Are you visiting Sydney as a sober or sober curious person? Are you pregnant and need to drive, or here for a sporting event, and so planning to have a booze-free stay? You’ll be needing to know all the best bars in Sydney for alcohol-free drinks then! We asked Seana Smith from Sober Journeys for her top picks.

Below we share what she considers the top 5 Sydney bars for the sober curious so you will know the best places to find alcohol-free drinks in Sydney

There is only one bar that is 100% alcohol-free, So-bar is the name and it is a part of the Seadrift Distillery complex over at Brookvale on Sydney’s North Shore. Around the city centre, there are several bars where you are very welcome and well looked after as a non-drinker. Here’s my list.

Seadrift Distillery and So-bar

Seadrift Distillery creates non-alcoholic spirits, and has a shop and bar where you can sit and enjoy the Seadrift range, as well as other alcohol-free drinks.

Try their pretty and delicious cocktails as you relax in the attractive bar area within the distillery. The venue can be hired for private functions too. 

Located on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, this is a top spot for the sober and sober curious to visit after a day out at Manly. Check the website or Facebook or call ahead to check So-bar opening hours.

Where: 12 Sydenham Rd, Brookvale
When: Mon-Fri 9-5pm for distillery tastings, Friday the bar is usually open 5-8pm but call to check before you head out.

Maybe Sammy

Found in the narrow streets of the historic and atmospheric Rocks area, Maybe Sammy is a multiple award-winning cocktail bar. Maybe Sammy has a cool 1950s vibe, very Hollywood retro glam. There’s a rather dazzling bespoke cocktail menu plus an assortment of vintage favourites.

Each cocktail is crafted to work as well as an alcohol-free drink as it does as a boozy one. The bar staff simply swap out the alcoholic spirits in the cocktail recipes for a hangover-free no-alcohol spirit. So this is Sydney’s bar with the best range of non-alcoholic cocktails by a long shot. 

 You can also eat here from the ritzy but fairly light options on the menu.

Where: 115 Harrington Street, The Rocks, Sydney
When: Tues-Thurs. 4.30pm-12am, Fri-Sat. 4.30pm til 1am

The Art Gallery Restaurant, Crafted by Matt Moran

Crafted by Matt Moran is a fine dining restaurant within the gorgeous old building of the Art Gallery of NSW has spectacular views over Sydney Harbour.

It also has a pretty nifty list of alcohol-free spirit-based cocktails, most based on Lyre’s spirits. I can highly recommend the amaretto sour, delightfully almondy and lemony and frothy.

This is the place to come if you are looking for an excellent meal out during your Sydney stay and you would like to drink cocktails as sophisticated as the menu and the surrounds.

Where: Art Gallery of NSW, South Building, ground level, Art Gallery Road, Sydney
When: Tuesday–Sunday 11.30am—4pm and Wednesdays 5–10pm (last orders 9pm)

Opera Bar at Sydney Opera House

For an alcohol-free drink with Sydney’s best views, head straight to the Opera Bar. You sit right by the soaring sails of the Sydney Opera House, with spectacular views to the Harbour Bridge, all around Circular Quay and over to the North Shore.

Snacks and full meals are available all day, and you might need them, as this is a hard spot to leave.

The alcohol-free drinks list is extensive, with beers, wines and AF spirits available plus espresso martinis and amaretto sours.

The fruit mocktails are a cut above the usual. Pictured here are the Mix-Up, the Berry Confused and the Passionfruit No-jito.

Where: Sydney Opera House, Lower Concourse Level, Bennelong Point
When: Sunday—Thursday 10.30am to 12am, Friday & Saturday 10.30am to 12:30am

Dean & Nancy on 22

This city centre bar is on the 22nd floor of its building on the corner of Hunter and George Street, so has excellent mid-city views. Dean and Nancy on 22 is a sister bar to Maybe Sammy and has a focus on cocktails and share plates, with the sober drinker taken care of with four NA spirit-based cocktails which have as much mid-century flair as the boozy cocktail list.

Try the NA gin, pineapple, grapefruit, falernum and lolo Cloud 9 Cooler as you settle in to graze on a share plate and watch the city lights. The soft drinks menu is above average too with Fever Tree ginger beer and Capi grapefruit soda on offer.

Where: Level 22, 2 Hunter St, Sydney
When: Monday – Sunday: 4.30pm till late

Bob Hawke Beer and Leisure Centre

For a slice of Aussie history and nostalgia, mixed with politics, visit the Bob Hawke Beer and Leisure Centre in Marrickville. Bob Hawke was Australia’s best-loved prime minister and held the world speed record for drinking of a yard of ale. Here you’ll find bars, food, and a pool room with Bob Hawke memorabilia displayed.

Bob Hawke beer is brewed and sold here. So far, this is no alcohol-free version, but the Half XPA has an ABV of only 1.75%. Non-drinkers can find a range of NA drinks, including Heaps Normal. Surely Bob Hawke beers will produce a 0.5% ABV beer soon!

Where: 8-12 Sydney Street, Marrickville
When: Monday – Sunday: 4.30pm till late

About the Author: Seana Smith is the editor of Sober Journeys website. Check out the best Australian books on sobriety to read as you visit Sydney.

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Feature image credit: Seadrift Distillery and So-bar Brookvale.