Looking to celebrate the festive season? Head to McRae bar at Capella Sydney for an elegant evening of cocktails and bar snacks. McRae bar has also just launched a brand new Arcana & Alchemy menu featuring 12 creative cocktails inspired by 12 Sydney buildings designed by the original building architect and namesake, George McRae. Find out more about it here and what snacks are available too.
It's a glorious Sydney summer afternoon when we arrive at McRae bar at Capella Sydney. It's the Saturday before Christmas and there's a definite festive atmosphere as crowds gather for a drink before Carols in the Domain. Mr NQN and I are showing some American friends Tessa and Tom our favourite things in Sydney.
Capella Sydney was recently ranked #12 globally and named the best hotel in Australia/Oceania in The World's 50 Best Hotels 2025 list. It is one of two Australian hotels in the list (the other is Brisbane's The Calile). McRae Bar overlooks Bent and Loftus streets and has velour seating, chequerboard stone floors and a floral centrepiece by Don de L’amour’s Sydney studio suspended above the bar. Hand-painted murals adorn blackened mirrors - these are by Gumbaynggirr and Bundjalung artist Otis Hope Carey.
McRae bar is located on the ground floor and is named after the building's original architect George McRae, a Scottish Australian who designed many buildings in Sydney including the Queen Victoria Building, the Corn Exchange building as well as Taronga Zoo's lower entrance, top entrance and Indian elephant house. 12 of his buildings are part of a new menu at McRae bar called "Arcana & Alchemy". 12 cocktails are represented in tarot cards that reimagines each of his designs in a cocktail form.
You can open up the deck of bespoke designed cards by Miroma Project Factory and use the QR code to show the cocktail and the corresponding building behind the card. There is also a traditional menu format.
We order 4 cocktails: Tessa orders the Love Birds with Tanquerey No.10 gin, Campari, Aperol, pineapple, lemon, hibiscus syrup and rose mist which they spray at the table. Tom orders the Tierra Highball with Nodo Mezcal, pineapple tepache, chilli, soda water and a pineapple crisp. Mr NQN's Spice Lane cocktail is made with Nodo tequila, clementine, ginger, lime, agave and Sichuan pepper and is served in a small bowl. This is delicious with a wonderful warmth from the Sichuan pepper.
My choice is the V75 made with Hendrick's gin, St Germain Elderflower, Taittinger champagne and lemon sorbet with some lemon myrtle powder around the outside of the pony glass. This is my favourite cocktail here as it has all of the flavours that I love. It corresponds to the Empress Card and the Queen Victoria Building and is said to be a modern interpretation of the French 75 cocktail. If you love Sgroppino's then you will love this.
On the menu there is everything from mini lobster rolls, olives and nuts to more substantial offerings like a Wagyu Sirloin or Fusilli alla Caprese. As this is Tessa and Tom's first time to Australia and Sydney, we start with some Sydney Rock oysters with a mignonette dressing. These briney beauties pair perfectly with the mignonette.
We also love the mini caesar bites with baby gem lettuce hearts cut into a small boat that holds caesar dressing, parmesan and a single Olasagasti anchovy on top with shaved cured egg yolk. It's fresh, crunchy and divine and I have plans to recreate this deliciousness at home.
We also try the mini lobster rolls with crisp lettuce, shreds of lobster, chives and yuzu mayo on a soft bun. I think I prefer slightly bigger chunks of lobster in mine than shredded but that's just a personal preference.
I'm happy to see the prawn toast on the menu here. I've had this at the Lunar afternoon tea and it never disappoints. It's a dainty round sandwich filled with chopped and seasoned prawn meat and rolled in sesame seeds and drizzled in chilli honey. And apparently prawn toast isn't a thing in Washington DC so it's nice to show our American friends a Chinese Australian dish!
So tell me Dear Reader, do you prefer classic cocktail or original ones like these? And which snack would be your pick?
We were guests of Capella but all opinions remain my own.
McRae Bar
Capella Sydney
2/4 Farrer Pl, Sydney NSW 2000
Phone: (02) 9071 5000
Reader Comments
Loading comments...Add Comment