Sydney crowds are flocking to hot spot TOKO Restaurant + Bar in Surry Hills during the cooler months to warm up with its winter-wonderful menu of delicious dishes, hot sake and creamy cocktails.

Hot sake is the ideal winter tipple and the stylish Japanese restaurant and boutique bar has one of the most extensive sake menus in Australia, with varieties imported directly from Japan. TOKO Restaurant + Bar’s own Sake Sommelier Paul Birtwistle recommends Hakushika Chokara Junmai from Hyogo and Schochikubai Mitani Fujio Yamahai Junmai from Kyoto (tasting notes below).

TOKO Restaurant + Bar also has a range of creative cocktails featuring ingredients synonymous with the cooler weather, such as nutmeg, chocolate, brown sugar and cinnamon. Mr Birtwistle’s top picks for winter include the creamy Chestnut Alexander, walnut and raisin-infused Wild Turkey Blazer and the delicious Lavender Rum Blazer.

One of the only restaurants in Australia with a robata grill, TOKO Restaurant + Bar offers a sizzling selection of dishes with a woody, ashy flavour, achieved using the traditional robata cooking style that involves grilling food over an open flame.

The robata grill menu includes a range of taste sensations, from Kurobuta Bara (double-cooked pork belly with Korean-style spicy miso) to Shiitake No Hachimitsu Fuumi (shiitake mushroom skewers with a honey and butter soy).

Other hot creations include Dengaku Nasu (eggplant with sweet miso), Agedashi Tofu (fried tofu with bonito flakes and dashi broth) and Wagyu Hohoniki Nikomi (braised beef cheek with ginger-flavoured sauce).

To complete the dining experience, TOKO offers tempting hot treats such as Fig and Ginger Pudding (poached figlettes caramelised over a hot ginger pudding served with a dulce de leche anglaise) and San Shu Brulee (trio of crème brulees made with seasonal produce).

Guests can indulge in the dishes for lunch or dinner while soaking up TOKO’s toasty atmosphere, created by soft furnishings, timber walls, subtle lighting and warm, friendly service from the team.

The menu can also be enjoyed in TOKO’s Private Dining Room – an intimate space tucked away at the rear of the restaurant that offers a cosy, sunken-floor dining experience for up to 18 people.

Since opening its doors in February 2007, TOKO Restaurant + Bar has been a hit with locals and visitors to Sydney alike, generating a cult following among A-list crowds, devout foodies and barhoppers.

TOKO Restaurant + Bar’s extensive menu features traditional Japanese cuisine with a contemporary twist created using premium produce fused with a wide variety of locally-sourced ingredients.

TOKO Restaurant + Bar is open for lunch Tuesday to Friday and dinner Monday to Saturday.