Omerta

Omertà is the law of silence and the honoured code of the mafia. It's also a wine bar in Darlinghurst from the people that brought you the incredibly-hard-to-get-into Italian restaurant, A Tavola, across the street. The bar's a little slicker, darker and moodier than the restaurant, though there's a similar aesthetic with the big marble communal table running the centre of the room. But we like sitting at the bar where you get a piece of the action from all sides. The bar staff may not be the friendliest in town but they make decent aperitivi such as the Americano (Campari, soda and vermouth) and the Aperol sour (Aperol, sugar and bitters). The wine list is thick with tasty beverages and something for most price points. Start with the crisp, dry La Goya manzanilla. Celebrating something special and don't know what to drink? Omertà offer half bottles of Gosset Champagne for $98. The bar also features a triple distilled beer from Tuscany for $16, if you're feeling flush. It's not all blinding figures, though. Wines by the glass start at $7 with the most expensive hitting $14. The food menu is also worth a nudge. We dig the eggs slow cooked with 'nduja and cimi de rapa, the salt cod fritters and the crushed broad bean crostini. It's not cheap at Omertà, but it is an offer you can't refuse.