So you think you know Paddo?

Windsor St reserve, featuring the new Korban/Flaubert sculpture. Picture: Christina Cleary

Few things give me greater amusement than showing people who think they know Paddington something they soon realise they’ve never heard of before.

Take my husband, for example. As a Paddington denizen of a dozen odd years, he has probably walked past Ampersand Café & Bookstore on Oxford St at least 500 times.

But during a coffee stop there recently on a long Sunday morning walk, I casually advised him to go inside and take the stairs either upstairs or downstairs. He looked at me sceptically, as if I had advised him to leave the eastern suburbs, or worse. But he duly went inside, tentatively heading first down the stairs and then upstairs.

“Really?” he said, in genuine amazement, as he returned to the table. “I had absolutely no idea.”

Indeed. That’s the magic of Paddington. The more you think you know about these winding, sometimes mysterious streets and wide thoroughfares with blinking shopfronts and flashy restaurants, the more you realise there is still much to be uncovered.

From below-ground bars, to secret barber shops to historic monuments you only vaguely realised existed, there is so much to be found.

See how many of these gems you have already discovered, or need to try.

FOOD & WINE

Porcine

You are probably aware by now that Micky’s café on Oxford St has well and truly departed Dodge and that a new sheriff is in town in the guise of the very cool P&V Wine + Liquor. But did you know that upstairs from the P&V bottle shop is one of Sydney’s hottest restaurants? Climb the stars to find Porcine, a French bistro run by a pair of chefs in Nik Hill and Harry Levy, and business partner Matt Fitzgerald. Every week the chefs buy a whole Berkshire pig and break it down into a variety of Gallic dishes including a huge pork chop ‘farci’, a mountain of meat designed to be shared.

Level 1/268 Oxford St

Ampersand’s basement library and upstairs reading room

As mentioned above, there is more to this Oxford St café than the deck on the street front. Go down the creaky stairs to find a chandelier-lit book cellar, lined floor-to-ceiling and wall-to-wall with printed matter, or upstairs to find another lovely reading room with a view on to Oxford St. It’s impossible not to be charmed.

78 Oxford St

Köket Café

Slightly off Oxford St, on unobtrusive Young St, find this Swedish-themed cafe with its own hidden garden. We love the green alfresco space with its cinnamon buns and smoked salmon dishes. Attached to the Funkis Scandinavian shop out front, it’s a joy to discover.

Young St or via 202 Oxford St

Charlie Parker’s

Perhaps because there’s no obvious name on the street, many people still don’t know about Merivale’s speakeasy-style bar located below the famed Fred’s restaurant. It’s not that difficult to find, but if you need directions, head to Fred’s front bar and go down the stairs on the left. You'll find a beautiful cellar-like space to enjoy great cocktails.

Basement/380 Oxford St

Bonython Café

120B Underwood St is not terribly well marked, but find this foot-traffic alleyway lined with an abundance of ferns and go through the large Balinese doors to enter a hidden, charming café that’s truly one of Paddo’s best-kept secrets. It’s an oasis of calm and serenity in a crazy world.

120B Underwood St

Royal Hotel rooftop bar

Ever wondered where to find the best harbour view in Paddington? Wonder no more. Simply go to the Royal Hotel at Five Ways and start heading upstairs. Don’t stop at the Elephant Bar, though. Keep climbing, past the next level and to the fourth floor, where you’ll discover this pocket-sized rooftop bar. Not only does it look over the streets of Paddington, but it peers across to the CBD and the harbour, too. Few people realise that this gorgeous little bar even exists, but find it and you’ll feel on top of the world.

237 Glenmore Rd

Morris

Tucked behind the UNSW Art & Design school is this unassuming alfresco café that even Paddington café tragics may not have found. Yes, it's off the beaten track of Oxford St, but Morris is definitely worth the effort of tracking down. Once there, spread out on tables scattered beneath a big old fig tree and enjoy a cracking brunch or lunch of toasties, burgers or poke bowls. It’s definitely dog friendly, too.

