Kitchen Confidential: The best and worst of Sydney’s restaurant and hospitality scene in 2023
From Matilda’s Mania to NIMBY’S trying to shut down Sydney’s live music venues, these are the highs and lows of the year in Sydney’s hospitality scene.
Confidential
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It’s been a huge year for eating, drinking and having a good time, and we’ve loved helping you do it in style. For what it’s worth, here is our call out to the best & worst of the past 12 months.
THE BEST
MATILDA’S MANIA BRINGS THE VIBE TO SYDNEY
Whether you’re a soccer fan or not, let’s all agree that being in a packed pub with people all clearing for the one team is fun. The Matilda’s performance at the Football World Cup was game changing for so many reasons, including giving an injection of excitement across Sydney’s hospitality scene. Merivale boss Justin Hemmes said he hadn’t seen the level of excitement at his venues since the 2000 Olympics, with over 40 000 people turning up to 21 Merivale venues to watch Australia’s quarterfinal match against France.
RETURN OF THE ICONS
The saying everything old is new again is true for Sydney’s hospitality scene. Some of The Daily Telegraph’s biggest stories this year were centred around the return of “iconic” Sydney venues. After closing its doors in 2018, nightclub World Bar and their cocktail tea cups popped up at Kings Cross Hotel for one night only in November, while the late night city boozer Jacksons on George got a makeover from Iceberg’s Maurice Terzini and now, along with the late nights, also comes with a Bistro and epic rooftop bar. CBD restaurant Secolo also got a second life at Balmain’s The Exchange Hotel.
SYDNEY BAR NAMED BEST IN WORLD
The Rock’s cocktail Bar Maybe Sammy was named the most influential bar in the world at a ceremony for the Top 500 Bars in Paris. The bar, which is inspired by the iconic 1950s Rat Pack, beat bars from 122 cities and 53 countries and its previous position of number 22!
BRIGHT, SHINY AND NEW
Doesn’t Sydney get excited for a new opening? This year the industry well and truly recovered from the Covid pandemic (only to plunge into a cost of living crisis) with what feels like a record number of new restaurant openings. Swillhouse brought us Le Foote and The Caterpillar Club, Housemade Hospitality opened Promenade Bondi and Martinez, Etymon welcomed Poetica at North Sydney, Merivale launched Oti, Solotel welcomed Chez Blue, Liquid and Larder opened Alfie’s, we got late night restaurant Derrell’s, Armorica joined the Parlour and Franca stable, Lotus Dining Group opened Pearl, Luke Mangan opened Luc San, Bobby’s opened up in Cronulla, the guys from Maybe Sammy’s took us to Mexico with El Primo Sanchez and the team behind 2022’s Delicious Best Restaurant Pellegrino 2000 brought us Clam Bar … you get the point. We like new things!
CHEFS IN RESIDENCE
Perhaps a sign that Sydney’s food scene is among the best in the world, 2023 was the year many overseas talents showcased their skills here. Gordon Ramsay did a residency at good friend Matt Moran’s Aria, The Bathers Pavilion in Balmoral welcomed three-Michelin starred British chef Simon Rogan and his restaurant L’Enclume for a residency, and the launch of Vivid Food saw collaborative dinners like Fred’s hosting Jackson Boxer.
THE MOUTH’S FAVOURITE
Our undercover food critic The Mouth ate a lot of meals this year and has the dry cleaning bills to show it. But the new fave is Darren Templeman’s Izy. Aki in The Rocks, which embodies so many things we love: Countertop dining, fresh and original Asian-ish cooking, and a local vibe. If you like this, also try Restaurant Ka in Darlinghurst.
THE WORST OF 2023
DRAMA UP NORTH
While the big hospitality groups might dominate headlines, the soul of the hospitality industry is made up of small, family run businesses. Which is why stories of those businesses getting booted to make way for the big guns strike a cord. A husband-and-wife team found themselves at the centre of a lengthy legal battle with The Lodge in Bellingen after a dispute over operating hours and were replaced by celebrity chefs behind The Three Blue Ducks.
MAALI BAR SAGA
Who said Kings Cross had become boring? This year, three venues Maali Bar, Kings Cross Pavilion and Eros made headlines after they suddenly closed down in February amid claims denied by then owner Ussi Moniz Da Silva that money was owed to staff and suppliers. The venues were since taken over by former staff of Da Silva’s, Christina Jaucian and her husband Lance Alaalatoa.
SO LONG, FAREWELL
Sydney said goodbye to some popular restaurants this year. In March, Odd Culture Group shocked everyone by announcing they were walking away from late night haunt The Oxford Tavern in Petersham. The cult chain Burger Head, which started in Penrith in 2022, closed all four of their stores. While on NYE, after ten years of service, Summer Hill’s One Penny Red will serve its last meal.
NIMBYS VS THE GREAT CLUB
Just a few NIMBYS (Not in My Back Yard) forced the owner of The Great Club in Marrickville, Ali Avron, to cancel her Anzac Day event because of their ongoing noise complaints. Avron has spent more than 18 months fighting complaints from neighbours, despite the venue being in operation since 1952. However she’s had the last laugh, with Foo Fighters guitarist Chris Shiflett playing an acoustic gig at the venue recently.
OVERZEALOUS BOUNCERS
Sydney just wants to have fun, until overzealous bouncers get in the way. Lack of security guard training, strict liquor licencing and a hangover from the lockout laws are some of the reasons why bouncers can often feel like a burden at Sydney venues, however Hospitality leaders like Odd Cultures James Thorpe and Clubb 77’s Dane Gorrel are trying to change by fighting for legislation change.
THE MOUTH’S WORST
Whichever political party vows to put a moratorium on French bistros with a seven-figure fit-out will win The Mouth’s vote for life. We love terrines and frites and all that good stuff but as a trend it’s totally paint by numbers. We know we are outliers on this still but predict a backlash in 2024, having found joints like Le Foote cynical ventures that seem more spreadsheet than soul.
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