Really enjoyed this restaurant! Love the layout, big shared table, small quaint buzzing setting. They made me a delicious cocktail concoction, and v tasty tapas style dishes. The food is designed to share, and it was v filling. Had 6/7 dishes between the 2 of us. More than enough! Can’t wait to come back 😋 highly recommend
Hungriestsam - Samantha
+4
Interesting food, wonderful service and friendly staff however I'm not the biggest fan of their decor but that is ok.
Definitely make a reservation if you plan on going here, I booked around lunch time on Friday and the only options where 6:15 and 8:45pm. For your convenience, I've uploaded the newest version of the menu as it doesn't match the one currently on here.
In my opinion the smaller dishes were a lot more interesting compared to the larger dishes.
We ordered the:
Gozleme which tasted so good😍 I loved the cheese and beetroot dip (normally I hate beetroot), I was sad that there was only 3.
Arepas which were also very tasty.
Slow roast chicken had some interesting flavours with the pineapple and peanut. However it wasn't spicy for me.
Bbq wagyu tasted nice however some parts were very hard to chew and cut which is a bit disappointing. I've had much better Wagyu that melts in your mouth.
Bodega is a smart space with a great rage of share meals. Not exactly tapas based on the strict definition but inspired by Spain & South America. Service is stylish with a surprising gender separation between the kitchen (all male) & floor staff (all female in identical little black dresses). Ideal location to eat before a show as the service is prompt & attentive. Definitely recommended.
Came here on a night out with a couple of friends. The more the merrier so you can experience more tapas dishes!!
My personal favourites were the hot cross buns and fish fingers even though I was hesitant about the hot cross buns, they tasted amazing!!
The drinks here were also great
Eat Play Love Travel
+4.5
Just tucked off Foveaux Street, at the base of a nondescript grey-rendered apartment block on shady Commonwealth Street, you don’t really expect to find one of Sydney’s best value restaurants. But here it is!
Anyone who’s lived in Sydney for a decade will be quite familiar with this fun, tapas restaurant in Surry Hills. But, for me it’s a new, exciting find.
Bodega is a Spanish and Latin American restaurant located in Surry Hills that is famous for their delicious tapas and share plates. We have heard great things about their menu so came here for dinner one night with some friends keen to try out a range of dishes. To start off, we ordered the savoury Portuguese tart with miso and roast king crab. This was probably my favourite dish of the night, the tart was kind of sweet and so creamy and yet still went well with the savoury crab.
Amazing meal!!! Could honestly not fault anything we had to eat. So delectable and a fantastic drinks list. Staff are so friendly and helpful! Cannot wait to go back.
A solid restaurant if you’re fortunate to ever dine here. The menu here is always changing so it’s hard to talk about a particular dish. I’ve dined here twice and both times the food has always exceeded my expectations. The tapas are all made for sharing, although are quite small, they are packed my bursting flavors! I’m never dissatisfied whenever I visit. The service is quick and attentive. They’ve got a great wine menu as well that I quite enjoy. I will continue to come to Bodega and have recommended this restaurant to friends who have loved it too!
This is a wonderful date night experience! Perfect for a first date too actually.
The restaurant is small but very stylish, with a South American vibe and lovely waitresses who are extremely helpful in menu selections.
The food is absolutely to die for! You know when you’re in the middle of a sentence and you take a bite and forget what you were even talking about? That level of good. So the menu has entrees and share plates, so they suggest to get a 4-5 plates and share. We got the Portuguese tarts with Crab (5/5), Spanish Mackerel (5/5), Calamari (4/5), and Crispy Duck (5/5). For dessert we tried the Pina Colada trifle which is now my go to dessert in the city area. All up this is my favourite restaurant in Sydney so far!
Visited Bodega for dinner on a busy Saturday night, do definitely booking before hand as the dining area was very limited on the weekend.
We were seated at the stools right in front of the cooks which was pretty awesome, watching our dishes being cooked and plated up in front of us.
Their menu are designed to be shared so we ordered quite a few dishes.
Overall, dishes were above average however nothing was really amazing and really stood out though. My favourite dish of the night however was the duck & scallop dish - the duck was cooked SO well and was really enjoyable.
The wine list was a little different as the variety were mainly Spanish wine.
Great dining experience and slightly above average.
