Looking for things to do in Redfern? Maybe you’re looking for more information about this Sydney suburb to figure out whether it might be somewhere to live. When I first moved to Sydney, I was always told Redfern was the dodgy suburb you shouldn’t go to. Then I worked in Redfern for a good few months and got to know the area which I love.
To be honest, it’s become one of my favourite parts of Sydney! Think of a suburb with so much individuality and culture, and a bar scene to make you feel like you could almost be back in London, it’s hard not to fall in love with this brilliant suburb.
With a long-standing cultural history of the First Nations People in Redfern, it would be difficult not to notice the apparent street art in this Sydney suburb about changing the date for Australia Day / Invasion Day. Combine the cultural heritage with artists and hipsters and you’ve got yourself a unique Sydney suburb to explore.
We love the people, the brilliant hidden bars in Redfern, and of course the many restaurants to discover. We thought it would be best to share our best things to do in Redfern guide to inspire you to take time to explore this gem!
Redfern Local Legend
When we explore suburbs in Sydney, we love to chat to as many locals as possible to get a good understanding of each area. In Redfern, Hazam Sedda stood out for us.
Hazam Sedda
Local Legend From Redfern Convenience Store
Hazam Sedda is the owner of the incredibly popular Redfern Convenience Store, on Redfern Street. You’ll be taken right back to your childhood with treats and sweets from over 15 countries, you won’t find anywhere else like it in Australia! Put it on your list to visit!
Housing In Redfern
The housing in Redfern is a mixture of council flats, heritage-listed cottages and brand new city apartments, all located in the same small area. It somehow works and is becoming more and more popular to move to. If you’re undecided about where to live in Sydney, check out our complete guide below.
Best Things To Do In Redfern
Welcome to Redfern Sign
A trip to Redfern is not complete without checking out the famous Welcome To Redfern sign! Located on the corner of Caroline and Hugo Streets, the significance of this building is a landmark to represent the Aboriginal history, community, culture and activism. Aboriginal Artist, Reko Rennie transformed the building with the help of other local artists to represent inspiring Aboriginal leaders.
Address: Corner of Caroline and Hugo Streets, Redfern
Vandal Gallery
I literally stumbled across Vandal Gallery in Redfern while driving around recently. When I pulled up to the gallery, it certainly had a really modern and hipster vibe going on. I was unsure if it was OK just to walk in as I wondered whether I had walked into someone’s office, but the friendly receptionist welcomed me straight away. It’s a cool space and home to one of the best art galleries in Sydney.
Address: Vandal Gallery, 16-30 Vine St, Redfern NSW 2016
Redfern Convenience Store
One of our favourite finds in Redfern is the Redfern Convenience Store (read our full review)! It’s an awesome corner shop selling rare sweets from UK and America, with plenty from many other countries from around the world.
At first glance, I didn’t quite get the hype. When the shop owner Hazam gladly showed me around, I started to understand why he’s got over 25,000 Instagram followers. It attracts so many people from around Australia, all hoping to make it onto his page as Customer Of The Day. Go check it out, and stock up on M&S Percy Pigs while you’re there!
Address: Redfern Convenience Store, 152a Redfern St, Redfern NSW 2016
Watch our Redfern Convenience Store Video Below!
Ciccone And Sons
I love Ciccone And Sons which is a cool fifties inspired ice cream parlour, serving up homemade fresh gelato. Having randomly stumbled across this fab gelato shop in Sydney, I love how different and authentic it feels. Plus, they do good ice cream and $10 cocktails all day!
Address: Ciccone & Sons, 195 Regent St, Redfern NSW 2016
Check Out The Famous Tony Abbott Mural In Redfern
In 2017, famous Sydney street artist, Scotty Marsh painted a mural of former Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott marrying himself located on the wall of Redfern cafe, Hunters Corner. Scott was inspired by Tony’s eye opening statement about asking the Australian public to vote no for same sex marriage.
Thankfully, Scotty Marsh took it to a whole new level with an “up yours” for even suggesting such an archaic message to the nation. Make sure you make the effort to check out this famous piece of street art in Redfern on the main street in the suburb, unsurprisingly called Redfern Street.
Address: Redfern Street
107 Projects
The arts hub in Redfern is located at the long-standing 107 Projects. This not-for-profit community art space is home to loads of events, exhibitions, workshops, and more. There’s even a rooftop garden to discover!
Address: 107 Projects, 107 Redfern St, Redfern
Carriageworks
You can’t come to this Sydney suburb without visiting Carriageworks in Redfern! This multi-arts precinct is home to a weekly farmers market, festivals, fashion shows and global art exhibitions.
Address: Carriageworks, 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh NSW 2015
Duck Rabbit Gallery
Duckrabbit Gallery in Redfern is a little gem tucked behind the train station. It’s a really inviting gallery, showcasing artwork from local artists. It’s worth a pop-in if you’re heading over to Carriageworks or simply looking for new places to visit in Sydney.
Address: Duckrabbit Gallery, 138 Little Eveleigh St, Redfern NSW 2016
Aboriginal & Pacific Art
Aboriginal & Pacific Art Gallery has been showcasing local Aboriginal art from around Australia since 2017. Highlighting painting and sculpture from emerging artists, this is a go to gallery in Redfern.
Address: Aboriginal & Pacific Art Gallery, 1/24 Wellington St, Waterloo NSW 2017
Redfern Park
I used to go to Redfern Park a lot when I worked in the area. It’s a great spot to have lunch in Redfern if you’re looking for somewhere to go. Bring a picnic and chill out here during your visit to the area.
