Melissa Hoyer
There is always something enticing about a proper neighbourhood wine bar: the kind of place you pop into for one glass, perhaps order a little something to eat, and suddenly realise it’s three hours later.
And that is very much the idea behind La Buvette, the new French wine bar that has opened on Challis Avenue in Potts Point.
It comes from The Goodies Hospitality crew – Sali and Nathan Sasi and Morgan McGlone – the team behind some of Sydney’s most consistently good places to eat and drink, including Bar Copains, Bessie’s, Alma’s and Vin-Cenzo’s.
And this particular address comes with history. La Buvette takes over the original site and name of the much-loved Potts Point institution that closed in 2019, giving a cute corner of Challis Avenue its next chapter. Inspired by those intimate, slightly lived-in wine bars of Paris, this version of La Buvette is small, warm and deliberately unfussy. Think aged timber, brass, mosaic tiles, worn upholstery and warm amber and caramel tones.
There are just nine bookable seats inside, with another 30 outside for walk-ins which is very Potts Point and, frankly, very Parisian.
Nathan and Morgan recently headed to Paris for some serious research and the resulting menu is classic French with a playful edge. There are oysters with Champagne granita, comté custard gougères, a raw tuna and goat’s curd tart, escargots with café de Paris butter and duck neck and pork sausage with seeded mustard. Dessert moves from apple pie with French vanilla bean ice cream to a charred macaron with yuzu and finger lime, plus a perfectly petite crème caramel.
Naturally, wine is a major part of the story. Sommelier Ishan Kaplish, formerly of Mimi’s and Tetsuya’s, has put together a French-leaning list centred around Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, with plenty of Champagne and 23 wines available by the glass.
And if cocktails are more your thing, there’s a Buvette Martini made with gin, dry vermouth, cornichon and brine, alongside a suitably French collection of spritzes and Cognac-based drinks.
La Buvette is open from 4pm Monday to Thursday, and for lunch and dinner Friday to Sunday.
A little bit Paris, a lot Potts Point and exactly the sort of place where “just one glass” could very easily become dinner. For Bookings. . .
