THAT'S HOT The team behind The Waratah have just launched a new 4AM venue in the CBD

Sydney nightlife may have been declared clinically dead several times in the last decade, but someone clearly forgot to tell the team behind The Waratah. Because those absolute menace-geniuses have just gone and opened Sakura House this week.

Sydney, let me introduce to your new late-night, izakaya basement destination in the CBD. Tucked beneath Elizabeth Street, the venue feels like the kind of place you stumble into after midnight and suddenly understand why people in Japan never go home. And with a 4am closing time, it’s where you’ll find me on weekends indefinitely.

What’s on the menu?

This is not your standard CBD bar doing a “yuzu twist” and hoping no one notices. The drinks program, led by Evan Stroeve (Australian Bartender of the Year) is borderline obsessive, and we mean that in the best possible way.

There are rotating lemon sours, the Sakura Sour (Haku Vodka, NSW/VIC yuzu, bubbles), a wasabi-and-sansho-laced sour, and a martini with cherry blossom and purple shiso, just to name a few.

On the kitchen side of things, Head Chef Nick Sherman (ex-Cho Cho San) is in charge. Think stuffed calamari, fried ebi baos, and even a white chocolate matcha mochi situation.

What’s the vibe?

Expect city pop, soul, funk, Japanese R&B and hip hop playing all night. So basically, the soundtrack of a Studio Ghibli character going clubbing. The best part? The space has an incoming 4am licence, giving us hope that Sydney’s comeback era is quietly happening in a basement.

Honestly, we’re just relieved that Pollen Hospitality haven’t just stopped at The Waratah. They’ve once again managed to successfully create a place that feels thoughtful, warm and a little big cheeky. It’s the kind of spot where you “pop in for one” and leave at 2:47am holding a skewer.

And we’re all here for that.