Stay another day
Never assume the Sydney CBD is always just business; a surprisingly wide array of pleasures await just one more day away.
IT’S FRIDAY in Sydney. Business is all wrapped up. Time to check out of your hotel and head home, right? But there’s something about the tone of the city that’s changing as the afternoon sun lengthens over the harbour and offices empty out the beat of the place is quickening. Want to know what you can get up to if you hang around, and see what the weekend brings?
GOOD MORNING!
During the week, caffeine-loving workers can turn a CBD cafe to mayhem, but the weekend is a much more relaxed affair purveyor of fine Italian produce, Fratelli Fresh, is serving not only a great cup of Lavazza every weekend morning from 9am in westfield Sydney a few lazy paces from the Swissotel Sydney, but can change your order to a morning Bloody Mary or Mimosa if you prefer. Breakfast dishes such as ricotta and blueberry pancakes or baked eggs in sugo are too good to rush. Another weekend staple in Sydney comes in fragrant form, as yum cha is served Hong Kong-style as breakfast from 9am at Zilver, further down in Chinatown. Alternatively, Graze – right out the front of the Museum of Contemporary Art, enjoying that unbeatable vista across the harbour from Circular Quay – is also open for brunch on the weekends. Forget those all-too-quick weekday scrambles; this is how you start a real Sydney day.
SHOP UNTIL YOU… NAP
Come the weekend, Sydney’s newly refurbished Pitt Street Mall is further transformed from a sea of suits to more leisurely pursuits. From the intricate stained glass and tiles of the Victorian-style Strand on Elizabeth Street to the newer imports on the scene (H&M, Sephora, Forever 21), there is room to browse. Try, savour and perhaps give your credit card a little workout in the CBD. It’s not far to carry those bags to your room at the Swissotel, and there’s no reason why a small siesta isn’t in order, either.
HIGH TEA AND HIGH TIMES
Yawn. Stretch. Have a cup of tea… or a glass of Laurent-Perrier Champagne. Enjoy as many rainbow-hued macarons, cream-laden scones and chocolate-dipped treats as your heart desires at Swissotel’s buffet high tea. It’s reason enough to stay on a little longer, since it only runs on Saturday and Sunday. Plus, a Champers in the afternoon lends itself to a session admiring your new purchases back in your room, picking out something fabulous to wear, and getting ready for the evening.
SMALL (AND NOT-SO-SMALL) BARS
Small bars are still a relatively recent addition to the Sydney scene: young, fresh and having a ball in the city’s CBD. Check out sewing-obsessed Stitch, cosy Grandma’s Bar or Uncle Ming’s, complete with Chinese teapot cocktails. Meanwhile Mojo Record Bar is literally out the back of a record store, so you’d better believe the music’s good. On Saturday nights, though, go big – the Ibiza club Pacha takes over the Ivy on George Street with circus performers hanging from the ceilings, burlesque ladies waving their joint with beats and a beaming crowd. Thank goodness you have a late check-out tomorrow. To book, visit swissotel.com/hotels/sydney