Set in a historic building at the corner of King and York Streets in Sydney's CBD, Sammy Junior is the coffee-loving offshoot of lauded cocktail bar Maybe Sammy. But unlike its nightowl older brother, Junior is set to be an all-day venue, transitioning from coffee hall to cocktail den.
Early birds can fuel up at the espresso bar before work: it's brewing the in-house Spiritual coffee blend, created by founder and coffee connoisseur Martin Hudak – but if caffeine isn't your jam, you can also get small-batch herbal teas from Ms Cattea, chai, and Callebaut hot chocolate.
On the other side of the pistachio-green terrazzo bar at the centre of the space, Sammy Junior is pulling the coupes out from under the counter for some real drinks, too. Choose from a selection of pre-shaken Martinis on tap: there's a Coffee Negroni with Mr Black liqueur, gin and campari; the Martini Australiano with lemon myrtle and gin; the Cascara Fizz which blends vodka with raspberry liqueur; the TI Punch Spritz with rum and rooibos tea; an Espresso Martini shaken up frappe-style, or a creamy Irish coffee with honey, whiskey and filter coffee. Each ($13) comes in a pocket-sized 100ml glass.
Consultant chef Rob Lechowicz is in charge of the menu throughout the day: breakfast is light and sweet, including baked goods from Sonoma Bakery, a strawberry chia pudding and toasted banana bread. Choose from a range of sandwiches and salads for lunch, or welcome in the weekend with $2 Sydney Rock oysters from 3pm every Thursday and Friday (plus aperitivo plates of olives, salumi and cheese from 3pm, every day).
Junior's older sibling, Maybe Sammy, ranked 11th in the World’s 50 Best Bars list in 2020 and picked up a gong for the world's best hospitality experience to boot – so you can expect its caffeinated baby bro to be a CBD hit, too.
To celebrate its opening, Sammy Junior will be giving one free coffee to every customer who visits this week (but just note, there's a limit of one free coffee per person, per day).