It’s not all fine dining degustations and fancy restaurants, you know. Often the most memorable bites are hand-held, eaten on the go, with change from a $20 note. The Good Food team scrolled back through their phones to find the most delicious dishes they ate this year in NSW and Victoria. Some sweet, some savoury, all super memorable. Add them to your hit list and regret nothing!

Batata harra from Nour, Sydney ($9.50)

Gee, OK, just one dish, right? In that case, very honourable mentions should go to the righteously soothing namesake noodle bowl ($14.80) at Hurstville’s Shang Lamb Soup; a beef-dripping chip butty ($14) from Rosie’s Fish and Chips in Coledale, consumed just after a swim en route to Wollongong; and, in Liverpool, Hammoud 1’s Syrian-style chickpea falafel sold in takeaway containers of eight for $5. (It’s a top-five contender for the best-value falafel in NSW.)

But nothing stopped a conversation in 2024 quite like Nour’s batata harra ($9.50) in Surry Hills. We’re talking potato poached in oil, salted, pressed and fried, and wearing a little hat of toum and fish sauce-enhanced fermented chilli. With a toasty exterior giving way to featherlight spud, it’s as if chef Ibrahmim Kasif spliced the crunchy bottom of paella with all the comfort of a hash brown. − Callan Boys

Shop 3, 490 Crown Street, Surry Hills, noursydney.com

Spicy beef pancake from Wang’s Crispy Pancake, Melbourne, $9.80

Is it crispy? You bet. But this frisbee-like Shaanxi pancake, a variation of guokui, is no one-dimensional snack. There’s the pull and chew of the dough pockets, the cracker-like crunch around the edges and your ultra-thin filling (there are eight choices, from pork to “yummy lamb”). Extra chilli is non-negotiable. Cooked before my very eyes in four minutes, this is my go-to for portable snacking when it’s not quite dinner time or too late for lunch. And it’s located way too conveniently right beside my tram stop. − Emma Breheny

Shop 1, 339 Swanston Street, Melbourne

Choc chip cookie with soft-serve from Happy Alley, Sydney, $12

Want a cookie? How about a warm, freshly baked one straight from the oven? Break open the salted choc chip cookie at Happy Alley to reveal a hot mess of melted milk and dark chocolate and pudgy half-baked dough within. Forget the milk − creamy relief comes in the form of vanilla soft-serve, which helps to mellow out the sweetness. Happy Alley co-owner and head baker Ali Barakat owned a Mrs. Fields franchise before venturing out with his own bikkie boutique, and it still has lines out the door eight months after opening. Choc chip is king, but there’s also Nutella, Biscoff and red velvet for subsequent visits. Or go a six-pack and hit them all at once. − Erina Starkey

13 Bay Street, Rockdale, instagram.com/happyalley_

Chilli twist from Cobb Lane Bakery, Melbourne, $10.50

Savoury pastries have come a long way since the standard ham and cheese croissant combo, but Cobb Lane’s chilli cheese twists are the (flavour) bomb. Competitors often skew heavy on the flaky pastry, light on juicy bite, but not these bad boys, mischievously winking at me from Cobb Lane’s Fitzroy market stall every weekend. There’s a lot of salty, crispy, jammy goodness going on and I’m all in: buttery croissant pastry weaved with Umami Papi chilli oil, gochujang and honey and topped with gruyere cheese, sesame seeds and spring onions. And underneath, an enticing cheese skirt. Unsurprisingly, this once limited-time-only item has become a menu regular so we can all twist again and again, like we did last summer. − Andrea McGinniss

Various locations including Yarraville, Richmond, South Melbourne Market, Fitzroy Market; cobblane.shop

Matcha cheesecake and red bean muffin from Parami, Sydney, $8

Muffins can be overlooked in favour of flashier bakery products like croissants and cookies. But not at Parami, where they’re presented at the front counter in all of their freshly baked glory − still warm, with a liberal dusting of powdered sugar and smelling stupidly delicious. There are around eight flavours to choose from, but the matcha cheesecake and red bean is my go-to. It’s dark green, tende, and earthy, studded with the subtle creamy sweetness of cheesecake and big enough – but you probably won’t want to. − Bianca Hrovat

Shop 101, 21 Alberta Street, Sydney, instagram.com/parami_alberta

A made-to-order sandwich from Raineri’s Continental Deli, Sydney, $15

I lined up for 65 minutes for this $15 sandwich, and I would do it again. Of course, I’d have to because this family-run deli, operating since 1981, is always busy. There’s no menu; you simply choose from a cabinet of (mainly) Italian-sourced deli produce, such as cut-to-order meats, cheeses and antipasto, and it’s stacked in perfect ratios on a focaccia. “It doesn’t matter what you get – they’re all $15,” I was told when Sandwich Watch visited in August. BYO audiobook, or get there before 10.30am to avoid the queue. − Sarah Norris

97 Great North Road, Five Dock, facebook.com/raineri.delicatessen

Fried cauliflower with caramelised onions, currants and pine nuts from Rumi, Melbourne, $18

The living embodiment of “ugly delicious”, this cauliflower dish has beguiled Rumi’s rusted-on fans since the Middle Eastern restaurant opened in Lygon Street, Brunswick East, in 2006. The restaurant has moved premises twice since then, but this dish hasn’t budged from the menu. The kitchen fries cauliflower florets until they’re deeply tanned, bittersweet and tender-crisp, then smothers them in toasted pine nuts, currants and caramelised onions. You could cover the table with excellent dishes under the $20 mark here, but the cauliflower is a non-negotiable. – Roslyn Grundy

2 Village Avenue, Brunswick East, rumirestaurant.com.au

Choco hazelnut croissant from OCAB Bakery, Melbourne, $8

I am overly confident this pastry from the “Overly Confident Arrogant Bakers” (OCAB) is the best in the north-west. Think pain au chocolat meets almond croissant, but swap in hazelnuts for almonds. Parallel bars of dark chocolate run through the dusky, husky hazelnut frangipane, ensuring choc-hazelnut harmony in every bite. Forget the stegosaurus spine of almond-flake spikes − a drizzle of dark chocolate and toasted hazelnuts are this pastry’s crowning glory. Tip: The twice-baked croissant is best shared between two. − Annabel Smith

28A Shuter Street, Moonee Ponds; also at 32A Ballarat Street, Yarraville; ocab.com.au

Half dozen satay from Mamak, $17.50

This prolific Malaysian chain may be known for its fluffy, buttery roti that you can watch chefs dramatically swing through the air while you queue. But the satay here is just as order-worthy. Juicy flame-grilled skewers of chicken or beef make best friends with a satay sauce that dreams are made of. Its complex, nutty, slightly spicy flavour is intensified by its deep caramelisation. Served with cucumber and red onion, the sticks are the perfect way to kick off a meal at Mamak, and I’m patiently waiting for them to restock their jars of take-home sauce. − Isabel Cant

Various locations in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, mamak.com.au

Grilled chicken white curry mee from Curry Mee, Sydney, $16.90

Love a good laksa but want to dial the heat up or down? This laidback late-night Parramatta Road pit stop sells excellent Malaysian white curry mee at street-food prices. The creamy, soothing coconut broth comes with your choice of noodles and a spoon of home-made chilli (regular or extra spicy) on the side so you can tweak spice levels to taste. Grilled chicken is a classic, or there are wagyu, seafood and veg options, too. All perfect for pairing with an iced tea or coffee. − Megan Johnston

131 Parramatta Road, Homebush, currymee.com.au