Tokyo Bird is the Surry Hills small bar serving Japanese whisky, beer, cocktails and yakitori.
Having opened in late 2014 Tokyo Bird has quickly become a local drinking spot for Surry Hills residents and those who work in the area. It’s also attracting an after work city crowd eager for some relaxed food and quality cocktails.
Situated on the corner of Commonwealth St and Belmore Lane this 60 seater bar feels even more intimate than that with small high tables lining the laneway wall, comfortable booths for larger groups and two large communal share tables down the centre of the room. There’s seating at the bar where you can watch cocktail veteran and owner Jason Ang (formerly at Sokyo) and his bar manager Yoshi Onishi (ex Stitch and Victoria Room) work their magic. Be that creating a well balanced, Japanese inspired whisky cocktail or chipping perfect ice spheres by hand. These guys take their craftsmanship seriously. But the vibe at Tokyo Bird is anything but. Come for a cold beer and some yakirori straight from the robata grill and settle in for a chilled out experience.
The cocktail list is constantly changing to reflect the different, in-season produce available. It also features some retro spirits you may have been overzealous with in your younger drinking career. Like Midori featured in the Musk Melon cocktail made with vodka, kaffir lime, lemon and Prosecco ($16). Whisky makes a strong appearance on the list with drinks like the Aoki Fores made with Suntory Kakubin whisky, pear, cucumber and line ($19). You can also order any classic cocktail, try some sake or stick to wine. You can even ask the guys nicely to whip you up some fancy looking mocktails (see the ones below).
Whilst the drinks offering is high-end sophistication at Tokyo Bird, the food is Japanese street style and all about yakitori. And boy is it well priced. Last visit my friend and I practically ordered everything on the menu and spent less than $30 each on food. From the yakitori menu you can’t go past the shitake mushroom with bonito flakes ($6 for 2 skewers), eggplant and miso ($7 for 2 skewers) and chicken thighs with shallot ($8 for 2 skewers) They’ve also added other dishes to compliment the yakitori including the delicious katsu chicken nuggets with kewpie mayo ($9) to crispy cauliflower with miso sesame sauce ($8). They sometimes have specials like the fluffy steamed buns with chicken katsu and pickled cucumber.
Be sure to leave room for dessert, especially the strawberry mochi ice cream or a Japanese whisky to finish.
A lot of love, sweat and tears has gone in Tokyo Bird and it shows. You’ll find Jason in there almost every night, greeting his customers while his fiancé Tina is on site to help. Each wooden bar stool has been individually hand made by the Tokyo Bird team using 80-year-old hardwood salvaged from a demolition site in Sydney’s west. With it’s exposed brick walls, caged bottle cabinets and Japanese videos projected on the wall there is so much to love about this little laneway bar.
The cocktail list is constantly changing to reflect the different, in-season produce available. It also features some retro spirits you may have been overzealous with in your younger drinking career. Like Midori featured in the Musk Melon cocktail made with vodka, kaffir lime, lemon and Prosecco ($16). Whisky makes a strong appearance on the list with drinks like the Aoki Fores made with Suntory Kakubin whisky, pear, cucumber and line ($19). You can also order any classic cocktail, try some sake or stick to wine. You can even ask the guys nicely to whip you up some fancy looking mocktails (see the ones below).
Whilst the drinks offering is high-end sophistication at Tokyo Bird, the food is Japanese street style and all about yakitori. And boy is it well priced. Last visit my friend and I practically ordered everything on the menu and spent less than $30 each on food. From the yakitori menu you can’t go past the shitake mushroom with bonito flakes ($6 for 2 skewers), eggplant and miso ($7 for 2 skewers) and chicken thighs with shallot ($8 for 2 skewers) They’ve also added other dishes to compliment the yakitori including the delicious katsu chicken nuggets with kewpie mayo ($9) to crispy cauliflower with miso sesame sauce ($8). They sometimes have specials like the fluffy steamed buns with chicken katsu and pickled cucumber.
Be sure to leave room for dessert, especially the strawberry mochi ice cream or a Japanese whisky to finish.
A lot of love, sweat and tears has gone in Tokyo Bird and it shows. You’ll find Jason in there almost every night, greeting his customers while his fiancé Tina is on site to help. Each wooden bar stool has been individually hand made by the Tokyo Bird team using 80-year-old hardwood salvaged from a demolition site in Sydney’s west. With it’s exposed brick walls, caged bottle cabinets and Japanese videos projected on the wall there is so much to love about this little laneway bar.
Tokyo Bird
Commonwealth St & Belmore Lane, Surry Hills NSW 2010
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