VITTORIA COFFEE RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR
A restaurant setting benchmarks for food and service, pushing the hospitality industry forward and supporting Australian produce.

Margaret, Double Bay

When Neil Perry opened the original Rockpool in 1989, it redefined what an Australian restaurant could be: cross-cultural culinary influences, first-class service, world-class wine.

His latest, Margaret (named in honour of his mother), opened in 2021 with an uncompromising focus on wild-caught seafood, and has since redefined the modern fish restaurant. Coral trout, snapper, flathead and tuna come from the best in the business – name-checked simply as “Chris’s” or “Pav and Heidi’s” – and with head chef Richard Purdue in the kitchen, there’s no artifice to the cooking. A slick of hojiblanca olive oil and lemon on “Bruce’s” King George whiting; the tickle of desert lime salsa on Wagonga rock oysters; the buttery fire of ’nduja over whole Corner Inlet calamari.

Richard Healy’s wine list shines with similar confidence – a seamless offering of the svelte, aromatic and powerful.

Margaret also redefines what it means to be a family restaurant. It’s busy, big and glamorous, yes, but with Perry’s wife Samantha and daughters Josephine, Indy and Macy all involved, there’s warmth and charm as well.

And the family is growing, with casual wine bar Next Door (located, eh, next door) and neighbouring sourdough specialist Baker Bleu. Team Perry will next bring Asian-inspired Song Bird to Double Bay plus cocktail bar Bobbie’s, both set for 2024.

But it’s Margaret at the heart of it all, where Perry is quietly shaping Sydney dining yet again.

OCEANIA CRUISES CHEF OF THE YEAR
A chef at the forefront of dining, setting new standards and doing something original.

Josh Niland

Saint Peter, Charcoal Fish, Petermen, Fish Butchery

When Josh Niland was a child, battered hoki and chips on a Sunday night was about as grand as a fish dinner got. That changed as he started cooking, working with legendary chefs including Peter Doyle and Steve Hodges.

It changed again when he opened Saint Peter in Paddington in 2016, dry-ageing tuna as if it were wagyu, curing swordfish into bacon and deep-frying mulloway scales to scatter over salt-baked pumpkin. With wife Julie, Niland opened Fish Butchery in 2018 and Charcoal Fish in 2021.

The pattern was set: to treat fish as if it were meat, to develop and refine techniques that could make use of every part (including the eyes), and to bring the whole fish to the people. Everything his kitchens do is designed to add value to the fish itself, whether it be cod fat caramel, kingfish croquettes or flathead mortadella.

In February, Niland launched Petermen bistro in St Leonards, where abalone schnitzel is fashioned into sandwiches and tuna is served as a hulking chateaubriand.

More recently, he launched a third book and announced his first overseas restaurant in Singapore promising fish cut to order, including crown roast and rib on the bone.

Creative disruption is rarely this delicious.

AURUM POULTRY CO. NEW RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR
The most exciting opening of the past 12 months that represents everything fresh and thrilling about dining across NSW and the ACT right now.

Such and Such, Canberra

Partners Dash Rumble and Ross McQuinn opened this smart-casual CBD bistro with chef Malcolm Hanslow in February, and it pops with terrazzo tiles, local ceramics and art by young Australian artists. Like the trio’s degustation-only Pilot in Ainslie, Such and Such is an infectiously cheerful place.

Alongside head chef Nick Petersen, Hanslow has created a comfort-first menu that doesn’t skimp on creativity or flavour, whether you’re a nearby office worker keen on a quick bowl of rigatoni, or up for a longer innings featuring perfectly roasted duck enhanced by fish sauce caramel.

Meanwhile, restaurant manager Caitlin Baker recommends emerging producers from a versatile drinks list in which equal love is given to wine, beer, cocktails, sake and spirits.

A new generation of talent transforming Canberra into one of the most exciting Australian cities in which to eat.

REGIONAL RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR
The best beyond metro limits, a celebration of its surrounds with a strong connection to the local community.

Bistro Livi, Murwillumbah

Don’t miss the goat. Livi waits a year for the goats it sources from Rosebank (nearby in the Byron Bay hinterland) to grow big enough for a slow braise in mandarin juice with star anise, and the result is what the bistro is all about – simple, generous food that’s a lesson in harmony and balance.

