ANTE

My first visit based on strong feedback. No reservations allowed. Arrive and leave your name. We were fortunate with a short wait at 6pm on a Sat eve and the restaurant stayed extremely busy. The food is all delicious and designed as share plates. The tagliatelle and pork belly were both excellent. Their list of 65 Sake's is remarkable - apparently the most extensive in the Southern Hemisphere - and could inflate your bill rapidly. I enjoyed a flight of 3 dry Sake chosen by their expert followed by a 400ml flask of my favourite. Allow $80-120ph for food. Drinks on top. A wonderful evening.

We drank about five or six different sakes, recommended by the service staff from low to high. Very good. The staff will explain in detail the different tastes of different brands. The food is also very refreshing and delicious. The menu changes every week. The best sake in Sydney.

Great place in Newtown for Japanese food and sake. They don’t accept reservations, so if you don’t want to wait too long for a table, it’s best to go at an odd hour. We went there 3pm and got a table straight away. The staff are very knowledgeable though it gets hard to quickly get their attention when the place gets packed. For the food, I highly recommend the beef tartare and the mushroom pasta. The other dishes were pretty good too. Some menu items will be on repeat and others will change, based on the season. As for the drinks, there is a huge selection of sake. The bottles are massive but they sell by the carafe. And no wine is offered. Though there are cocktails. I got the kombu old fashioned and it was very strong. I would definitely come back here so that I can try the other menu items. And will skip the cocktail too 😅.

One word: perfect. Every dish we had had absolutely zero faults and all the ingredients worked together like an orchestra. Service staff were very attentive and had extensive knowledge of sake pairings. Dessert madeleines were baked fresh right in front of you, and the yuzu curd was bursting with flavor. Highly highly recommend Ante!! Will definitely come back again the next time we’re in Sydney.

We tried the omakase menu. The prawn pasta was delicious. Fried potato mochi was chef kiss. The pickles to start and the sorbet to finish were fresh and vibrant, perfect palate cleansers. Made to order madeleines are a standout as well. Cozy vibes and great food, worth a visit :)

We visited Ante on a weekday evening and had to wait for an hour. Since they don't take reservations, be prepared to wait during peak hours. Ante is often rated as one of the best bars in Sydney, so the wait was worth it. They have an extensive sake collection and frequently update and innovate their cocktail menu. I tried their coffee-inspired cocktail, and it’s the best one I've had so far. Ante also offers a great selection of Japanese-inspired dishes, which pair perfectly with their sake. I was told that the more than 2,000 vinyl records in the bar are part of one of the owners' personal collection. The atmosphere and music are excellent, but the food and drinks are even better.

Fantastic food and service 👌 😋 However be prepared to settle in. My partner and I were tired, hungry and not boozing it up hard so we were ill prepared to seal with the lengthy amount of time between dishes. There is no urgency in this fine dining experience and that's not so bad if you're in for hanging around soaking up the experience 😉

Had an AMAZING experience! Food was perfect and delicious! The potato mochi really WOWed me, the flavours and textures were on point. Loved the chill ambience, selection of sake was endless and staff were so friendly and attentive! Would definitely come back!