to choose from for the next concoction!