Address: Redfern Park, Redfern St, Redfern NSW 2016
The DEA Store
If you’re looking for a beautifully unique homewares store in Redfern, look no further than The DEA Store. This gorgeous shop on Regent Street is home to mostly Japanese homewares but also features ceramics from Tom Dixon and many other hip designers. It’s one of those shops you couldn’t walk past without checking it out.
Address: The DEA Store, 146 Regent St, Redfern NSW 2016
Rudi Rocket
Unfortunately Rudi Rocket wasn’t open at the time of visiting, but it looks like a cool vintage shop selling mid-century furniture. It’s definitely somewhere we would check out in a heart beat, and if vintage furniture is your kind of thing too, make sure you check out our best antique shops in Sydney guide!
Address: Rudi Rocket, 128 Regent St, Redfern NSW 2016
Assembly Label Surplus Store
Although it’s technically in Beaconsfield, just a five-minute drive down the road from Redfern is the Assembly Label Surplus Store. This is the biggest Assembly Label I’ve been to which sells current season and previous season clothes at a discounted cost.
Not heard of this Aussie brand before? They sell go-to wardrobe basics and classics like denim shorts, jeans and tshirts. The sizing is a bit random (you might be different sizes in some of their clothing) but it’s definitely worth popping into when you’re in the area.
Address: Assembly Label, 448 Botany Rd, Beaconsfield NSW 2015
Mitchell Road Antiques
If you’re heading over to the Assembly Label, you should definitely check out Mitchell Road Antiques which is home to the best antique shop in Sydney! Be careful, you could spend a good few hours walking around and checking out this excellent vintage clothing and antique furniture shop. If you’re looking for things to do on a rainy day in Sydney, this is my go to place.
Address: Mitchell Road Antiques, 17 Bourke Rd, Alexandria NSW 2015
Redfern Restaurants & Cafes
There are some fantastic places to eat in Redfern so we’re sharing with you some of the best Redfern restaurants you need to know about.
Breakfast & Lunch Cafes in Redfern
I used to go to Scouts Honour for lunch all the time when I worked in the area. It’s a healthy, hip cafe serving up sandwiches, fantastic salads and of course, great coffee! This is a great place to come if you’re looking for a small cafe for breakfast or lunch.
Hunters Corner is also a great small cafe in Redfern for breakfast or lunch which is home to where the famous Tony Abbott mural is located. It’s a great spot to sit in the sun and people watch!
And of course you must check out Three Williams for breakfast or lunch. Located in a warehouse, this hip cafe is the place to go to. Expect delicious healthy meals you’ll want to come back to time and time again! Towards Moore Park, check out Kepos Street Kitchen for Middle Eastern twist.
Redfern Restaurants For Dinner
On the corner is the popular Bart Jnr, run by the owners of Scout Honor and over the road is the gorgeous little La Coppola for pizza. A lot of the Redfern bars mentioned below also serve up food as well. We would personally head straight for DD’s for a unique dining experience.
Ron’s Upstairs is a cool Mediterranean restaurant with a small set of steps lodged between two shops on Redfern Street. You could easily walk past and not even realise it’s there. Meanwhile, head a little further down the street and you’ll come to La Grillade, a French restaurant.
Best Bars In Redfern
There are some amazing bars in Redfern! To be honest, if we’re out on the town, our go-to pub crawls are definitely Newtown or Redfern. There are so many hidden bars you wouldn’t even know exist. We stayed at an Airbnb near Misfits and the dude we stayed with told us about loads of dive bars in the area.
There are Redfern bars you’ll find at the back of other bars, upstairs from shops, underground and so much more. This is what makes it so much more fun, but the best thing is going out for a night out in Redfern feels like you could almost be in London. The bars are hip and the locals are even hipper. Feel like you’re back in the East End and you’ll be wondering why you haven’t had a night out in Redfern before!
Our Favourite Bars!
Arcadia Liquors is almost a stones throw from Redfern Station. It’s a really cool bar with a little beer garden out the back. Plus it’s decorated full of fairy lights inside! I can’t believe how I’ve walked right near to it so many times before and hadn’t realised there was a bar there!
The Bearded Tit down the road is another well-known fun bar in Redfern you need to tick off your list. And a little further down the road, you’ll come to Atomic Beer Project Brewery. This Redfern brewery is a really cool place serving up beers, Asian food and even has a co-working space too. You could spend all day here and not even realise!
Venture onto Redfern Street from the station (the main street in the suburb) and you’ll come to The Dock. This small dive bar is home to vintage furniture, fab live music and even board games to play with your friends. sit up at the bar and get chatting with the locals! Next door you’ll find the duo The Sunshine Inn with the super cool DD’s cocktail and dining room out the back.
Around the corner on Pitt Street and you’ll come to Hustle And Flow Bar behind The Milk Bar. If you’re into hip hop, this is the place to come to. Two doors down you’ll find Moyas Juniper Lounge, a gin bar. It’s kinda hidden from the street so just look out for the Gin Ad on the front of the building.
We also popped into Noble Hops Bar next door to Rons Upstairs which is a cool small bar in Redfern serving up over 100 unique beers on Redfern Street. Around the corner and you’ll come to Misfits which is again above some shop just around the corner from Redfern Street. It’s a spacious bar, serving up food and good cocktails. We’ve had some fun times in this bar! And continue down Redfern Street and you’ll find the not-hard-to-miss Tudor Hotel and Woolpack around the corner, both long-standing Redfern pubs.
Now we’ve given you so many things to do in Redfern, we hope you love this suburb as much as we do! Spend the day exploring and head over to this fantastic suburb for a night out at some of the best bars and restaurants in Sydney!
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Best Things To Do In Redfern
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