The Thousands

Note: Closed July 2010.

So my theory was that Belly Bar was a tip of the hat to the immigrant heritage of the 2010 – like The Arch, maybe, but newer. A quiet testament to a moved-on population of Lebanese that helped create the cultural fabric of the area.

Well, no. According to my thorough demographic research, Sydney’s Lebanese population has never really lived in Darlinghurst. So there went that theory, and my feeling of being a real historical sleuth.

Regardless, Lebanese heritage is the exact reason to fall past this place. In an area saturated with cafes offering much of the same, Belly Bar swaps your big breakfast and a flatty for a zataar bake and traditional stove-top coffee.**I’m yet to try to wrestle a hangover with one of these bakes but, given they’re basically mini-pides, I’ll posit they’d work a treat. There’s also mezze plate and fruit platter options, and a selection of Turkish tea.

This all comes via unpretentious service in an unpretentious space, which sort of suggests the raison d’etre of the place. Rather than being some horribly earnest attempt at a point of distinction, it’s just a pleasant alternative to the usual.