Bobby Chan's is going to be your new excuse to skip the train home.
A new beach club style, Southeast Asian dining and cocktail destination is opening at 25 Martin Place in Sydney's CBD, from Sydney hospitality group Tilley and Wills Hotels.
Think live edge timber, rattan and bamboo standing in for the usual glass and concrete, with a share style menu that pulls from Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore. It is built for lingering, the kind of spot where a quick lunch turns into cocktails without much resistance.
There is something quietly ambitious about opening a beach club in the middle of the financial district, and Bobby Chan's leans all the way into it.
Executive Chef Brad Sloane spent time on the ground across Southeast Asia before building the menu, and it shows in dishes that read as considered rather than trend chasing, dumplings, momos, bao and a fried rice built around king crab, all designed for sharing rather than showing off. The drinks list matches the ambition, leaning into tropical flavours without tipping into cliche.
It is the kind of room that wants you to stay past the point you meant to leave, and given the setting, that is no small trick to pull off.
Quick Bites
EAT: Bobby's King Crab Fried Rice.
DRINK: The Ube Colada, made with ube cream liqueur, rum, coconut, lime and pineapple.
PLAY: Book the long lunch on a Friday and let it run past knock off, this is a room designed to make cocktails feel like the natural next step.
VIBE CHECK: Tropical, playful, indulgent.
