The Illawarra is home to an abundance of cocktail bars from the new Thirroul to Kiama and many quirky and wonderful places in between.
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With COVID restrictions lifted this festive season can truly be festive to catch up with friends and work colleagues across the region.
Here are a few of our picks for summer cocktails:
Breakout Bar and Escape Rooms
Their cocktail lab can teach you the tricks of the trade or simply serve up a delicious beverage from fizzy passionfruit margaritas to their take on a dry martini.
Bar manager Orion Leppan Taylor said their offerings have gone next level after winning a grant to purchase a rotary evaporator (or ROTOVAP for short).
"It's a mini distillation machine that works via controlling pressure rather than temperature," Leppan Taylor said.
It looks similar to something from a science lab and is able to infuse flavours and aromatics into different alcohols.
The most popular example which utilises the ROTOVAP is Come On Eileen - a cocktail created with a Makers Mark whiskey which has been blended with Illawarra plum.
Leppan Taylor said the machine would be made available for rent to other venues so other small bars could reap the benefits of infusing their own alcohols.
Jose Jones
The popular Thirroul restaurant and bar has risen from the dead and now serving a more sophisticated menu that before (think house made linguini with squid ink, crab and zucchini).
On the drinks menu they're serving vegan cocktails alongside their takes on classics, like the Legroni - similar to a Negroni but with "lillet".
Other notable beverages include Illawarra beers and ciders, plus boutique wines.
Ilu Ilu
Using home made syrups, Abhiruchi Chhikara has created a series of cocktails inspired by her homeland of India at the new tapas bar on Regent Street.
Hibiscus, mango and chili feature in their delights while Chhikara creates an alcoholic Lassi (a traditional yoghurt drink).
Delights from Lux Bistro Bar - which has taken over the old Sopranos On The Mall venue. Picture: Supplied
Lux Bistro Bar
The owners of Wollongong's newest small bar hope to breathe life back into lower Crown Street with their family-friendly venue.
Open until late seven nights a week, the eatery can serve up dinner and/or a cocktail after you've caught a late movie or theatre show.
Cocktails on the menu include Sakura Bloom, Bumblebee and Orange Delight.
Little Betty's
Brother-sister team of Paul and Christina Paterno are behind this sophisticated venue in the heart of Kiama.
Their cocktails sound fun with names like One In A Melon, Frosecco and Kiss My Hass, but you'll be sipping them from marble-look tables and suede or leather couches.
Ms Paterno has experience at high profile bars overseas like the Chateau Marmont, while her brother has run hospitality businesses in Kiama for years.
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The Imperial
Finally, Clifton's recently made-over hotel is open to the public with a full dining menu plus cafe menu, cocktails, delicious wines and craft beer.
They even have a courtesy bus (Imperial Express) picking up and dropping off patrons to designated stops from Thirroul to Stanwell Park.
If ordering the seafood platter, it could easily feed three to four people.
Warilla Bowlo
For something a bit more casual, you can sip your spritzer in the sun in their multimillion-dollar alfresco dining space.
Lagoon Street is a space that includes two new alfresco dining outlets, one called Dal Verde Pizzeria, which boasts a wood fired pizza over, and the the other Burger Box.
Both are built in shipping containers as is a new cocktail bar that also specialises in Australian wine and local craft beer called The Container Bar. There is also a children's playground.
5 Beekman
Think New York and Gatsby rolled into the Illawarra Steelers Club.
Decadent furnishings are spread throughout with a nod the the art deco era - the bar's interior styling was done by local award-winning business Birdblack Design.
The Tap House
If you're just after a bevvy in a funky beer garden, head to Dapto Showgrounds.
Marketed by the Dapto Agricultural and Horticultural Society as The Groundz, the community facility is being turned into an entertainment haven with bar and function area.
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