Upstairs at the Tea Gardens has fairly recently been renovated and opened as 'Circa Bar'. Of course, unable to resist a new bar, off we toddled to give it the once-over.
It was Karaoke Night
Now don't get me wrong, some people really go off for Karaoke, but not me. Oh, no. I think in general about 80% of the world's population is utterly tone deaf, myself included, and shouldn't be allowed within thirty yards of a microphone (fifty yards if it's plugged in). Really, don't get me started. However, intrepid pub reviewers that we are, we endured. Josh even had a bit of a sing.
The room itself is quitely nicely fitted out - a good mixture of seating and plenty of space, quite a long bar and a small Thai restaurant. In the corner is the stage, where the voiceless masses go to wail, and where the DJs end up on Thursday and Friday nights. All told it's quite nice. You can still tell you're in Bondi Junction, though. The stairway up is still standard tiles and echoey, and the bathrooms aren't quite as smart as the bar itself would suggest (compare and contrast, for instance, Upstairs at the
Tilbury.
Beer's not overpriced, though we haven't been on DJ night yet, and the Thai food sits at around the $9 mark, so you can get in a decent night for your buck. Not too bad.
review by: Jason