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The 10 Hottest New Restaurants in Sydney

Where to eat in Australia's Harbor City

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Today, Eater returns to Sydney, Australia to focus on the 10 new restaurants and bars heating up the city's dining scene. Just like last time, restaurant expert and Fully Booked founder Sharlee Gibb shares her picks for the drinking and dining destinations that have created serious buzz in the past year.

For some, reinvention is the name of the game. One of Sydney's best-known chefs, Peter Gilmore of Quay, has doubled down on iconic restaurant spaces with the opening of Bennelong, located inside Sydney's world-famous Opera House. At David Chang's outpost down under (Momofuku Seiobo), former Ma Peche chef Paul Carmichael is "bringing a new identity" to the five-and-a-half-year-old favorite. Meanwhile, up-and-comers are branching out to make their marks on the city: First-time chef/owner Clayton Wells is behind the most exciting opening in recent memory (the tasting-menu Automata), while Analiese Gregory offers her take on French-inflected dishes at Bar Brosé.

Editor’s Note: Eater is not updating international maps at this time given disruptions to global travel during the COVID-19 crisis.

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The Paddington

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Bold moves take great character, and Brit chef Ben Greeno (noma, Restaurant Sat Bains) has it in spades. He recently decamped from Momofuku Seiobo to run the newest addition to the Merivale Group (Mr. Wong, est., Bistrode CBD). The Paddington’s not a pub, it’s not a restaurant — but it fits somewhere really nicely in-between. The menu is all about the rotisserie, with chucks of lamb, whole birds, and even carrots all taking their place on the skewers.

Bar Brosé

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Sydney has been waiting for a kitchen with Analiese Gregory (formerly of Quay, Bras, and Restaurant Numero 7) at the helm, and damn, can this lady cook. Gregory has spent the last year or so in the kitchen of Sydney favorite ACME, and these young guns are now her co-owners. On the menu, expect comte gougère, blooming onion, and a late-night sandwich that could be eaten all day long. Don’t miss the epic wine list, curated by Katrina Birchmeier (recently of NYC’s the Four Horsemen).

Michael Wee/courtesy Bar Brose

Smart and refined cooking is at the forefront of all of Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt’s places (which include Monopole and Bentley). Things have taken a turn at Yellow, though, as chef Savage has ditched the meat in favor of a vegetable-focused menu. It’s working like a charm: Dishes like kohlrabi and enoki mushroom, a parsnip pappardelle, or whipped coconut and carrot sorbet show that you won’t even realize you’re missing the meat.

Bennelong Restaurant

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Hooray to the new lease of life given to this iconic Sydney Opera House space by the Fink Group (Quay, Firedoor), headed by A-team Peter Gilmore, Kylie Ball, and John Fink. This is quintessential Sydney dining with the best produce Australia has to offer. While away the afternoon in this historic venue by trying red claw yabbies (crayfish) with lemon jam or line-caught Southern squid with charred pickled cucumber.

Restaurant Hubert

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The slick bar operators from Swillhouse Group (the Baxter Inn, Shady Pines Saloon) have pulled out the big guns to recruit star chef Daniel Pepperell (formerly of 10 William Street and Tetsuya’s) to their new eatery. Pepperell’s famous sardine katsu sando may have been retired in this French bistro, but be ready to be consumed by smart reinventions of classic French recipes like chicken fricassee with shiitake or melon en surprise, the dessert of the year. It’s food that likes wine, and sommelier Andy Tyson’s wine list backs it up big time.

Mercado

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This joint has literally just opened its doors — after months of delays — in its heritage-listed site. Nevermind the wait, though, as chef Nathan Sasi (Nomad) has had more time to fine-tune the menu, which feels like you’re ordering from a market in the depths of Spain. It’s a monster of an operation: The kitchen is making all its own cheese, breads, and charcuterie. You’ll want to go again and again to get through the whole menu with appeal like this: barbecue hot chorizo, truffle mortadella, Ortiz anchovy tart.

Lovers of vibrant Istanbul will be entranced by this glamorous open-air waterside bistro by chef Somer Sivrioglu, of Balmain’s Turkish restaurant Efendy. Modeled on the taverns along the Bosphorus, early picks from the menu include house made simit (the sesame-crusted bread ring sold in carts in Sivrioglu’s homeland) and cured salmon pastirma. Until recently it shared the Avenue with the noma Australia pop-up, and a roll call of equally exciting restaurants will soon open their doors in the precinct.

Momofuku Seiōbo

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Former Ma Peche head honcho Paul Carmichael has moved down under to take the reins at David Chang’s Sydney outpost. Chicken skin coated in jerk sauce and dashi cuttlefish with green mango hint not only at Carmichael’s Caribbean roots, but also his inkling for native Australian ingredients that bring a new identity to the casino favorite. It’s fine dining and comes with a price tag to match, but the best value can be found on the walk-ins bar menu.

Automata

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This is former Momofuku Seiobo and Viajante chef Clayton Wells’s first gig as a chef/owner — and it’s a game changer. His modern food, served on a five-course, frequently changing menu, slides precariously between good and too damn good. You won’t know you needed duck hearts, roasted lettuce, and fermented cabbage until it lands on your plate, and keep wine choices in the hands of sommelier Tim Watkins. Put Automata on your bucket list.

