El Primo Sanchez is a vibrant Mexican cocktail bar set within the heritage-listed Bussell Bros Building in Surry Hills, named for a fictional long-lost cousin with a tendency to lead his friends astray. The venue blends industrial character – exposed timber ceilings, steel details and original warehouse features – with the colour and energy of 1950s Mexico, brought to life through bold palettes, vintage memorabilia and lighting that shifts from soft and ambient early on to something deeper and more energetic as the night unfolds.

A spacious island bar anchors the room, disco balls suspended above, with a secondary bar serving the venue’s dedicated dancefloor beneath four colour-changing moon fixtures. Real agave plants line the windows, and four lamps left behind by Four Pillars Gin, the building’s previous occupants, have been kept as a nod to its history. A movable partition wall allows part of the space to be closed off for private events without disrupting regular service. Guests can also discover a private karaoke room hidden within the building’s original heritage safe, transformed with infinity mirror walls into something else entirely – and for those after a livelier diversion, Toques, a Mexican party game involving a small electric shock device, is on hand for guests happy to test their endurance against each other.

Drinks focus on tequila and mezcal, with sotol, raicilla and pulque also playing a role, backed by a substantial collection of agave spirits including rare and hard-to-find bottlings. Regulars can join the Agave Locker, storing a personal bottle between visits, or work through the Tequila Passport, tasting new agave spirits over time with guidance from the team and rewards along the way. The wine list is developed with a sommelier to complement the food, and guests marking a special occasion are often sent off with a house-made digestif, prepared with whatever’s in season. The wider drinks list favours locally sourced, seasonal ingredients wherever Mexican produce isn’t essential to the concept, with techniques such as oleo saccharum, fat-washing and vacuum infusion used to draw out flavour, and offcuts and surplus regularly repurposed into syrups, cordials and garnishes.

Early evenings lean casual, before the mood shifts into something livelier. DJs take over on weekends, playing a mix of reggaetón and Latin hits, while quieter nights bring out a broader mix of Latin classics and Spanish favourites.

Behind the scenes, the team is famously tight-knit and reflects the diversity of the city it calls home, with leadership roles held by staff who have themselves moved to Australia from elsewhere. Many on the floor and behind the bar have done the same, often alone, and the bar makes a point of building genuine community among them – through staff outings and shared holidays, a pre-service ritual that builds into a collective cheer before every shift, and an internal knowledge platform, built by current and former team members, that keeps recipes, techniques and back bar information easily accessible to everyone. The business also prioritises promotion from within, with several members of the opening team having grown into leadership roles over time.