MoVida Sydney

Excellent food — particularly enjoyed the cigars and the chocolate icecream (best I have ever had). Wine menu is extensive and it takes bookings.

Nothing to fault here!
— turned up relatively early (no booking) on a Sat night and the two of us were seated straight away at the bar (which looks over the kitchen, perfect for what we wanted)
— excellent front of house staff (one person looked after the whole bar, perfect attentiveness, informative and competent)
— visible kitchen, runs like a well oiled machine
— attention to cutlery, plating and clearing your table, pouring wines etc
— food is amazing, diverse, balanced and complex, great value to boot!
Recommend!

This place definitely brings the hipster Melbourne vibe to Surry (not that we really need it anymore, thanks Melbs) and pays pretty good homage to the original, sans being full of black clothed Melbourne hipsternites.
We had a party of 6 and I think that’s probably as many as you’d want to be able to try enough and not pay too much. But the portions were very, very small — the fish special only allowed for a small mouthful each and we had to order the chicken twice (it was delicious though!) The croquettes were a great starter and I wish I tried other tapas, but they were quite expensive and probably would have resulted in spending $ 100 a head for what felt like 10 mouthfuls of food.
I’d say this place is better for a couple where you can really share the food without it costing a fortune. I ended up scoffing a whole dessert to myself out of pure starvation (Magdalenas — Madeleines with rhubarb and lemon butter ice cream) which was actually amazing. The quality of food was great, service excellent and really good location too.

Movida has been on my must-​try places in Sydney for ages and it didn’t disappoint at all!
The food was great and our table was served by the most energetic waitress. Everything from the special deep fried squid with squid ink and a fried egg to the quail stuffed with chicken pâté to the beef cheek was full of flavour and delicious. There are so many other items I wish I had the belly space to try! There is also a decent wine menu and the sangria was refreshing and the right balance of wine and sweetness.
The odd moment of the meal was the dessert special — chocolate mousse with candied mandarin and chocolate soil. You say chocolate dirt and I’m in! The chocolate mousse and soil were delicious but the part I didn’t expect was the sherbet on the top of the candied mandarin. I was left wondering why my mouth was tingling, and taking several more spoonfuls to try and work out if the sensation was value additive to the dish. Even today, fully rested and having emerged from my food coma, I still don’t know how to feel about the dish.
However, I can safely say I would happily return to Movida to try other dishes on their menu.

Brilliant. Chic and classy, very pleasant service. Superb food, a unique and pleasant twist on traditional tapas. We got stuck with the choices so we just said «feed us» and they were more than happy to bring us their favourite dishes until we were stuffed!

I have just returned home after eating at this great restaurant. We had a party of seven to celebrate my daughter’s birthday. We enjoyed the patatas bravas, salchicon of prawns, the air dried wagyu beef served with truffle and poached egg a runny egg, delicious chicken in a paprika sauce with peas, double servings of the amazing beef cheek with cauliflower purée and two servings of vegetables. The service was very attentive and all of our servers had a great knowledge of the food and wines. Altogether a very enjoyable night. BUT wait, there’s more! My daughter is gluten and dairy intolerant meaning that there were no real options for dessert. My wife made a GF brownie cake to take, that we cleared with the restaurant before we went. No problemas señor. They served the cake with candles, and most importantly NO charge for ‘plateage’. This is a significant factor in building their goodwill. Thank you MoVida, this simple gesture added to the great food and service made the night a very special one. We shall certainly recommend your restaurant and we will definitely be returning.

Excellent place and happy to see it got voted into 100 Best Restaurants in Australia!
Our server was awesome. She was extremely helpful in helping us select the tapas and very knowledgeable when it came to wine. I am sure everything on the menu is good but what we ordered was deeeeelicious: jamon serrano, patatas bravas, carrillera de buey (beef cheek with cauliflower purée — SO GOOD), croqueta de pato (duck croquettes), and a few other things.
Really happy about everything and would highly recommend this place to anyone looking for a tapas restaurant.