Bodega has been on my wishlist for some time. I had heard lots of great things and my work colleague suggested we head there for a nice dinner. Nestled in Surry Hills, Bodega is a cosy little restaurant. As I want to see all the action, RR and I sit at the bar. Bodega's menu is tapas style so everything is designed around sharing food. RR and I look through the menu and ask for some recommendations from the staff......
Such a fun and upbeat place!! The wagyu skirt steak and the kim chi hot cross buns are probably the highlights!!! The food and service is amazing here.
What a fabulous little place! I can see why this place is always packed.
We had great service, great food and great wine. Fantastic vibe, bravo!
The vibe here is pretty chilled and makes for a nice mid week boozey dinner. You'll need to order a few plates to fill up on... what I did order was a mouth-gasm for the most part, but the plates were pretty small to share. Alcohol a lil on the expensive side but enjoyed my experience overall
Great food and drinks. Good ambience. The tapas and mains are great. Loved the pork sausage dish. Definitely going back there for another date night.
Absolutely flawless
Came with empty belly and no expectation. Was completely blown away.
Staff was super friendly, chefs were super friendly, everything i ordered was just out of this world plus presented to us like it was a fine dining experience.
Must must must go!
Bodega has been a feature of the Surry Hills dining scene for many years but only recently did I finally pay this Latin inspired tapas joint a visit. Located on an alleyway near Central Station, the venue was packed on a Tuesday evening. The Hot cross bun with corned beef, smoked oyster mayo and kimchi stood out on the menu. It was a lovely mix of sweet, salty and spicy and makes me wonder why we don't have hot cross buns more often in restaurant menus!
An interesting culinary experience with cool vibe and vibrant decor. The menu is a treasure chest of tasty but inventive dishes bound to delight your tastebuds and your imagination.
Not bad food and wine list. Good service. Flavours were interesting and different to Spanish tapas. However it's very cosy, very noisy and serves are on the small side. Main waitress was weird.
Lovely little place with delish food and helpful staff. Favourite dish is the fish fingers. Didn't get to try the desserts but will next time. All the food was presented well and all very delicious and tasty.
Bodega is a short walk from Central station, and offers spanish/latin american tapas with a twist. There is a funky retro feel to the decor with 2 separate rooms but fairly limited seating. Food was really flavoursome, but as with most tapas can be on the salty side. Highly recommend the beef tartare, fish fingers and 12hr lamb. Ideal for 2-4 people.
Good food.. A nice twist on tapas. Great service and a nice place to catch up with friends. Highly recommended a
Must try! Great decor too.
Great place for dinner. Always a long wait though which is disappointing, but the food is delicious! Friendly, quirky staff - always very helpful and not afraid to give suggestions. A bit pricey but the flavours and risky flavour combos are what keeps me coming back.
Bodega had been on my list of restaurants to try for a very long time and, now that I have tried, I wish I had gone earlier. All the tapas and shared plates looked as good as they tasted. Our favourites were the fish fingers (not your regular crumbed sticks of fish) and the pork and octopus salad. They had an excellent drinks menu and the sangria we ordered complemented the food very well. Recommended.
Pretty good though a little pricey. Had the hot cross bun, signature kingfish, corn salsa fritter, crispy duck and the banana split.
Standouts were the crispy duck (definitely get it) and the banana split.
This restaurant is very close to central station! It's so convenient when you want to enjoy some drinks with friends. I went with another friend, just two of us, we had 4 dishes and 1 dessert! Their portion is quite small but the taste is amazing! Highly recommend the duck! The duck is really well cooked and not oily at all with avocado! Really balanced flavor! I'll definitely go back!
Overall it was a good tapas place (have the potential to be great, lol). Some dishes were tasty some were just either bland or way too salty. Like the milk bun with bbq tongue, pork sausage and crispy duck. Lamb and roasted pork belly were all right - can't taste much flavour in these two apart from meat and salt. Should have avoided the grilled calamari and pork octopus salad, as they were bland, especially served after the lamb and pork. Maybe the staff team could consider bring the lighter in taste plates before the rich ones. However desserts were definitely the highlight of the night, banana spilt in particular - must try, the lemon curd also went well with the doughnuts. Staffs were fun and efficient, and it was pretty packed and noisy on a Saturday night.
