Sydney Eat Street: Sydney, South Eveleigh, Parramatta open for long lunch
As part of a government initiative to get people to dine out again, the Sydney’s Open for Lunch event is being held across the city and out west in restaurants, eat-streets, laneways and piazzas.
Eat Street
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Sydney is open for lunch – literally. This Friday, December 3, the streets of Sydney will be alive and kicking for a ripper one-day dining event put on by some of the biggest and best restaurants the Emerald City has to offer.
Streets from the CBD to Parramatta will be full of long table lunches, pop-ups and different – as the PRs call them – activations to celebrate the end of lockdown.
There are four main precincts with ticketed events — George Street-Sydney CBD, South Eveleigh, YCK Laneways, and Parramatta — with several lunches at other dining precincts, including Darling Square and Barangaroo.
“We’re signalling to the world that Sydney is open for business and that our world-renowned lifestyle is returning,” NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet says.
Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Minister Stuart Ayres adds: “This event will benefit the many businesses that were affected by Covid-19, as well as provide locals and visitors with new ways to reconnect and rediscover Sydney’s dining scene.”
Take a tour of Sydney’s best eateries right here with The Sunday Telegraph’s Eat Street. Are you hungry for more inspiration? Follow us on Instagram or Twitter. #SydneyEatStreet
George Street Long Lunch
There’s good news, and there’s bad news. The bummer is that the day’s rock star event, the George Street Long Lunch, is sold out, but the good news is that similar extended events will be running simultaneously in Parramatta, South Eveleigh, and CBD backstreets … and there’s a seat with your name on it.
Still, the main attraction, the expansive table running between Market and Park streets in front of the QVB, will surely be a sight to behold. Seating 600 diners, it is the literal definition of a long table lunch.
Equally impressive is the entertainment line-up with Josh Pyke, George Maple, Brendan Maclean and Liyah Knight, plus the Hot Potato Band.
Those lucky enough to have scored one of the event’s coveted tickets will be treated to a three-course meal with each dish prepared by some of Sydney’s top-tier culinary talents: Palisa Anderson (Chat Thai, Boon Luck Farm) will be taking care of the canapes with such bites as tempura eggplant, mud crab, betel leaf & finger lime tarts; and curry puffs with snapper and wild ginger. Michael Nicolian (Porteño Group) has put together a continental charcuterie plate featuring LP meats; it’s similar to the one he serves at Continental Deli. Mike McEnearney (Kitchen by Mike) has three main options: roasted chicken with green beans & hazelnuts; baked pumpkin with pomegranate molasses; or zucchini & eggplant moussaka.
Then, to round it out, a refreshing seasonal dessert by Luke Mangan OAM (Glass Brasserie, Hilton Sydney): summer berries, soft meringue, lemon & custard. Accompanying the meal is an all-Australian line-up of refreshments, from Gin and Fever-Tree tonics, Heaps Normal, Philter Brewing XPA, to NSW wines and soft drinks.
With that epic line-up, the benchmark for culinary experiences just went up a few rungs.
Sydney’s Open for Lunch at Parramatta Square
Parramatta’s Long Lunch ambassador Julian Cincotta is excited. Really excited.
As co-owner of Butter, a supercool eatery that’s garnered a cult following for its fried chicken, ramen, premium drinks, hip hop beats …. and sneakers, he’s on the frontline in the push to get the buzz back into Parramatta’s foodie scene.
“It’s great to finally be back open to have customers dine in with us – that’s the way Butter was meant to be experienced, and what better way to have the full Butter experience, than sippin’ on some bottomless Veuve, while munching down on Sydney’s best fried chicken,” Julian says.
“A match truly made in heaven.”
And there’s no better way to get things going than with a long lunch at a long table that will run through Parramatta Square, the newly opened development that has revitalised the city centre.
Guests will be served a three-course meal featuring a menu from one of three of the precinct’s latest dining destinations: CicciaBella, Lilymu, or Ruse Bar & Grill.
The event commences at 12pm for a 12.30pm start, and you need to choose your preferred menu in advance, but if you want to sit with your group, you’ll all need to agree on one restaurant’s offering.
