Seated from 12 to 60 Guests
The Adey Private Wine Cellar
Where secrets stay underground.
There’s something about descending into a private cellar that makes the night feel different.
Slower. More delicious. A little more forbidden.
Welcome to The Adey Wine Cellar, Darling Glebe’s most whispered about room. A subterranean jewel carved from sandstone, complete with vaulted ceilings, velvet-wrapped pillars, its own bar and the kind of acoustics that make every toast sound like a secret. Behind the iron gate? A wine cave with room for 2,800 bottles.
Behind closed doors? Just you, your chosen few, and whatever the night dares to become.
Where charm gets comfortable and never leaves.
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Where secrets stay underground.
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Where charm gets comfortable and never leaves. | Where secrets stay underground. |
The Room
There are no interruptions. No noise from upstairs. And absolutely no strangers walking through.
From 12 to 60 guests seated, The Adey Wine Cellar hosts everything from intimate soirées to six table revelry, with room for up to 80 standing if you prefer to circulate with a glass in hand and a canapé in the other.
(We seat 6 to 10 guests per table. Round, of course. It suits the gossip better.)
She’s 8 metres wide and 10.8 metres deep, with a low vaulted ceiling rising to 2.5 metres. Intimate but grand, like being inside a wine glass just before it’s filled. No natural light, of course. The glow here comes from low lamps, soft spotlights and the thrill of a room that feels a little off the record.
The Food
No alternate-drop roulette. No mystery chicken.
Menus here are crafted by Chef Jeff himself. Built for the moment, shaped by the season and designed to leave an impression. For groups of 12–20, we offer à la carte or a curated chef’s menu. For 20 and up, it’s table d’hôte: three courses, beautifully balanced, tailored to your mood and the dishes that make you hum. Add extra courses if you like. Or kick off with a round of canapés before settling in.
Hosting a stand-up soirée? We’ll roam the room with trays or set up styled food stations worth lingering over. And yes, you can bring your own cake. We’ll plate it like it came from Paris. (Small cakage applies, but only to the cake, never the vibe.)
The Drinks
We don’t do drink packages. We do good taste.
Start with Champagne on arrival. Or a bespoke cocktail, named after you, your fiancé, or your product launch.
No budget guesswork. Just honest advice and outrageously good pours.
Expect 4 to 5 drinks per person over the evening, but we’ll design it based on how you like to party:
All red and moody?
Bubbles all night?
A signature gin with thyme and gossip?
Let us know, and we’ll pre-batch, pour, or mix to match.
Want to run a bar tab? Easy.
Switch to a cash bar after speeches? Done.
And when it comes to wine? That’s our sommelier’s time to shine. Matching the mood and menu of up to sixty guests is no small feat, but ours does it with a wink and a whisper.
Whether you’re partial to the classics or curious about the road less poured, expect hidden gems, unexpected favourites and the kind of bottle you’ll be telling stories about later.
They can even hand pull from the cellar or order in something rare, if you give us a little notice.
Because no one’s moment should taste like everyone else’s.
Where charm gets comfortable and never leaves.
|
Where secrets stay underground.
|
Where charm gets comfortable and never leaves. | Where secrets stay underground. |
Specs & Style
If you’re looking for a blank canvas with LED uplighting and a per-head beverage service spreadsheet… Darling Glebe probably isn’t for you. But if you want velvet, atmosphere, extraordinary food and a wine list that could double as a novella, let’s make it unforgettable.
The extras:
Private bathrooms (no upstairs wandering in heels)
AV-ready (screen, Wi-Fi, sound)
Your own playlist or ours
Delivery-friendly (balloons, florals, monogrammed favours)
Bump-in, bump-out flexibility
Photographers welcome. Paparazzi, less so
Perfect for:
⚬ Milestone birthdays where things get slightly scandalous
⚬ Anniversaries that deserve more than dinner and a dry speech
⚬ Wedding receptions with cake, Champagne and enough time to make it unforgettable
⚬ Client dinners that start with foie gras and end with a new deal
⚬ Product launches for people with taste
⚬ PR/media events with vintage Champagne and camera-ready lighting
⚬ Luxury brand briefings where even the wine list makes an impression
⚬ Surprise proposals yes, with all her friends watching if she’d say yes
Why The “Adey” Wine Cellar?
The Adey Wine Cellar is named for Dr. Alfred Adey. A local legend, dental surgeon and the visionary who imagined this very space into being.
In the 1970s, Dr. Adey began excavating beneath his Edwardian home above us with one simple goal: build a private wine cellar beneath the lounge room. What followed was anything but simple. With convict-chipped sandstone and reclaimed heritage bricks, and enlisting Roman master stonemason Sergio Ferrari, he kept digging. For fifteen years.
The result? A vast, two-level underground sanctuary that became the original Darling Mills Restaurant. A pioneer of farm-to-plate dining, Dr. Adey filled it with good food, better wine and Sydney’s brightest conversation. Today, we honour his vision with the room that bears his name. A spectacular private cellar with a view into the wine cave that still runs beneath your feet.
It’s not just a room. It’s a legacy.
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