Food was really well done. Service was very good. I have not been to the Melbourne version of MoVida, but they offer everything I want in a restaurant — really good delicious dishes where I get to indulge in my craving for anchovies, sardines and squid without getting weird looks from everyone else. And blood sausage that tastes like haggis. Oh yes. Nice wine range and some quirky dish takes on the tapas traditionale. Wouldn’t hesitate to recommend. Busy, so book ahead.

Food and service were great. Really great ambiance to catch with friends or date night. Great menu options. The dishes sound exotic but dont be turned off the dishes are executed perfectly

Had a great dinner here with friends. It was a Saturday night and we did not have a reservation, after being quoted a 60 minute wait we got seated in about 30. The pitcher Sangria was plenty for the three of us to share. We tried about a half dozen of the small plates and all of them were great.

My girlfriend and I stopped at Movida our first night in Sydney with no reservations. We sat at the bar and had a really good time. The staff at the bar was a lot of fun and the food was well prepared and tasty (a little small though). Definitely worth a visit.

A slice of San Sebastian right here in Surry Hills. I knew it was going to be 5 stars from the get go. When it comes to Spanish tapas, MoVida rules supreme.

My friend and I had just returned from Barcelona and felt the need to dig into the closest thing we could find to Catalonian cuisine. I’d been to Movida in Melbourne, loved it, and figured that much couldn’t go wrong when playing from a tried and tested playbook. I was not wrong.
We rocked up about 1pm on a Friday afternoon and grabbed a seat at the bar. Started with Iberian ham which was just as good as we remembered. We then had pig cheek with scallops and cumquat marmalade. Jiminy Cricket! So, so good. Last, some duck leg with pickled cabbage. Also a treat.
What was great about Movida was their detailed level of knowledge about the food and wine. I was at a café in Newtown the previous week and they couldn’t even tell us whether a cake they were serving had nuts in it! At Movida, the staff had very specific knowledge about everything on the menu. A brilliantly sublime Friday afternoon.

Now I’m are HUGE fan of Movida Melbourne and had high hopes that this would be as good here as it is at home.
As we all know, sometimes when you go to the original, you are let down at the sister, however Movida Sydney did NOT let me down at all.
I started with Jamon and a glass of La Goya (as one should) followed by their Patatas Bravas, now these were different to the normal ones you would get in Melbourne. They were confit chat potatoes (duck I believe) then roasted and filled with all the tasty goodness of spicy Bravas sauce and faux bacon dust and really I could have eaten another plate!
From there it was Sangria time!
Oh and food too — Rabbi Conejo Agridulce, if I was at home I would have licked the plate, drool! Braised Rabbit leg in an Andaluicain sweet and sour sauce. But that was me done, I didn’t really feel like dessert, so PX it was as a liquid dessert.
So I had fed puppy syndrome so was NAP time…

Not happy with having to fly to Melbourne every time they want a little of Frank Camora’s flavours, Sydneysiders have been given their very own Movida. Lucky ducks!
I popped in for a solo dinner recently, wanting to check out the space and say hello to a few old faces who have made the journey from Melbourne to Sydney to help establish this Spanish favourite in the harbour city.
I really enjoyed the Movida interpretation here — it’s a little like Melbourne’s Acqui in terms of interior — a large bar, brighter and buzzier, but the menu leans more towards the offerings we’re familiar with at Next Door and the original Movida. The service is great, the kitchen bustling and providing a great atmosphere to sink the first glasses of Fino for the night.
There’s some favourite dishes that have made the trek up north — who can go past that ancho a with the tomato sorbet? But then there’s some special dishes created just for Sydney, to reflect a warmer climate and localised preferenes. The Quail and morcilla terrine is rich and beautifully balanced. The cold octopus terrine with caviar and potatoes was great, though I could have used a little more acid with a little lemon on the side to squeeze on top

