Bar Brosé has opened where The Passage used to be, bringing a casual but polished wine bar to Darlinghurst. The space has been revamped with a lighter, brighter interior compared to the dark and heaving bar-cum-club I used to frequent for sliders and a bit of a dance.

When we arrive at 3pm on Sunday (or 3.20ish in my case – damn you, trackwork!), we’re devastated to find out that the full menu isn’t in effect until 6pm. We came for the pasta, which sadly isn’t on the reduced menu. We have no choice but to order one of everything.

Analiese Gregory’s food is exactly to my taste. It’s very ACME-esque, which makes sense not only because Analiese was working with Mitch previously, but also because all the ACME boys are partners here, too (more on ACME here). But I almost like it better on the snack front! The snacks are just outstanding – everything from the pigs head terrine  to the late night sandwich (stuffed with cheese, nduja, and pineapple-glazed leg ham) delivers on flavor and finesse.

I dig the iceberg salad, mostly for its acidic dressing (I was picking up hints of yuzu, but maybe it’s another citrus fruit), and then topped with super crunchy breadcrumbs. But the flavor surprise of the afternoon is brought to us in the form of a warm mushroom salad with tamari vinaigrette. So tasty, guys. I’m a big fan of comté, so the thin block of 16 month comté served with onions and apples cooked in whey, plus shards of lavosh is right up my alley.

The only dessert on the menu is a buffalo yogurt sorbet with maraschino cherries on a soft marshmallowy meringue, and it’s surprisingly fantastic. That sorbet kills it. Between sips of my spritz, I keep exclaiming how much I’m loving the music choices (you can’t go wrong with Lauryn Hill and Brandy!) to the point that I almost forget we didn’t get to order any pasta. But we’ll come back for the pasta anyway – and that potato dessert we keep hearing about.

Bar Brosé
231a Victoria Street, Darlinghurst
Wed to Sat 5pm–late
Sun 3pm–late