CBD nights out

Turns out that being jet lagged is a pretty good advantage when you go out two nights in a row... post-midnight is when I'm the most awake!

Much like central London, Friday night in Sydney's CBD is popular for after work drinks with colleagues. As I currently have no colleagues, I went to meet my Sydney counterparts (including housemate Toreja) from my ex-company for dinner and drinks.

We went to Redoak on Clarence Street for dinner, which offers a a fairly simple (and meaty) but decent menu. I ordered the Brewers Beef; the cut of the day was blade steak - it cost $25 (around £13) and was a good 7/10! It came with chips (hot chips?!), a really tasty jus and simple side salad.

Redoak is popular with beer drinkers and is 'Australia's most awarded brewery' - the food menu even offers suggested beers to partner with each meal. I was drinking wine (pictured below and very nice!) but I asked for some reviews from one of the guys testing out the beer and he gave the following, sort of helpful, words:

• Beer - delicious
• Stout - dark, malty, brooding... touch of sweetness that goes down smooth
• Rye bock - rich, malty, roast and complex

How a drink can be brooding I'm yet to find out. Here's the wine, Ross Hill Shed no. 8, Sauvignon Blanc 2013:

And proof that we enjoyed the wine (+ a photobombing colleague)...

After lots of food/beer/wine we went on The Cuban Place on York Street - there was salsa dancing upstairs but we opted for the more chilled basement bar. There is a good selection of cocktails and the bar staff really look the part. It's a cool atmosphere but the best bit for me was the music... lots of 60s, 70s and 80s pop rock, but not the cheesy, naff kind, the good kind ;).

Last stop was Palings on ivy's level one, open late on weekdays. I've been here for Thai at lunch time too and can highly recommend the food! I really like it here, the whole centre of the building is open, so it's quite different from the sweaty underground clubs I'm used to. The music was decent and there's plenty of space for dancing. This is important. 

Saturday... I spent most of the day trying to work off my booze legs before we went out again, this time to Casino at The Star hotel. There is a whole floor dedicated to different themed bars (including Rock Lily, where a live band plays), a club, restaurants and, obviously, the casino itself. This makes it very easy to go from bar to bar via a blackjack table. If I had any idea whatsoever how to gamble I'm sure I would have. But I don't. So I didn't. I did become engrossed in a particularly boring game of poker towards the end of the night, but I'm putting that down to lack of energy. At 4.30am we got food at Fat Noodle, still inside Casino. They serve until 5.00am and serve Asian fusion food by the baccarat tables. I ordered the Hainan chicken but would recommend the wok tossed beef sirloin, which two of my party had (while I had food envy). Meals are around $20.

No photos of the yummy food, but here's a fun one from a photo booth in Rock Lily:

#amyinsydney