Bar Soul Sydney; Korean bar Sydney; Korean food Sydney; Korean wine

With Sydney still digesting the influx of Korean restaurants, omakases and barbecues, from this week the city has a Korean wine bar to add to the list. And it’s from the crew at the hatted Soul Dining.

Bar Soul, in Surry Hills, explores the less-travelled intersection of wine and Korean food.

Co-owner Illa Kim explains: “Korean food is rarely associated with wine”, something head chef Sunny Ryu (ex-Quay and Michelin star Seoul restaurant Ryunique) will look to remedy.

“Pairing a Touriga Nacional with our dry-aged duck with sweet potato puree and Korean cabbage salad is a revelation,” Kim says.

She points to the scallop crudo with “Korean ajo blanco” as a favourite during pre-opening menu tastings.

The 30-seat Bar Soul has opened in the long-time site of its sister venue Soul Deli.

If you have a hankering for Soul Deli’s kimchi or KFC hotcakes, fear not, the venue has relocated down the hill to the former home of Baccomatto Osteria at 212 Riley Street.

“We’ve totally changed the look of the space for Bar Soul. The walls, new mustard-yellow banquettes, new furniture and Korean art [traditional folk Minhwa prints], plus wine storage for 120 wines,” Kim says.

“We always wanted to do a wine bar, when the Riley Street space became available we [finally] had room,” she says of a shared ambition with husband and business partner, Dareo Lee.

Kim points to the Domaine Anne Sophie Dubois L’Alchemiste Fleurie on the list as a wine that works well with Korean food: “It has the necessary acidity but is still savoury. And the tannins don’t overpower the food.”

“After exploring the offering at Bar Soul, we wouldn’t be surprised to see more of these ventures pop up across Sydney,” she says.

Open Tue-Sat dinner

1-2/185 Campbell Street, Surry Hills