White Revolver

Bondi nightlife is not its strong point. Well it's good for a Sunday arvo drink at either the Beach Road Hotel or North Bondi RSL but if you want somewhere to get on the lash and show off that new outfit you couldn't really afford then there were really only two choices Ravesis (oh lord) or Hotel Bondi (Jesus Christ) but not anymore.

I bring you White Revolver. The uber cool, uber exclusive and uber pretentious destination for the young and trendy of Bondi. When you read about the newest addition on the website you want to hate it. For one it has no signs outside so you wouldn't know it was there (oh dear)Secondly not everyone is going to get in (figures) And thirdly you enter the club through a hidden white revolving door (Give me a break!) What a load of shit. However it was getting rave reviews.

On Friday night i decided to go along and hate it with some girlfriends. We were armed with insults ready to laugh at all the people who had spent 4 hours trying to achieve that 'just fallen out of bed' casual Bondi look. After shamelessly using my business card to jump the line (there has to be some perks to my job) we were escorted to the revolving door and entered the bar.

I loved it. It was small, swish and oozed style. Yes there was a good looking crowd but no where near as many wankers as i thought, it seemed they were all just as pleased to have found this place. Drinks were good, not overpriced and the staff friendly! So far it was pissing all over Ravesis! The music was a great mix of cheesy, cool, dancy and singalong. Before i knew it i was drunk and having the best time.

There was a suitable mix of boys too. In that night alone i met two Irish backpackers (how did they get in?!) a very good looking but dull musician, a very drunk curly haired Bondi boy, a friendly real estate agent, a banker, a famous Bulldogs footie player who i developed a little crush on and an Actor from Home and Away who tripped over a carefully placed rug.

Over brunch the next morning armed with big sunglasses to cover the hangover apparent in my eyes, we all agreed that in fact we actually quite liked White Revolver. It had the balance just right between approachable and exclusive, cool and cheesy good looking and good decor. However if anyone asks ill say it was terrible. After all i don't want it getting too popular and them letting any old riff raff in.

Meat + Beer

I am single. Being single in Sydney is tough. Being single in Bondi Beach is soul destroying and exhausting. There are too many beautiful people packed into a small radius and like it or not if there is a hot single guy in Bondi there is a) something wrong with him* or b) Gay.

Or so i thought......

Three words for you. Bavarian Beer Cafe. Or in fact Hot Man Central. Armed with some girlfriends we checked out the latest addition to Campbell Parade as it was, well, new and our duty as Bondi Locals. It was a Friday evening and we arrived around 6:30pm and already there was a hive of activity. Upon finding some seats at a long communal table we took a look at the drinks menu. Beer. And lots of it. There is even a 'Ladies Beer' for those not comfortable with holding a litre of 'Man Beer.' As we talked and chatted i started to notice a trickle of handsome men had perched themselves on tables and around the bar. I interrupted my friend midway through her story on how she came to buy two pairs of cowboy boots that day and pointed out this positive finding. Sure enough when glancing around the room they were everywhere. Best of all they didn't all have hot young chicks linked to their arm. I was starting to like this place.

In order to ensure the evening went on a little longer i suggested we order some food. I also thought this was the sensible option having only had a tuna sandwich at lunch and now 1.5lites of beer. I looked at the menu. Meat. And lots of it.

Ping!

Of course here was a place offering local guys ridiculously large glasses of beer and crazy amounts of meat all with in stumbling distance of their studio apartments, no wonder there were so many of them. It was brilliant. Add to this the potential of lots of drunk women who cannot handle their beer and this was possibly the coolest place on earth for a male.

Overall this place doesn't offer the best food, it isn't going to become iconic and in the summer season when the tourists are back it will inevitably become unbearable. However if you fancy a good beer and good meal all washed down with some good looking locals then this is a little gem!

*only child, stalker, powerful women complex, selfish arsehole, wanker.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly and the Fabulous.

I'm not actually sure when i became 'involved' with Bondi Beach. It certainly wasn't love at first sight. In fact it actually irritated me. I had heard so many good reviews before moving to Sydney that i made sure it was one of my first stops when i arrived in January 2008. Our first date didn't start well. I took the bus from Hyde Park excited that i was going to 'world famous' Bondi Beach. I got off the bus on Campbell Parade just by the surf shops and with a sharp in take of breath prepared myself to be wowed as i took it all in.........

Right then.

I mean it was good looking i guess but not Brad Pitt gorgeous. More sort of Russell Crow good looking. There were heaps of people. Brits and Irish mostly, with a splattering of loud Americans. Where were the locals? Where were those beautiful Bondi boys and girls with their tanned torso's, fabulously laid back style juggling their surf boards and lattes? The shops were also not good. It reminded me of one of those tacky seaside resorts you used to see on TV where the fat families all stroll down a promenade eating ice cream and wearing hats and t.shirts that say 'Kiss me quick' or other such stupid phrases that are not funny.

I just didn't get it.

Even the nightlife pretty much sucked. The Beach Road Hotel that was raved about in all Bondi guides was average, Ravesis's was possibly the most overrated place i had ever been and was filled with wankers. What was all the fuss about?

I decided to end our relationship and just be friends.

This seemed to work better for us. We needed time to get to know each other. So over time i went for a few friendly drinks and breakfast's, made additional friends who knew the good places to go and i soon started to see Bondi in a different light. It started to get to me and i thought maybe we could have a future after all.

Behind the tacky tourism, the backpackers, the pretentious people, the trendy people and beautiful people there is something very magical. You can feel it when you walk around. You can see it on people's faces and it can get to you. Very soon you want to be part of it. To be part of this exclusive little club where only the lucky are fortunate to be invited. I soon made it my home.

I now live in North Bondi and i am pleased to report that we are getting on very well. In fact i think i might have fallen in love after all. This blog will be an insiders guide the Bondi Beach, the good, the bad, the ugly and the fabulous.