33 Albion Ave

ARTS & CULTURE

The Berlin Wall at the Goethe-Institut

You have probably driven down Ocean St, Woollahra, 1000 times without ever noticing that you are passing a genuine piece of the Berlin Wall. Well, next time, slow down as you pass the tiny triangular garden called Euroka Reserve on the north side of the Goethe-Institut. If you look closely, you’ll see an actual slab of the much-despised wall that met its fate in 1989.

The story of how the piece came to be in Australia is bizarre. Apparently, it arrived in 2002 in a shipping container full of industrial equipment that was headed for a Blacktown factory. Once at the factory, nobody paid much heed to the slab, or knew what it was. Indeed, it was considered a nuisance and left for a long time in the carpark. Things are a bit hazy from then on, but one day, someone at the factory put a photo of the brightly painted slab on Reddit. Eventually Sonja Griegoschewski, director of the Goethe-Institut in Australia, saw the photo, knew what it was and worked her magic to transport a piece of history to this little slice of Germany in Sydney. Why the block was in the shipping container in the first place remains a mystery.

90 Ocean St

Trumper Park duck pond

Trumper Park is, of course, one of our great local treasures but have you ever really explored it? Go deep enough into the rainforest part of the park to find a tranquil duck pond replete with families of ducks who breed there throughout the year. It’s a joyful place for small children or a calming oasis for adults.

Corner Glenmore Rd & Hampden St

Victoria Barracks prison

Everyone has seen the monumental sandstone walls on Oxford St protecting Victoria Barracks from the world. But what lies behind the wall? It may seem mysterious but the puzzle is solved each Thursday morning and on the first Sunday of the month when the Army conducts a tour of the premises that include some of NSW’s most significant Edwardian military buildings. Then there’s the Army Museum of NSW, contained in a what was once a military prison. Built in 1847, the prison has 25 cells that now contain different collections and memorabilia, from the colonial era through the various wars. The cells also have a resident ghost — Charlie the Redcoat — who “met his death during incarceration”. No wonder he haunts the place. Book ahead for an introduction to Charlie.

Access via the Pass Office on Moore Park Rd

Paddington Art Precinct

Did you know there are nine art galleries located within a 500m radius of each other down behind Trumper Park? Many, if not all, of these galleries are of national significance and house some of the nation’s finest works for sale. Find Roslyn Oxley 9, Martin Browne Contemporary, Wagner Contemporary and six more in this pocket between the park and the sandstone cliffs of Paddington that lead to Sutherland St.

Hampden and Roylston Sts, & Soudan Ln

Don Bradman’s baggy green

Who knew that The Don’s treasured cap rests right here in the neighbourhood? Find it and other important cricketing memorabilia, including Ricky Ponting’s 2007 bat and the baggy greens of Victor Trumper and Steve Waugh, at the SCG Museum located on the grounds of Sydney’s hallowed cricket ground. You’ll see the artefacts if you take an SCG Tour, which takes visitors inside the historic ground on a 90-minute walk around the stadium. Bookings are essential.

Driver Ave

Korban/Flaubert sculpture

Sculptors Janos Korban and Stefanie Flaubert relocated from their Hargrave St gallery this year but they left a piece of themselves in Paddington. The sculptors have donated a large sculpture to the neighbourhood, which now sits in the lovely community garden at the Windsor St Reserve. It’s beautiful and totally free to enjoy.

Corner Windsor and Elizabeth Sts

N. Smith Gallery

This new gallery is located in the grand neo-classical Saint Sophia Hall, which previously housed the UNSW Kudos Gallery. Opened last year, this sweet little gallery promotes the work of emerging artists.

6 Napier St

UNSW Galleries

Finally, another treasure in our midst is this collection of galleries inside the UNSW Art & Design campus on Oxford St. Three rooms offer a huge 900sqm of nationally important exhibition space. World-class shows are thoughtfully curated and gorgeously presented. Definitely seek out this amazing and undervalued space.

Corner Oxford St & Greens Rd