I haven’t been to Bodega for around 4 years now, being a family favourite for special occasions. Luckily, it was mum’s birthday last week and we definitely needed an excuse to head back here. Bodega is nestled in a small alley in Surry Hills, super close to Central Station. The décor and feel is very 50s-mod, and has definitely been made a lot lighter and spacier since I was last here. The boys behind Bodega are also the masterminds of Porteño and Continental Deli (so you know it’s good).
Foodies Guide To Sydney
+5
B O D E G A
I absolutely love this place! It has everything that a fun and funky tapas bar in Surrey Hills should be; loud, small and great food. ✌ @foodiesguidetosydney
The staff are great here.
Apologies for the dark photos but it's quite a small restaurant and I didn't want to ruin everyone's evening.
Start with the Bodega take on beef tartare - great to have added texture from the plantain chips.
Make sure you check out the lamb - it's perfect for sharing.
Wine list is pretty much just Spanish and South American wine from memory. I don't mind when places do this, but felt there could have been more Aussie wines.
We arrived at 8:00pm and was told by the waiter that the kitchen is closing soon so we have to be quick!
Who wants that when you want to have dinner and relax
Great place and atmosphere. Music a little too loud. Very busy, expect to wait even if you have a reservation. Food was tasty however some courses a little bland. Wine menu a little disappointing - not a great selection of Australian wines. Desserts were terrific :)
![Zomato]( "Recensione")
We made a reservation at 845pm but were instructed to wait outside for 20mins to be seated which we were not impressed with. After being seated we requested shots of Jameson scotch for everybody before Wines but it didn't arrive until an hour later. Service was very sloppy despite of having a lot of waiters working at the restaurant. It was 8 of us dined in for friend's birthday dinner, we ordered $65 banquet menu. One of us is pollo-pescitarian and they have replaced the meal well. The food was pretty good overall - they had few unique dishes and some of them were very delicious and others were little bland. Slow cooked Lamb was nice but it was very rich - if you eat a little potion it’s nice. They brought us 10 course meal - 8 of them savory and 2 being desserts. Desserts were quite good, it was nice because none of the desserts were very sweet, and it was like healthy home-made style desserts. The Servings were generous - we all were all extremely full at the end of the night. One thing I have to mention is that their wine selections are a little disappointing, most of wines were Spanish or American and very poor selections of Australian wines.
Lastly I want to mention about the really loud music they are playing in the restaurant, we were all pretty much scream at each other talking - and the poor waitress had lost her voice. I think turning the music down a bit would be a good idea; people are coming here to eat and talk after all.
Good food, nice restroom , romantic atmosphere , very attentive waiters... #duckscollopdish #12hrlamb.
Zoe Renee Cooper-Sharan
+4
Great decadent lunch during a busy work day. Appreciated Bodega accommodating 2 of the 4 having specific dietry requirements which allowed us to still do the set menu. Only niggle is I mentioned I felt like churros for dessert and the patronizing reply was "we're way too modern for churros". Not sure a talking down was required. Overall, great lunch. $460 across 4 people.
We came as a group and had the set menu. Memorable dishes for me were the pork sausage with pickled daikon and carrots on lettuce, chargrilled calamari and the banana split. I am not usually a dessert person, but the banana split was superb. Highly recommended. Everything else though, seemed way too salty or quite ordinary, in comparison. I was looking forward to trying the fish fingers, but I was quite disappointed. I know the toast is supposed to be charred, but I am not sure if it is supposed to taste burnt. All I could remember was a strong, burnt flavour after every bite, which overshadowed an otherwise great dish. Staff were excellent. I loved how they always managed to have a little chat or joke with us as they were serving our food, as opposed to places where they just dump the food in front of you and leave. Ambience is a little noisy.
Wow. There are always so many hip, shiny new restaurants in Surry Hills to try that we sometimes forget about the old ones. In the case of Bodega, that's a big mistake. I dropped in the other night to find it firing on all cylinders. Service is wonderfully knowing and flirtatious, and the flavours on the menu are even better than I recall them in those heady, rock star days when the place first opened. I actually prefer Bodega to it's more famous sister restaurant Porteno. It's a buzzier, more effortless and more authentic restaurant. Well worth another look if it's been a while between visits.
