Gin Lane Sydney — Restaurant in Sydney

Tucked into a charming lane, Gin Lane offers a mix of sophisticated ambiance and theatrical mixology. The staff were incredibly attentive and efficient, ensuring drinks and food arrived promptly despite the busy atmosphere. The experience felt curated, from the elegant presentation of the cocktails to the impeccable service. The menu itself is an adventure, with innovative cocktails like “Alice” G&T, which had a subtle sweetness from the taro and vanilla bitters, and “Lightbulb Moment,” a refreshing yet floral delight served in a smoky glass bulb. The standout was the “Firestarter”—a flaming spectacle of chili-infused vodka and passionfruit that came with its own dramatic soundtrack. Pairing these with the indulgent truffle fries and a generously sized Hawaiian woodfired pizza made for a decadent evening.

That said, the experience wasn’t without its challenges. While the theatrical drinks are a visual feast, they take up a significant amount of space, making the small tables feel quite cramped—especially when paired with a pizza as large as the one I ordered. A larger table setup would make the experience far more comfortable. Additionally, there was a rather loud street performance happening just outside, which, while lively, made it difficult to fully enjoy a decent coversation and the atmospheric elements of the bar, including the music that was meant to accompany the Firestarter cocktail. If this is a regular occurrence, it’s something to keep in mind when making a reservation.

Overall, Gin Lane delivers an exciting and immersive drinking experience, particularly for those who appreciate theatrics with their cocktails. It’s definitely worth booking a reservation to secure a spot, though a slightly more spacious seating arrangement would enhance the overall enjoyment. If you’re looking for a night of creative drinks, great service, and a touch of spectacle, this spot is a must-visit—just be prepared for the possibility of some unexpected...

I've been to Gin Lane twice – once on a rainy Monday evening, another time on a Thursday evening. Both times it was packed, and the service was incredibly slow. The worst part though is that this is not a bar for gin drinkers. This is a bar for people who want to take Insta photos of the smoking cocktails and don't actually care what they taste like. I asked our server for his favourite gin and he named one that they don't even stock. I appreciated his honesty, but it didn't help me much at the time. This is a trendy bar, not a good bar.

Edit: To Gin Lane's reply, thank you for your response. Congratulations on having your busiest nights! I had another look at the drinks menu online, and yes there are many of your drinks I would love to try. I was very excited when I first sat down and saw what was available. The server helped us with some suggestions, and let us know that in some of the cocktails "you can't taste the gin". Very helpful to know so that I could forgo ordering those, but honestly not what I wanted to hear at a gin bar. I love a good G&T (or more often gin and soda) and your tonic selection is impressive, but the slow service means I am hesitant to visit again. I didn't specify when exactly I visited, but you are correct that it was not the drinks that were slow on the Thursday – it took far too long for our server to visit our table again (even to bring us some water!) after being seated. It's very likely I am pickier than most, but for a venue with table service only, the table service should be better. Perhaps you may need to look to having more staff working, particularly on Thurs and Fri nights if you are getting more and more business. If a friend ever suggests Gin Lane again, I will happily join them, and I am sure I will enjoy my drink, but I would love for the service to be as attentive as the drink list is extensive. If that isn't possible with the limitations of the building, then maybe Gin Lane just...

I’m really not sure how I feel about Gin Lane. There’s good and bad.

The good: The venue itself was adorable and charming. The music added to the ambience and there wasn’t a bad seat in the house. The cocktails themselves were actually great. Many of their specials are too focused on presentation for my taste and were very sweet, but to each their own. Their espresso martini was spot on. The weeknight drink specials are actually quite affordable.

The bad: For some reason, there were three different types of menus, which was very confusing. They had a cute newspaper style menu, about 4 individual small menus (each with different items) and an online menu. This was very unnecessary and confusing as a guest. I highly recommend you combine everything into one location to make it easier for the patrons to navigate all of the options. My other complaint was the staff. I asked our waitress for a cocktail recommendation for my friend who had never tried gin and she stumbled on her words, clearly not knowing, and ended up telling us that we can order any classic cocktails and the bar would make it. We clearly wanted to try one of the speciality gin cocktails and instead she recommended we order something that isn’t on the menu? I really think the staff needs to be educated about the menu, particularly the gin drinks, as it is called “gin lane”. That whole experience was quite off putting.

Overall, I probably wouldn’t return on my own accord but wouldn’t complain if a friend wanted to go there. I liked the place and the drinks were good, but I think that navigating the menu situation and not being able to ask the staff for recs outweighs those...