Sydney-Any great places to eat?
 

Anyone have any recommendations for great restaurants in Sydney that's not too formal and expensive? We like all kinds of food and looking for a memorable meal.. Thanks!

Hi, GailLK!

I'm sure you will get lots of great suggestions, so this is just to start the ball rolling... since Sydney is a water city, and the most unique feature of the city is its harbour -- really second to none, in my opinion -- why not make your meal memorable by travelling to the retaurant by ferry? Doyle's Seafood (Russell Crowe used to be a waiter there)at Watson's Bay is right by the ferry wharf; ther's another great-looking seafood restaurant just along from the wharf at Old Cremorne. If you miss the last ferry back to Circular Quay, there are usuallky buses available, or, for a real taste of luxury, you could ask the restaurant to call the water taxi service for you.

The only other suggestion I can make is to decide what cuisine you want to sample on any particular night, and then ask your hotel which suburb you should bus (or train) to to sample the genuine stuff. For Italian, you can't go past Leichhardt; for Portuguese, try Petersham; for Vietnamese, the train to Cabramatta or Bankstown; for African (and just about everything else) Newtown. These are all easy to get to, and the fare there is the real thing, unlike many of the tourist restaurants in the inner-city areas.

Hi GailLK....There is any number of good restaurants in Sydney but if you could give us an idea of how much you are looking at paying I could be more helpful. Alan's suugestion of Doyles at Watsons Bay is a good one. The food is not as good as a lot of other places but the view and the experience is what it is about.You can get there (eventually) by bus but Alan's suggestion would be much more interesting.

And there's also a wealth of choice in Chinatown, which is at the south end of Sydney's central business district (CBD). As for "formal", Australians don't usually feel any need to dress up to eat - smart casual is fine just about anywhere, and dumb casual fine in a lot of places too. Of course, the atmosphere in some places is more conducive to relaxation than in others. Maybe you could define "great", though - that's an adjective usually applied to places where the biggest bite is the toothmarks left on your wallet. Tetsuya's will give you a memorable meal all right but also a memorable bank statement.

Bear in mind that tipping isn't necessary, unless you want to reward exceptionally good service, and even then 10% is plenty. Another money-saver is that many restaurants allow you to bring your own wine for a small "corkage" charge - look for the initials "BYO", or ask when booking.

You can try Longrain,
85 Commonwealth St Surry Hills
9280 2888

Fantastic, unusual Thai food, in a non-foody part of town, near Central Railway.

Then, there's my favourite, Sean's Panaroma, at North Bondi (not cheap!)

Thanks all for your feedback. We travel quite a bit and I really like restaurants that are "interesting" and out of the ordinary. We do like great food but the decor doesn't always have to be great.
Has anyone been to Wildfire (in the ROCKS section) in Sydney or Billy Kwong? Fodor's rates them high (5.0).. Thanks!

Sean's Panorama looks great, but the hours are a little limited. We tried to go when we were in Sydney, but it's only open for lunch on the weekends, and I think it's only open Wednesday through Saturday evenings during the week. (Maybe Sundays too, but I'm not sure.)

SusaninToronto-Thanks for the suggestion, and you're right, this restaurant is not open Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday. And unfortunately we will be in Sydney Sat-Tuesday. I noticed many of the restaurants are closed on Sundays and Mondays, darn!!!

In my opinion, Sunday lunch at Seans Panaroma, N Bondi, regardless of weather, is just a delight. We've been there when there's been fierce storms over the sea - just spectacular! And, of course, on a sunny day - sheer magic! Always memorable.

margo oz-Would Sean's be open during summer season (January)for lunch on Sundays?

We enjoyed a fun,casual meal at a restaurant called Wagamamas at King Street Wharf.The food is asian with a big emphasis on slurpy noodle dishes but with plenty more on offer.The prices were not expensive and we enjoyed sitting outside looking over the water.There is another Wagamamas in Sydney but you want the King Street Wharf one for the water views!

I would not recommend Wagamama
unless you do not mind eating rather mediocre Japanese food. Chain restaurant. If you want Japanese noodles I would recommend Shimbashi Soba at Woolloomooloo as being quite abit better.

When you arrive pick up a great book called Cheap Eats in Sydney--find it in most newsagents. Remember that Sydney is a very multicultural city and this is well reflected in the eating places. Some of my personal favourites:

Perama (Greek) in Petersham - mains around AUD15+

afternoon tea at Vaucluse House tea rooms, Vaucluse and high tea in Victoria Rooms at Queen Victoria Buiding (next to Town hall railway station-very central CBD)

Restaurant Balzac Ranwick

Epoque Brasserie Cammeray (belgian)

Anahita, lane Cove (persian)


masses of restaurants in Newtown (close to the city centre)

Seans is certainly open for lunch on Sundays - my favourite time. I'd recommend a reservation, though. And there is a weekend surcharge :(

What is with those surcharges? I noticed that most restaurants had a surcharge on public holidays. I don't recall seeing that when we visited Australia in 1996 - I was really surprised by that.

Hi GailLK...I haven't been to Wildfire or Billy Kwongs but friends tell me Kwongs is terrific..VERY popular so you would need to book. Food is modern Asian with a "withit" Asian /Australian chef.Wildfire has had a seies of disasters including a fire and in fact I think it is something else now...fabulous position in the city on the water overlooking the Opera House.

Susan, surcharges on Sundays and public holidays have been around for a long time although not universal. Originally this was to compensate the owner for the double-time rates paid to staff. I say "originally" because I doubt that many restaurants these days pay other than their standard hourly rate to most kitchen and waiting staff. In those cases, a surcharge is just simple price-gouging, a win-lose-lose proposition (owner wins, staff and diners lose).

I'm still unclear as to how restaurant prices manage to defy economic theory -the more competition, it seems, the higher prices go. And Australia's overall inflation rate has been low for many years.

cheap eats in sydney has changed its name to good eats in sydney.

about $13....well worth it.

There's also the Sydney Morning Herald's Good Food Guide, a Penguin paperback. Not all the restaurants reviewed are expensive.

Wow, and thanks for all the suggestions. Just wish I had a full week in Sydney to try them all.
Life is too short...