The Passage

The great thing about the way Sydney is evolving is that we have choice in the small bars we choose to patronise. You've got your American-style dive bars such as Shady Pines and the Flinders; your small wine bars such as Time to Vino; speakeasy-style cocktail bars such as Eau de Vie; and then there's the likes of the Passage.

This recent addition to Victoria Street has adopted a more Sydney approach in their look: slick surfaces, metal, mirrors. In a way, we're looking at our first quintessential Sydney small bar - somewhere that hasn't ripped a page straight from the book of Melbourne-style bars.

The Passage is the brainchild of bartenders Edward Loveday, Andrew Emerson and Mark Eggers. AS you might expect from the name, the Passage is a long, skinny room. It's dimly lit and lined with banquettes and the bar, right down the back of the room, is moderately stocked with nice liquor. Try the Scofflaw, an old prohibition favourite: rye, grenadine, vermouth, lemon juice and bitters. Or go super-fresh with the Passage's variation on a classic Collins with mandarin instead of lemon juice.

They're very new and clearly still bedding in so we're prepared to cut them some slack. But note to the bartenders: if your bar is pretty much empty and your one table wants to run a tab, let them. Don't make them uncomfortable because your computer system isn't up and running; write what they had to drink on a piece of paper. Make them feel welcome.

Given that the Passage has an excitingly late licence (they close up shop at 3am), it may be worth your while to head here after dinner, rather than before, as we did. Once the DJ gets going, maybe the bar does, too. Myffy Rigby