My partner and I had a wonderful dinner at Bodega. We got that not long after 6pm on a Saturday night. The place was already crowded. We were directed to a long shared table. We were told that we'd have to vacate the table by 8:30. This was no problem. The wine list is mainly Spanish in origin and a little pricey. We had two beers. We had three dishes, all of them were interesting, tasteful and well presented. We asked the waitress about one ingredient. She spoke to the kitchen staff and returned promptly with an answer. The all female wait staff were polite and professional. The meal cost $80. If you are looking for something with a difference and quality I would recommend Bodega
Arrived for an unannounced late dinner. Very accommodating and the food was fantastic. Service was terrific. Great place
I’m sure everyone’s familiar with this situation: A group of friends hanging out, dinner time comes, no one can decide what to have for dinner…and then one person would say, “Pick a cuisine!” This was exactly what we did today. We picked Spanish – and Bodega came to mind. Luckily, when we rocked up at 7pm-ish on a Saturday night, the place was only 3/4 full and we got a table straight away. I was totally blown away by the food. It’s now my favourite Spanish restaurant, although the food’s very different than the usual Spanish tapas places we have in Sydney. —–HER{curio}MAJESTY SCORE SHEET —– Visited : 11 October 2014 (for dinner). Food : 9/10 || Ambiance : 9/10 || Service : 9/10 What I loved : The food. The service. Will I come back : Yes.
Good food but quite pricey. My cousin came to Sydneytown for a workshop and I was organising a dinner to catch up. Still new to Sydney myself, I found Bodega through Urbanspoon’s “Best Tapa’s List.” You can’t book for a table under 6 people so we had to rock up and hope for the best (with 4 people). We were quite lucky. Rocking up at 6:30pm, we manage to get a table on the spot, the only catch was that we had to be finished by 8. That was fine we could do dessert elsewhere (: The place was packed, and the dining is quite crammed, the sounds echoed so you had to speak quite loudly across the table. Dim lighting and nothing but iphone6, apologising in advance for the not-so-good photos…
The menu consists of a bunch of small to medium sized tapas dishes that aren’t exactly traditional but are inventive and unique. The moment Miss K saw that there was San Daniele Prosciutto on the menu I knew it was going to be a must order for the night. The dish arrived within a few minutes which was quite impressive, the prosciutto was amazing in flavour and served slightly chilled
Sir And Mlady Dine Out
+4.5
It was annoying not being able to book, it was annoying waiting for an hour but in the end it was worth it - the food here is great. Bodega is deceptive. When you arrive it doesn't look that busy. But it probably is.
The Verdict: Bodega’s modern Argentine fare packs a punch without feeling restrained by cultural cliches. The food not only reflects the restaurant’s Argentine heritage but also its presence as part of multicultural Sydney. Don’t come with any expectations and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the playful menu and the chance to discover something new.
Everything was really really good, probably one of the BEST tapas i have tried so far!
Next to arrive was an absolutely enormous batch of Fried spiced calamari with aioli ($18). This is definitely a 'to share' dish as there's nothing stingy in the portion or the seasoning. All that spicy saltiness! Cripiness! Tender calamari encased in crunchy savouriness in every forkful! It was too much but I ate it anyway. Whilst I munched my way through this substantial dish, I watched the strangely phallic Bodega chorizo w sofrito paste ($14) flying off the pass. They looked very odd indeed, sizzling plumply on the grill throughout the evening and then being thickly sliced onto the serving plates but they are obviously po
One evening, we ventured to Surry Hills to try Bodega, a tapas restaurant. A and I always seem to head to Surry Hills when we are in Sydney. There are so many great bars and eateries in the suburb. An easy choice to wander if you don't have a reservation and are not quite sure what you feel like eating. For example, Bodega doesn't accept reservations so it's easy to walk past, like the look of the restaurant and/or menu and then head on inside. Seeing as though they don't accept bookings, it was lucky that they had a table ready. It was definitely one of the best tables in the house, a little bench which overlooked the street outside which was located in the back room which was a bit smaller and a little quieter. There was a candle on the table and it was dark and romantic - a lovely ambience to the restaurant. Bodega is fully licenced and is a tapas bar serving South American and Spanish food. The highlights of our meal was a South American and Spanish influenced wine list (with lots