In partnership with former MoVida head chef Ewen Crawford, sisters Nikky and Danni Wilson launched their humble Spanish-influenced restaurant with views to Murwillumbah’s main drag and bottle shop (not a fancy one) last year. Time your run right, and there might be fresh-picked spanner crab just in from Pottsville that morning, or tender ox tongue resting on green goddess sauce.

A beautiful little package with graceful service, thoughtful wine, and a goat that really is the greatest of all time.

NEW REGIONAL RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR
A restaurant working with local farms and suppliers to offer something
new and exciting for the region and its visitors.

Bar Heather, Byron Bay

For all the world-class produce grown and caught in the Northern Rivers, there has never been a great restaurant in the middle of Byron Bay to show it off. Now there is.

Bar Heather opened in late 2022 under the stewardship of wine importers James Audas and Tom Sheer with chef Ollie Wong-Hee. It’s a dark and timber-heavy room that could almost pass as a New York-style steakhouse, but a young floor team keeps things bright and fun – as does Tweed Coast tuna with curls of nutty celtuce, shiso and mandarin kosho.

Wong-Hee says he keeps off social media because he doesn’t want to be influenced by what his peers are cooking. This means the standards of other wine bars – kingfish crudo, tiramisu, focaccia – are mostly absent. Instead, expect spring onion-laced bread that’s part flaky Chinese pancake and part crispy Jewish malawach.

Meanwhile, the cellar is deep, and the martinis ice-cold. A stirring combination of cleverness and comfort.

VITTORIA COFFEE LEGEND AWARD
For an outstanding long-term contribution to the hospitality industry.

Kylie Kwong

Lucky Kwong, South Eveleigh

Restaurateur. Force for good. Third-generation Australian and 29th-generation Kwong. For more than three decades, Kylie Kwong has nourished Sydneysiders with her vision for what Australian-Chinese cooking could be.

Sichuan-spiced minced pork with Uncle Jimmy’s noodles at Wockpool; saltbush pancakes at Billy Kwong; the caramelised beef brisket with warrigal greens and native mint she serves at South Eveleigh’s Lucky Kwong today.

A long-time supporter of organic produce, regenerative farming, fair trade, and First Nations food and culture, Kwong’s influence reaches beyond the professional kitchen to affect local and global communities at all levels.

If she’s not dressing steamed crab dumplings at Lucky, she might be tending to a rooftop garden, collaborating with local artists, giving her time to charities, or cooking for friends and family. A woman who wears her convictions as a badge of pride. A true legend.

SMEG YOUNG CHEF OF THE YEAR
Founded in memory of chef Josephine Pignolet, and judged by a panel of industry professionals, this award is for a committed and skilled young kitchen talent under 30.

Shashank Achuta

Brasserie 1930, Sydney

Indian-born chef Shashank Achuta is vocal about his ambition to become the face of southern Indian food in Australia. The former engineering student has demonstrated incredible skill and tenacity, pushing back against prevailing industry stereotypes to forge a formidable culinary career in some of Sydney’s best kitchens.

However, his COVID-era food delivery business, Sydney Tiffin Room, remains his greatest source of pride. It showcased the vivid flavours of regional Indian cuisines through an ever-changing three-course menu, and helped Achuta pay the rent when he was ineligible for government support through lockdowns. (He became an Australian citizen last year.)

Achuta is proud of his heritage, food and culture and “wants to show the world that someone of Indian origin can make it big in this industry”.

OCEANIA CRUISES SERVICE EXCELLENCE AWARD
Executes the highest standard of service relevant to their establishment, from attitude and skill to knowledge and personality.

Alice Dwyer

Pipit, Pottsville

A distinct trend is emerging in our top restaurants that can only be described as an Australian way of doing things. It’s a style of service that is skilful but relaxed, warm without being fussy. Above all, it reflects the culture and philosophy of that restaurant.

At Pipit in Pottsville, just north of Byron Bay, front-of-house manager Alice Dwyer is the human face of that change. With formative training at Sydney’s Rockpool Bar & Grill and Est., she sees her role as synergistic, caring for guests and staff alike. It’s a tight team, so chefs are skilled at table service and waitstaff will jump into the kitchen when needed, their common goal being to provide excellent hospitality.

