Over the past month, few inner west locals have been able to walk past a long-dormant slice of Unwin’s Bridge Road without pausing to peer through the front window into a new venue that has suddenly sprung to life, where underground UK hip-hop is thumping, cocktails are being mixed and conversation is flowing.

Sydenham, the oft-overlooked cousin of cooler, more vibrant Marrickville, has recently welcomed a 20-seat pasta and wine bar, Sippenham. It is the most exciting thing to happen in the mostly residential suburb since the Metro.

“We want to make it a locals-only vibe,” said co-owner Stephen Mandis. “It’s been a long time coming for this area.”

Mandis has been plotting the opening of a hospitality venture with chef and co-owner Nick Giannopoulos since 2022. Best friends since high school, the mates moved in together during lockdown. It was an easy partnership: Mandis enjoyed a shorter commute to work and kept the place clean while Giannopoulos would cook.

It was during the pandemic that some of Sippenham’s menu staples – the generously sized focaccia and potato and manchego fritters –were conceived, perfected over countless Friday afternoon beers.

“Lockdown was tough, but that focaccia kept us going every single Friday,” says Giannopoulos.

A plate of fig-garnished stracciatella on a bed of chilli oil is a natural accompaniment to the bread. Meanwhile, the beef shin lasagne, sitting on a bed of tomato-rich vodka sauce (and inspired by Giannopoulos’ grandmother’s pastitsio, Greece’s version of lasagne) is already a crowd favourite.

Fingerprints of their families are everywhere. The tiramisu, well-balanced and liqueur-soaked, is Giannopoulos’ father’s recipe; the orange almond cake is his grandmother’s. A prawn, cherry tomato and shellfish bisque malloreddus is reminiscent of a seafood pasta Mandis’ yiayia used to make, and the name Sippenham was given by Mandis’ cousin.

“The most respect we could pay our families was to honour those traditions,” said Giannopoulos.

Relaxed and unpretentious, Sippenham’s vibe is as inspired by East London’s nightlife as it is by the best of the inner west. Its name has been borrowed from its sister city in London, known as Sippenham until the 18th century.

One of the restaurant’s walls is adorned with photos that pay homage to its various influences. A plane flying above a basketball hoop at the local courts (Sydenham is directly under a flight path) sits beside pictures of A$AP Rocky, Westminster Hall, Shane Warne, family and friends.

The wine list has been assembled by booze distributors Lo-Fi Wines, and the local-for-locals influence continues with Marrickville’s Philter Brewing supplying beers. Menus will be rotated roughly every six weeks; curated playlists will revolve weekly.

Mandis, who worked in retail banking for more than a decade, previously considered himself something of a black sheep in a household where most family members – Tempe and Dulwich Hill residents – were involved in hospitality.

“We’ve got a lot of family ties in this area,” he says.

“For me, there was always a bit of a romance behind that. My uncles and cousins and all the people before me were able to have fun, enjoy their time, eat, drink, socialise in the same area that I’ve now got my restaurant at.”

After releasing bookings to the public in March, the word has evidently gotten out: Sippenham is nearly booked out through early May.

Open dinner Wednesday-Saturday

282 Unwins Bridge Road, Sydenham, sippenham.com