Sydney What To Eat
Our selection of Sydney's best places to wine and dine:
Best restaurants
For range, quality and value, Sydney offers some of the best dining in the world. Successive waves of immigrants have introduced many different national styles of cooking, putting to good use the incredible diversity and excellence of Australia's natural produce, particularly seafood.
With hundreds of fine restaurants to choose from, we have had to limit ourselves to a small selection, to suit a range of budgets:
The City/Business district:
Forty One
Chifley Tower, 2 Chifley Square. Tel: 9221 2500. Open L & D Mon-Fri, D Sat, L Sun. $$$$
Located at the top of an office tower in the city's financial district, this is the place to come for luxury dining with breathtaking views of Sydney's harbour and skyline. The chef, Dictmar Sawyere has won many accolades for his innovative style combining French techniques and Oriental influences.
La Toque
91 Riley Street, East Sydney. Tel: 9356 8377. Open: L Thu-Fri, D Mon-Sat. $$
Home of traditional French cuisine, La Toque is kind to the wallet and satisfying to the palate. Lunch is particularly good value.
Darling Harbour and Chinatown:
Kam Fook
Market City, 9-13 Hay Street, Haymarket. Tel: 9211 8988. Open: L daily, D Thur-Sun. $$
Sydney's biggest yum cha venue. Go for Sunday brunch and watch the waiter and trolley spectacle, as some 800 or so folk are served a
traditional Chinese breakfast.
Casa Asturiana
77 Liverpool Street, Chinatown. Tel: 9264 1010. Open: L Tue-Fri & Sun, D daily. $$
One of Sydney's most popular eateries. Choose from a wide range of tapas, or check out the specialities including the amazing Asturian
bean stew (needs 24 hrs' notice), and fine paella.
The Rocks:
Bel Mondo
Level 3, Argyle Department Store, 12-24 Argyle Street. Tel: 9241 3700. Open: L Mon-Fri, D daily. $$$.
Chef Neil Pass prepares exceptional modern Australian food (with Italian roots) in one of Sydney's best dining precincts. Admire the historic colonial decor, redolent of an outback shearing shed.
Sailor's Thai
106 George Street. Tel: 9251 2466. Open: L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. $$$.
Excellent modern Thai in the oldest part of Sydney. Chef David Thompson is the modern guru of Thai cooking, and serves dishes not found in any of Sydney's main Thai eateries.
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Domain and Opera House:
Cadmus
Opera Quays, Level 10, 1-3 Macquarie Street. Tel: 9252 6800. Open: L Mon-Fri, D daily. $$$$.
Perhaps Sydney's most ambitious restaurant: no expense spared on the decor and the prices reflect the luxurious setting. The food is Lebanese/Eastern Mediterranean with a Pacific slant. Great wine list. Stunning views of the harbour through the full-length windows.
Guillaume at Bennelong
Bennelong Point. Tel: 9241 1199. Open: L Thu-Fri, D Mon-Sat. $$$.
Award-winning restaurant where chef Guillaume Brahimi delivers exquisite French fare to match the exquisite surroundings (the restaurant is actually in the Opera House). Service is excellent and prices are reasonable for the quality (apart from the expensive wine list). Offers pre-theatre menu and post-performance supper.
Kings Cross District:
Bayswater Brasserie
32 Bayswater Road, Kings Cross. Tel: 9357 2177. Open: daily 7am-midnight. $.
A long-established eaterie, serving modern Australian cuisine; speciality is oysters. Efficient service. Large venue with huge windows for watching local Kings Cross passsers-by. Adjoining cocktail bar.
Onde
346 Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst. Tel: 9331 8749. Open: D daily. $.
Trattoria-style bistro with a casual atmosphere and some of the best meals around. (Voted as one of the best "Cheap Eats" in Sydney). Popular for its value for money and for its hip Darlinghurst buzz. No reservations.
Inner Suburbs:
Balkan Seafood
215 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst. Tel: 9331 7670. Open: D Tue-Sun. $$
Some of the best and cheapest seafood in town, cooked in the Croatian style. BYO.
MG Garage
490 Crown Street, Surry Hills. Tel: 9383 9383. Open: L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. $$$.
Modern Australian cuisine and a luxury car showroom co-exist in this unusual "concept" restaurant, where you can eat great food while ogling the stylish automobiles.
Price Categories
Indications of prices are for a three-course meal for one, including half a bottle of house wine, coffee and service.
$ = under A$50 , $$ = A$50-75 , $$$ = A$75-115 , $$$$ = over A$115.
Abbreviations:
B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner, BYO = bring your own alcohol
For more listings
See the Sydney Restaurants website.
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Best Bars
Baron's
This long-established after-hours tavern in a side-street of Kings Cross oozes atmosphere. Dark wood-paneling, redolent of a seafaring galleon. 5 Roslyn Street, Kings Cross.
Palisade Hotel
Situated in the quiet back-streets of the Rocks, an imposing tall, thin building towers over its historic surroundings. A retro feel and relaxed atmosphere. 35 Bettington Street, Millers Point.
The Dugout Bar
A lesser-known Sydney gem, cosy and petite. Dimly lit and intimate on weekday nights, gets crowded at weekends. 2 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst.
Hero of Waterloo
Possibly Sydney's oldest pub, with a colonial ambience and a reputation as the true blue Aussie watering-hole. 81 Lower Fort Street, Millers Point.
Royal Hotel
Located in the chic Five Ways area, the Royal has Victorian decor and large upstairs balconies. 237 Glenmore Road, Paddington.
The Cat and Fiddle
A cosy, live music venue in village-like Balmain. A pleasant atmosphere and charm that many newer Sydney hotels seriously lack. 456 Darling Street, Balmain.
Horizons
Not for the budget traveller, on the top floor of the Shangri-La Hotel near Circular Quay. Stunning high-rise views and equally stunning cocktail list. Level 36, 176 Cumberland Street, The Rocks.
Kinselas
This old funeral parlour packs in a mixed straight and gay crowd every night of the week. Amazing interior: massive ceilings soaring overhead, art deco decor and a popular balcony overlooking Taylor Square. 383 Bourke Street, Darlinghurst.
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