The hardest decision when you visit this Bondi Beach landmark restaurant is not what to order. It’s where to sit. 

Do you face the ocean – wide sheets of green-blue water, packs of wet-suited wave warriors waiting for the next big break, ocean pool swimmers lapping below? Facing inwards on the other hand gives you jacketed bar staff shaking smart-looking cocktails, ever-smiling servers gliding past with plates of pasta and best of all, the fascinating collection of Icebergs diners and drinkers, young and old, glamorous or trendy-grungy, eastern suburbs smart casual or wet-hair straight from the beach.

People-watching or wave-watching? It’s a tough choice.

Icebergs Dining Room and Bar (IDRB) was born in 2002. There’s now even a fabulous book that tells the (many) tales of its first two decades: the chefs, the staff, the celebrity guests, the legendary parties. 

Fresh from a refurb, restaurateur Maurice Terzini’s re-launch reveals a place that’s… well, same same but different. New things include magical little ceiling lights, deep turquoise terracotta tables, a lobster bar, new loos. Added also is an indoor-outdoor terrace, for events, bigger groups or maybe sitting solo, to drink in your surrounds alongside a Terzini martini – with a touch of sherry and lemon. 

Related story: 5 recipes that have made Icebergs the seaside icon it is today

The menu is familiar too, with a few twists. Divided into first (antipasti) and main (secondi) courses, a choice of two or three dishes ($110/$130) offers lots of Icebergs classics – tiny fried school prawns (great gamberetti), pasta with (mostly) seafood, immaculately grilled fish of the day and the signature salt-crusted 500g boneless rib-eye ($130 extra).

As for the twists, a special mention to grilled cuttlefish with a marjoram agro-dolce dressing, koshihikari (Japanese rice) risotto with XO and raw prawns, San Daniele prosciutto with the sweetest rockmelon, sparked with wasabi. Oh and a lush but cleverly bitter quail and guineafowl ragu over conchiglie pasta.

With a strong focus on Italian-style service, expect plenty of tableside flourishes – a nicely seasoned steak tartare mixed tableside through to an excellently bitter-sweet crème caramel, ‘bruléed’ before you. 

Advice: if you’re into sharing, collaborate with your companions to order enough serves of group favourites to pass around. The per-person dish selection can be a tad confusing. And there’s a higher priced “supplemento” menu to consider, too, including Great Barrier Reef coral trout +$32, that rib-eye and oh, caviar too. +$90. Why not?

Before we wind up though, remember the B for Bar. After all, it’s as much an IDRB experience as the D for Dining. And a fine thing to do is D in the B. Take a balcony or indoor seat, order a sbagliato cocktail, say, with Campari, vermouth and prosecco, or that Terzini martini, and snack on briny-fresh oysters, a fat, mayo-y king prawn roll, a burger or tuna crudo on potato focaccia. A Messina hazelnut and chocolate ‘bacio’ mousse with nougat gelato makes a final treat. 

Best of all, the bar gives you the pool and ocean views but also, maximum people action. Win-win.

Wherever you sit though, Icebergs is as fresh and ultra-cool as ever. Let’s raise a glass – maybe a classic No 8 (vodka, Campari, ruby grapefruit) – to the next 20 years.

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