Continental Deli Bar Bistro

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Led by Elvis Abrahanowicz and Sarah Doyle (co-owners of Porteno and Bodega), the team here has delved into the lost art of preserving and are putting everything in tins. Not just the usual canned suspects though like seafood, pears, and peas: With your platter of sliced charcuterie and cheeses, you could also attempt tinned okra, tinned crème caramel with a side of potato chips, or — wait for it — a martini in a tin. Fans of vintage aesthetics are going to flip over the Continental branded tins.

The Paddington

Bold moves take great character, and Brit chef Ben Greeno (noma, Restaurant Sat Bains) has it in spades. He recently decamped from Momofuku Seiobo to run the newest addition to the Merivale Group (Mr. Wong, est., Bistrode CBD). The Paddington’s not a pub, it’s not a restaurant — but it fits somewhere really nicely in-between. The menu is all about the rotisserie, with chucks of lamb, whole birds, and even carrots all taking their place on the skewers.

Bar Brosé

Sydney has been waiting for a kitchen with Analiese Gregory (formerly of Quay, Bras, and Restaurant Numero 7) at the helm, and damn, can this lady cook. Gregory has spent the last year or so in the kitchen of Sydney favorite ACME, and these young guns are now her co-owners. On the menu, expect comte gougère, blooming onion, and a late-night sandwich that could be eaten all day long. Don’t miss the epic wine list, curated by Katrina Birchmeier (recently of NYC’s the Four Horsemen).

Michael Wee/courtesy Bar Brose

Yellow

Smart and refined cooking is at the forefront of all of Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt’s places (which include Monopole and Bentley). Things have taken a turn at Yellow, though, as chef Savage has ditched the meat in favor of a vegetable-focused menu. It’s working like a charm: Dishes like kohlrabi and enoki mushroom, a parsnip pappardelle, or whipped coconut and carrot sorbet show that you won’t even realize you’re missing the meat.

Bennelong Restaurant

Hooray to the new lease of life given to this iconic Sydney Opera House space by the Fink Group (Quay, Firedoor), headed by A-team Peter Gilmore, Kylie Ball, and John Fink. This is quintessential Sydney dining with the best produce Australia has to offer. While away the afternoon in this historic venue by trying red claw yabbies (crayfish) with lemon jam or line-caught Southern squid with charred pickled cucumber.

Restaurant Hubert

The slick bar operators from Swillhouse Group (the Baxter Inn, Shady Pines Saloon) have pulled out the big guns to recruit star chef Daniel Pepperell (formerly of 10 William Street and Tetsuya’s) to their new eatery. Pepperell’s famous sardine katsu sando may have been retired in this French bistro, but be ready to be consumed by smart reinventions of classic French recipes like chicken fricassee with shiitake or melon en surprise, the dessert of the year. It’s food that likes wine, and sommelier Andy Tyson’s wine list backs it up big time.

Mercado

This joint has literally just opened its doors — after months of delays — in its heritage-listed site. Nevermind the wait, though, as chef Nathan Sasi (Nomad) has had more time to fine-tune the menu, which feels like you’re ordering from a market in the depths of Spain. It’s a monster of an operation: The kitchen is making all its own cheese, breads, and charcuterie. You’ll want to go again and again to get through the whole menu with appeal like this: barbecue hot chorizo, truffle mortadella, Ortiz anchovy tart.

Anason

Lovers of vibrant Istanbul will be entranced by this glamorous open-air waterside bistro by chef Somer Sivrioglu, of Balmain’s Turkish restaurant Efendy. Modeled on the taverns along the Bosphorus, early picks from the menu include house made simit (the sesame-crusted bread ring sold in carts in Sivrioglu’s homeland) and cured salmon pastirma. Until recently it shared the Avenue with the noma Australia pop-up, and a roll call of equally exciting restaurants will soon open their doors in the precinct.

Momofuku Seiōbo

Former Ma Peche head honcho Paul Carmichael has moved down under to take the reins at David Chang’s Sydney outpost. Chicken skin coated in jerk sauce and dashi cuttlefish with green mango hint not only at Carmichael’s Caribbean roots, but also his inkling for native Australian ingredients that bring a new identity to the casino favorite. It’s fine dining and comes with a price tag to match, but the best value can be found on the walk-ins bar menu.

Automata

This is former Momofuku Seiobo and Viajante chef Clayton Wells’s first gig as a chef/owner — and it’s a game changer. His modern food, served on a five-course, frequently changing menu, slides precariously between good and too damn good. You won’t know you needed duck hearts, roasted lettuce, and fermented cabbage until it lands on your plate, and keep wine choices in the hands of sommelier Tim Watkins. Put Automata on your bucket list.

Continental Deli Bar Bistro

Led by Elvis Abrahanowicz and Sarah Doyle (co-owners of Porteno and Bodega), the team here has delved into the lost art of preserving and are putting everything in tins. Not just the usual canned suspects though like seafood, pears, and peas: With your platter of sliced charcuterie and cheeses, you could also attempt tinned okra, tinned crème caramel with a side of potato chips, or — wait for it — a martini in a tin. Fans of vintage aesthetics are going to flip over the Continental branded tins.

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