Enable JavaScript to run this app.
Skip to main content
OpenTable logo
  1. Home
  2. Australia
  3. Sydney
  4. Northern Beaches
  5. Balgowlah
Effie's, Balgowlah, AU-NSW

Effie's

4.1
4.1
12 Reviews
$41 to $100
Wine Bar

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Booked 6 times today
  • Great for fine wines
  • Neighborhood gem
  • Good for special occasions
Your neighbourhood wine bar offering good food and natural wine, designed to be shared amongst good company.

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    $41 to $100
  • Cuisines
    Wine Bar, Modern Australian
  • Hours of operation
    Mon–Fri 6:00 am–2:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–10:00 pm Sat, Sun 6:30 am–2:00 pm
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress

What 12 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.1
4.1 based on recent ratings
  • 3.9Food
  • 4.1Service
  • 4.3Ambience
  • 3.6Value

Noise • Energetic

12 Reviews
  1. Shelley

    Sydney

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined 7 days ago

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    A perfect date night venue, Effies is a beautiful cosy restaurant with tasty food & a great vibe. Definitely be going back 😊

    Is this helpful?

  2. Indigo

    Sydney

    3 reviews

    2.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on October 25, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 4
    Decent natural wine selection with a good range of Australian & Italian/French numbers. Last time we were here for an evening was 8 or 9 months ago and the experience was top notch. Unfortunately old staff seem to have moved on from the venue & training must be nonexistent because service was disappointing. Little attention to table and zero wine knowledge. Food was good. Hopefully service can be upgraded as it’s a great local spot.

    Is this helpful?

  3. olivia

    Sydney

    1 review

    2.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 16, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    Have been here before and the food was amazing. SADLY it was really bad this time with a much smaller menu and no good options. Very expensive for how bad the food was. I had raved about Effies to all my friends so this was so dissapointing. Staff are nice though

    Is this helpful?

  4. Rob

    London

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on August 9, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 3
    We were warmly welcomed with a nice acknowledgment that it was a birthday occasion (although nothing further was done in that regard) and had an enjoyable evening with 4 of us. However, we were disappointed with the rather restricted menu which has been significantly reduced from previously. Apart from the fabulous enokI soft tacos and the kingfish sashimi (which was ok, though cut a bit thick), the remainder was essentially different versions of toast with toppings, so overall it was bit more basic than we were expecting. We had everything including olives on the menu except the one dessert. Great margaritas and a good wine list but it was pretty expensive. If a few more interesting food items were added to the menu it would be a better experience for dinner and also easier to justify paying that much for the wine!

    Is this helpful?

  5. OpenTable Diner

    Hawaii

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on June 29, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Prefer the calmer ambience of weekdays. the music was a little above ideal; making it hard to talk. Salmon sashimi dish could have benefited from 1 more ingredient to make it a little more interesting but its quality was great. Amazing that you do so well without a proper kitchen! Love the chocolate dessert!! Chef is always an inspiration-you can see his passion when he comes to chat.

    Is this helpful?

  6. OpenTable Diner

    Sydney

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on June 19, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Our waiter Jack did a fantastic job welcoming us to Effie’s for the first time. I could not fault a single aspect of our evening. Well done on creating such a beautiful local space. I suspect we will return many many times.

    Is this helpful?

  7. OpenTable Diner

    Sydney

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on May 31, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Concrete floor made it noisy and hard to hear but food and service was great

    Is this helpful?

  8. OpenTable Diner

    Sydney

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on May 25, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    A very charming destination for 3 50 something plus or minus young women friends to huddle and imbibe!

    Is this helpful?

  9. Matilda

    Sydney

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on February 24, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    We had the nicest girls date night here last night! The wine was so delicious and the food was amazing. Vibes all around. Definitely recommend.

    Is this helpful?

  10. JaneC

    New South Wales

    3 reviews

    1.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on February 22, 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    Cocktail tasted weak ie very little alcohol. There were only 2 or 3 things on the menu. No soft furnishings to soak up sound so it became deafingly noisy the more people arrived and we escaped outside so we could hear each other. Wait staff were charming but service erratic and slow especially when we wanted to order. The cheese dish was delicious but the fish was like fish and chips type fish. Overall very disappointed.

    Is this helpful?

FAQs

Effie's is rated 4.1 stars by 12 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Booked 6 times today
Google Map for Effie's

281 Sydney Rd, Balgowlah, AU-NSW 2093

Additional information

  • Neighborhood
    Balgowlah
  • Hours of operation
    Mon–Fri 6:00 am–2:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–10:00 pm Sat, Sun 6:30 am–2:00 pm
  • Price
    $41 to $100
  • Cuisines
    Wine Bar, Modern Australian
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Wine
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
  • Cookie Preferences
Copyright © 2024 OpenTable, Inc. 1 Montgomery St Ste 500, San Francisco CA 94104 - All rights reserved.
OpenTable is part of Booking Holdings, the world leader in online travel and related services.
Booking Logo
Priceline Logo
KAYAK Logo
Agoda Logo
OpenTable Logo