OK, this is now the third MoVida I have been to, so it had a bit of high expectation surrounding it.
We rocked up sans reservation on a Saturday night and managed to score a seat at the bar after about 45 mins waiting at one of the disreputable pubs nearby — really, need to sort that out, someone, feared for my safety. Bloke in one was wearing a silver zebraskin jumpsuit and had a parrot on his shoulder, with a menacing look about him.
Anyhow, I digress. Staff were very friendly and helpful, place was jammed to the gunnels with punters, and it was jumpin’.
Menu, for me, was a little disappointing, but serviceable — I mean, only so many Spanish tapas, right? May also have been affected by my dry January pledge which was by now getting a little old, specially when I looked at the fine wine list, somewhat wistfully since I could only salivate, and after a sober and sobering experience at fore-​mentioned pub.
The food was however delicious, and we sampled a number of dishes, all well made and tasty. Seriously, can’t remember anything as a standout, but it was all great. We will be back.
Recommend a booking or arriving early. And watch the local pubs, go downhill not up.

In my head, Movida was synonymous with Melbourne. Going to Melbourne? Go to Movida. Going to Movida? You’re in Melbourne.
So you can imagine that it felt pretty weird to wander into Movida on Holt St, Sydney, and manage to nab a spot at the bar. We weren’t even dressed up — just came straight from the beach, still had sand on our toes. The waitstaff didn’t bat miss a beat — they were full of grace and steady, not-​too-​overbearing charm.
Is the food just as good as Melbourne? You betcha. Is it the same menu as the 3 restaurants in Melbourne? Of course not! It depends on what’s in season, what’s available, that sorta thing. But jeeze these guys know what they’re doing. The staff are so professional, the food comes out quickly, and the produce is amazing.
The only way to get a spot without booking is to show up early early early. By that we mean before 6. Closer to 5pm. You can make reservations but be aware that you need about 5 – 6 weeks notice for weekend nights.
I haven’t mentioned the food yet! Ok … first of all, make sure to order the anchovies with smoked tomato sorbet. It sounds like a completely crazy idea but you will not regret it. The salty zing of the anchovy is offset so beautifully by the cold tomato sorbet.

I was so excited about this place opening in Sydney after having eaten at MoVida in Melbourne in January and deciding that it was without a doubt the best tapas bar I had ever been to in my life. Sadly, the food I had at the Sydney MoVida (SydMo) did not compare with the food I had at Melbourne MoVida (MelMo).
Here was the stuff I ate at SydMo:
1. ANCHOA — artisan Cantabrian anchovy on croûton with smoked tomato sorbet
2. BOCATA DE BUEY — air baguette, roast biff wagyu, tocino de cielo, pickled and black garlic
3. JAMON SERRANO
4. CROQUETA — smoked eel and horseradish croquette
5. CECINA — air cured wagyu beef with truffle foam and a poached egg
6. BUNUELOS DE BACALAO — salt cod fritters with Basque pil pil sauce
7. PATATAS BRAVAS CON MOJO — smoked potato bravas with faux bacon dust, served with mojo picon
8. COSTILLAS — spicy pork ribs on charcoal
I loved the jamon serrano and the patatas bravas (dishes 3 and 7), but everything else was a bit too salty, rich and/​or greasy for my liking.
No complaints about the service, which was just as friendly and helpful as it had been at MelMo.

Lives up to it’s Melbourne sisters’ standards!
I’ve been to MoVida in Melbourne and I actually think Sydney is better! We started with the Entre Mese which consisted of a variety of cold sliced meats — each as delicious as the next. Mains were the Carrillera (Beef cheek in Pedro Ximenez with cauliflower purée) — a must — which were so very tender, the Costilla (Spicy Pork Ribs on Charcoal) and stuffed squid with black ink rice… If I could fit in more, I would have also tried the Rabbit Leg…
Service was very good — staff are very friendly and informative. Ambience is perfect for a date or dinner with friends!

