Double the Fun at Dom's
About a year-and-a-half ago, Dom Wundke realised his dream of owning a small bar in the seaside suburb of Nightcliff, his bar – Dom’s Bar – taking up residence in the Aralia Street shops, specialising in cocktails made from premium spirits and local native ingredients.
But in recent exciting developments, Dom’s space has doubled up, much to the delight of foodie fans and tipple takers. Dom says it all went down pretty quickly.
“There was never really a plan to expand but I thought it might be something we could do down the track sometime. I actually didn’t think that we would need to expand so soon! But it’s a small bar and it filled up really quickly on busy nights, so we needed more room,” Dom says.
“Also, for events as well, now we can host all of our events inside. There’s a great space for it. We’ve got heaps of Darwin Fringe Festival shows here next month, and it’s just gonna be such a good vibe.
“People are also loving the booths. The elevated design of the booths is really nice, and I worked with an architect friend from Melbourne on them. I just thought of how we could build on the space we had before without losing the atmosphere, and I think we’ve achieved that – it’s still a nice and intimate setting.”
Famous for its free spiced popcorn and one heck of a cocktail list, the bar also now offers gourmet bites with the cleverly crafted cuisine menu.
“Lisa from My Host has helped us out with a whole new food menu. She’s started a new business hosting as well as helping people develop menus as a food consultant.”
And we must say, Lisa’s kind of nailed it. Tuck into a bunch of bruschetta options, including zucchini with lemon, feta and mint, or balsamic tomato with bocconcini and basil. Snack on rich labneh with dill, mint, lemon and olive oil or marinated olives.
If you can’t go past a good antipasto, there are a couple of options to tickle your tastebuds. The cheese plate features a trio of cheeses with Sicilian olives, local chutneys, dried figs and farmhouse bread. The ploughman’s plate dishes out a savoury assortment of cured and smoked meats with smoked paprika cheddar and comté, tomato relish, cornichons, boiled eggs, radish, dried olives, onion chutney and crusty bread. Salivating yet?
Of course, a bar isn’t a bar without the booze. Sample a concoction from the Cocktails Especial menu, such as the Omocito made from rested tequila, scotch, ginger and chipotle, or the famous award-winning Territori-Tini with white rum, mango coco-pandan and salty plum. Enjoy gins paired with gourmet ingredients, such as local Saltie gin with tonic, orange and mint.
If you prefer waking up the next morning in tip top shape, the Free Spirited menu (aka, free of spirits) keeps you feeling as fresh as a daisy, with five delicious options to choose from.
Next time you’re in the Northern ‘burbs and fancy a tipple, a tasty snack and some good ol’ times, duck into Dom’s.
Dom's Bar & Lounge
WHEN FRI & SAT, 4PM-LATE | SUN, 2-10PM
AT ARALIA ST, NIGHTCLIFF
INFO facebook.com/domsbardarwin