This place was lovely! We came here for dinner on a Friday night. Though it's a popular place, the wait was only about 5 minutes and it was well worth it. Friendly staff who know their wines, delicious food, and cool atmosphere. Was perfect for a dinner for two, but looks like it would be a fun place to have a group dinner also. What we had: Oysters - I think they are gross (in general, not just here), but McKay really like them though he did say they were fishier than the oysters he's used to. "Fish Fingers" sashimi King Fish on garlic toast with Cuttlefish ceviche - this is there signature dish that everyone raves about. Everyone is right. Yummy. Steamed Pulled Pork Bun - this was my favorite thing we had (besides dessert of course). It was the most basic, but the flavor is just so delicious - juicy with a little bit of spicy doughy steamed bun - Mmmm! Scallops that were too complicated to describe The Banana Split for dessert - not a typical banana split - cream flan, dulce de leche
The roast pork, crackling, aioli and artichoke roll ($14) was absolutely to die for. I managed to make a complete mess of myself with the sauce that dripped out,
From the award winning duo (Ben & Elvis - 2013 SMH Chef of the year!) who brought us Porteno , and their little brother, Bodega Tapas - Surry Hills ,who’s trodding along in his footsteps and does not disappoint! Bodega Tapas It was by fate that I happened to stumble upon Bodega Tapas on Commonwealth St, Surry Hills. Luckily for me, it was a Friday which also happens to be the only day of the week with lunch service - and no lines! There’s a groovy kind of vibe with the salmon coloured tables and the sleek open kitchen bench-top. Wishing I had chosen to sit on the bench with the view but there’s always next time :) Tapas: Fish fingers - Hiramasa, charred toast, cuttlefish, mojama $22 There were so many dishes I wanted to try on the menu but the fish fingers were a must! Whilst I was expecting crumbed rectangular fillets of fish.. like the ones you keep as an emergency stash in the freezer, instead I was met with Hiramasa sashimi on ch
Gastronomous Anonymous
+4.5
I have lost count how many times I have visit this place, however, when I heard that both Nic Wong and Joel Humpreys has left and that both Elvis Abrahnowicz and Ben Milgate are back I had to return....The dish we were waiting for, wagyu skirt steak, roast pepper and chipotle béarnaise ($28) – OH MY FRIGGING GOD! Elvis and Ben really do know how to cook steak! The steak was cooked to perfection and the chipotle béarnaise was to die for – creamy, delicious and wonderful. I could have eaten the béarnaise on my own and licked the plate! It was heavenly
Helen | Grab Your Fork
+4.5
It was a rhetorical question. Did you want to eat at Bodega or somewhere else? I didn't hear the rest of the question. For a tiny tapas bar, the menu is extensive - 22 different dishes and all of them so tempting. "Fish fingers" $16 Sashimi kingfish on ga
Gianna - TheEmptyFridge
+4.5
Just taking a short break from writing about last month's asian adventures (how I wish I was still on vacation), and momentarily ignoring the backlog of blogs around Sydney that have yet been posted - I wanted to write about our date to Bodega while all t
Don't tell the other Spanish restaurants in Sydney, but Bodega is putting out tapas that is putting everyone else to shame.
The name of this place can send a foodie into convulsions or a regular diner into a frustrated frenzy! Bodega is still one of Sydney's hottest places to eat despite no longer being the New Kid On The Block - yep, Hangin' Tough.
Ever since my first visit, years ago, I’ve been a big fan of Bodega. To be honest I’ve been there so many times I’ve lost count. It’s well and truly a favourite.
My first visit to Bodega was approximately 7.5 years ago in 2006 when the Argentinian tapas bar first sprouted up on Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills, just down from my former drinking hole corner pub. Indeed, it was my work farewell lunch and for most, our first taste of tapas that wasn't strictly Spanish. I remember being a little confused with lunch – or perhaps that was just my impending unemployment. Drinks at Bodega, Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills In any case, it's taken me way too long to get back to Bodega. During that time they've expanded into the next door shop, gained a cult status among food-lovers and rockabillies alike, spawned a wildly successful sister restaurant in Porteño , and scored one hat in the latest Good Food Guide. I had some catching up to do so walked in on a recent Friday night to the best seats in the house: at the kitchen counter overlooking the chefs at work, including on this night owner Elvis Abrahanowicz while his wife and maitre d', the inimitable
Finally! After living in Surry Hills for years, and just metres from Bodega I finally got there courtesy of a blogger meet up with the lovely Ellie from Kitchen Wench who was in Sydney for work. Helen, Suze and I met at Central and headed over to Bodega n
I’ve been bugging Dat for a catch up, as we haven’t seen each other in ages. Finally after (most probably) 6 months of trying to set up a dinner date, we manage to agree on a date and the only problem was a place. It was funny that we were tossing up betw
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