Magical things happen at MoVida. Like Dorothy and her dog Toto, you too can be transported to another place (though not Oz, because, being here already, that would make no sense) with a few taps of your shoes. There’s no place like … Spain.
When I visited the original MoVida in Melbourne, I started my dining journey alone, sitting on the last stool at the edge of the bar. When I finished 2.5 hours later, I had made three new friends, shared 2 bottles of red wine with them, and left wishing I could have stayed longer.
On a recent Thursday evening, I dropped by this newly-​christened, buzzing Camorra joint, eager to see if it could live up to the name and memory of my earlier visit to its older brother. Back in my mind, I was doubtful. There is something about the Melbourne alleyway café culture that Sydney’s just not known for. Again, my journey started at the bar, a solo dining experience. But three hours later, I left the venue completely sated, having shared several fantastic plates of food with two new friends. That’s the magic of MoVida, my dear reader. It takes you to Spain, for just a little while, with the carefree joie de vivre that comes with a late evening meal, punctuated by little, salty bites and free-​flowing alcohol, extended indefinitely into the night.
The food is generally very good. I ordered a main from the specials list, the albondigas ($ 18.5) (rabbit meatballs in a tomato-​based stew) and, at the recommendation of my server, the pipirana ($ 15), described as an «andalucian vegetable salad with tuna belly,» as a side. The pipirana came first and was made of tomatoes, red capsicum, cucumber, onions, quail eggs with runny yolks, and cooked tuna belly, in a light sherry vinaigrette. Delicious and light, the salad was a great start. The only downsides: the tuna belly was overcooked (it probably shouldn’t have been cooked at all), and the flat croutons (which are the same ones used for the famous anchoa tapa) quickly became soggy and unappetizing. The albondigas were amazing. Properly browned on the outside, moist and tender on the inside, with some sort of dried fruit mixed in (sultanas?) to add sweetness and depth to the generally savory dish. Portion was substantial — it came with 6 – 7 large meatballs! I couldn’t finish them all. I wish it were served in a bowl, rather than the plate it came on, so it would be easier to scoop up the meatballs with the tomato sauce. The calamares rellenos ($ 19), baby squid stuffed with squid-​ink infused black rice, are extremely tender and quite tasty, though I thought the rice could have used more salt or seasoning. The conejo agridulce ($ 26.5 in print menu, $ 24 on the chalkboard and online), braised rabbit leg in a sweet-​sour sauce, was delectably fall-​off-​the-​bone tender and moist, though the dish was more sweet than sour, and could have been punched up with some lemon or other citrus. The chargrilled asparagus spears ($ 15 on the online menu, $ 14 in the restaurant, strangely) are huge and deliciously smokey, and come served with a fantastic romesco sauce left slightly chunky from chopped hazelnuts. We ended with the tarta santiago ($ 14.5), an almond fondant soufflé with a gooey, oozy lava center and a beautiful fig-​leaf (which tasted like coconut to me) ice cream. A bit small for the price, but highly recommended.
They still have some service kinks to work out. Needless to say, the menu requires a guide. What the heck are small goods? Mojo picon? This is not a lurid Austin Powers reference. This would be fine if the waitstaff were available to explain things, but they are not the easiest folks to wave down. Even when you can, you’ll find that not all are very helpful — many have just started and haven’t tried but a few dishes. I found that I knew the menu better (having looked online first) than my server — not a great sign. Teething issues, likely resolved with time.
Prices are strange, too. They have already gone up, I noticed, comparing the printed menu to the online one. In just 2 – 3 weeks! That’s a bit insane. Tapas that were $ 5 are now $ 7 (like the gamba). Even the chalkboard’s a bit dated — I noticed some pricing and offering discrepancies, and was told that certain things had been changed and/​or replaced.
The crowds for this place are understandably enormous. Go late or early, and on a weekday. Yes, get the anchoa, that salty bite of heaven, just to say you’ve tried it. And look out for that rainbow (and the house, too). MoVida’s a bit of Spain, right here in Sydney.