“Because our menu is so focused on giving people the full Northern Rivers experience, the service has to reflect that as well,” she says. “We need to embrace the things that make us different.”

BAR OF THE YEAR
The best all-round bar that nails service, drinks, vibe and decor.

PS40, Sydney

If PS40’s only contributions to Sydney’s bar scene were the banana bread-flavoured breakfast negroni and dual-textured Africola cocktail, that would be enough to cement its all-timer status.

But for the past three years, Michael Chiem’s CBD boozer has also provided a platform for young chefs to flex their talent through its Takeover Tuesday sessions – terrific value at $65 for a drink and a snacky menu of modern Korean, Japanese, Mexican, Italian, Chinese, Australian, Sri Lankan, Filipino or French food you likely won’t find anywhere else.

OCEANIA CRUISES DRINKS LIST OF THE YEAR
Drinks that complement the restaurant’s food and style, including a range of prices and non-alcoholic options.

Yellow Billy

Pokolbin, Hunter Region

There’s more to a great wine list than a flashy cellar. The real magic happens when there’s personality, consideration and imagination – and sommelier Pat Hester nails the brief.

There’s a thoughtful focus on interesting NSW wines alongside thrilling local and international producers, many emerging and boundary-pushing. Beer, spirit and cocktail fans are looked after, too. A difficult menu to fault.

SOMMELIER OF THE YEAR
A wine professional who has deep knowledge of the subject, while helping to influence and inspire.

Max Gurtler

Oncore by Clare Smyth, Sydney

Friendly, poised and hugely knowledgeable, Max Gurtler wields Oncore’s far-reaching wine list with aplomb. The Berlin-born sommelier developed an interest in wine while working at Rockpool Bar & Grill, moved to the greatly missed Momofuku Seiobo in 2017, and now recommends everything from four-figure First Growths to English sparkling for Clare Smyth’s highly finessed food.

A superb communicator and team leader, Gurtler is consistently tuned into guests’ personal tastes, rather than pushing an agenda and favourites of his own.

CAFE OF THE YEAR
Good coffee? That’s a given. The best cafe also takes pride in its food, decor and service.

Happyfield

Haberfield

Chris Theodosi and Jesse Orleans opened their egg yolk-yellow cafe in late 2020, specialising in North American diner classics including pancakes, hash browns and sausage-filled muffins.

A broad church of customers wait patiently for a table every weekend – dads in trucker caps; influencers in all-day sweatpants; couples just keen for a reasonably priced, reliable brunch – and specials such as poutine with real-deal curds and fresh truffle.

Most importantly, however, the staff are always warm and engaged. Happyfield knows how to make everybody feel like somebody.

INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR
A big thinker with bright ideas that better the community.

Shaun Christie-David

Plate it Forward

Shaun Christie-David wants to help people feed themselves and others, which is why he created Plate it Forward. The social enterprise, founded in 2020, has grown to be a hospitality group with seven purpose-led venues, including Colombo Social in Enmore, which gives training and practical experience to asylum seekers, and two Anything But Humble bakeries redefining the Aussie pie through migrant eyes.

At the latest, Chippendale’s Kyiv Social, Ukrainian food is served by people making a new life. Using food as a force for change, says Christie-David, brings everyone to the table.

CRITICS’ PICK AWARD
A new award to recognise an exceptional restaurant among the Good Food Guide Critics’ Picks that lifts our food scene.

Malay Chinese Noodle Bar

Circular Quay and Ashfield

Malay Chinese Takeaway (or “Noodle Bar” as its slick new Circular Quay shop is known) is the great equaliser of Sydney hospitality. Whether you’re a student or a chairman of a board, you can appreciate the breathtaking deliciousness of its briny, brick-red har mee soup.

Since 1987, in multiple locations, members of the Woon family have woken before 4am to start working on their much-revered prawn broths, creamy laksas and nourishing bowls of hor fun noodles. Train lines and office blocks come and go, but the warm service at Malay Chinese is forever.

The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2024 is on sale for $14.95 from newsagents, supermarkets and at thestore.com.au. It features more than 450 NSW and ACT venues, from three-hatted fine-diners, to suburban wine bars, regional chicken shops and food-court icons. Venues listed in the Guide are visited anonymously by professional restaurant critics, who review independently. Venues are chosen at our discretion.