13 September 2009

Fico: Wine Bar, Surry Hills (3 September 2009)

544 Bourke Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010


Chic hidden wine bar

If you didn't know it was there you'd miss this cosy and elegant small wine bar behind it's curtained windows and closed door with no visible signage — I reckon you could actually mistake it for a brothel if you didn't know better but thankfully it's not. Predominately selling Italian wines due to I guess being owned by the same owners as Il Baretto down the road, prices ranges from $8 to about $14 per glass. Italian influenced bar food is available ranging from Sicilian Olives ($6) to Calamari Fritti ($12) and Pane e Formaggi aka Cheese selection and bread ($16). Here's some extra details from TimeOut Sydney and TwoThousand.

I ordered a glass of Rosso Piceno Superiore 2005 ($9) while fellow drinkers ordered Primitivo 2007 ($10) and Barbera 2006 ($11) which they were very happy with. Now I'm no expert on wines, especially Italian wines, but my wine didn't really appeal to me at all. It actually smelt and tasted very much like vermouth. I thought for $9 I should at least have a nice tasting glass of wine so I felt compelled to query the wine and I'm glad I did because the bar staff checked the bottle open date and it had been opened longer than it should have been so had turned a bit vinegary. A new glass from a fresh bottle made all the difference and was so much better — it pays to ask, but then again it shouldn't have really happened in the first place if there was some quality control in place.

Other wine bars visited:
Fico - 3 Sept 2009
Bacco Wine Bar - 7 Aug 2009


Wine menu




The decor and lighting



Men's bathroom decorations



Funky seating

View from outside

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Taking photo's of the bathroom, hmmm your lucky you didnt get caught haha


Sydneyguyrojoe

Anonymous said...

I have been here twice and pretty disappointed, won't be going back. I found it to be another overpriced wine bar. When did it become the norm to put the cheapest bottle of wine above $40 and put anything decent at $50?

YaYa said...

At last, a guys view of their bathroom, hehe! Tired of too many photos of loos from girls, looks like a nice place to chill.

Simon Leong said...

hi anonymous, when it's only me in there it's pretty hard to get caught hehe

hi anonymous, i did find it pretty pricey as well. i guess there's a market out there for it and they've got to pay for the renovations some how i guess

hi yaya, was a nice place to chill although don't forget to bring your wallet, drinks are quite pricey to enjoy the ambience

Anonymous said...

Great pics!!
I checked this out after seeing your blog. I really appreciated the passion they seem to have for wine and I'm going back just for the deserts sometime soon.
Don't beat me for saying this but it felt like the kind of place you'd find in Melbourne more than Sydney.

I couldn't find the website on Google (maybe it's meant to be hidden in the shadows too?) but when I asked they gave me the address. www.ficowinebar.com.au

Simon Leong said...

hi anonymous, thanks heaps for the website. glad you enjoyed your visit. i haven't eaten there yet but would be good to know what it's like. i know what you mean about the kind of place you'd find in Melbourne — totally agree. hopefully Sydney will catch up one day with those hidden quirky style bars :-)

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