That’s where the challenging part comes in, as the three options are quite varied and equally impressive.
First, there’s CicciaBella which channels the trattorias of Italy, serving classic Italian fare along with an expansive list of bold and easy-drinking wines.
Next, Ruse Bar & Brasserie features a Modern Australian menu that celebrates NSW producers while embracing a depth of flavour via the open charcoal grills. For a third choice, Lilymu has dishes and drinks inspired by traditional Chinese and Southeast Asian cuisine but with modern interpretations.
Lilymu’s executive chef Brendan Fong says: “We believe that a fine restaurant is as much about the ambience, good conversation and laughter, as it is the quality of the wine and food. We are delighted to bring the Lilymu experience out into the square and have guests enjoy our offering.”
Each ticket includes a cocktail, reflective of your chosen restaurant, on arrival and a glass of wine with the meal. Lunch-wise, CicciaBella starts with Sicilian pizza, followed by lamb stuffed with olives and a slice of cherry and vanilla crostata for dessert.
Ruse Bar & Brasserie starts with fried southern calamari, followed by sirloin with mushrooms and wild spinach, finishing off with a white chocolate tart topped with raspberries for dessert.
Lilymu’s meal starts with a kingfish and coconut ceviche, followed by lamb massaman, then for dessert, jackfruit, and mango pudding, with pandan, mochi, and evaporated milk.
Entertainment will also be provided by indie-soul band leader Winston Surfshirt (DJ set), genre-defining R'n'B star Milan Ring, and spoken word lyricist Nardean.
Tickets are $50pp and can be booked at eventopia.co/event/Long-Table-Lunch-at-Parramatta-Square
— Darcy St &, Macquarie St, Parramatta; psq.com.au
YCK Laneways (York, Clarence, Kent streets in the Sydney CBD)
George St may get all the crowds and attention, but if you’re after bars and restaurants that genuinely capture Sydney’s spirit, you’ll find those off the main drag along the city’s laneways, or more precisely YCK Laneways, the area around York, Clarence, and Kent streets.
Since I Left You owner and YCK Laneways representative Nick White says: “As Sydney emerges from lockdown, we couldn’t be happier to support a revitalisation initiative that enables us to work together as a collective and entice Sydneysiders back into the CBD.
“We know everyone loves knocking off early for a leisurely long lunch, that’s why YCK Laneways is putting alfresco dining on the menu so you can kick back and enjoy the awesome line-up of events at your favourite small bars.”
YCK Laneways ambassador Mikey Enright adds: “YCK Laneways was developed in early 2021 by a group of small independent bar owners to create awareness of this area.”
All up, there are now 16 venues that are part of the YCK consortium, and since there’s not quite enough space to hold one long table, there will instead be several events throughout the precinct.
“Sydneysiders love a long lunch, especially on a Friday, so I’m hoping it will get people back into the city,” Enright says.
The varied mix of bars is reflected in the equally varied lunch menus. Internationally acclaimed gin bar, The Barber Shop, will hold a garden lunch, starting with a Gin & Tonic on arrival, then a three-course meal paired with gins from the newly launched distillery, Hickson Road Gin.
The Prince of York will take over Barrack St with a progress dining experience featuring 10 Japanese-inspired, modern Australian dishes.
In the courtyard behind Since I Left You will be a collaboration dubbed A Taste of Kent Street Long Lunch featuring, obviously, three very diverse Kent St restaurants – Kuro, The Sambal, and Medusa Greek Taverna is as well as the signature drinks by Since I Left You.
At Esteban, Latin American cooking techniques will be showcased in a three course-Mexican-inspired meal with three matching Patron cocktails during their Tequila on Temperance Long Lunch.
The Duke of Clarence will be hosting a Christmas lunch complete with traditional turkey and all the trimmings. And so much more.
South Eveleigh Alfresco Disco
On the site of Australia’s first railway workshops, South Eveleigh is Sydney’s latest dining and lifestyle precinct.
Launched in April this year, shortly before lockdown, it boasts multicultural eateries including Eat Fuh, the fan favourite pho, which started at Kings Cross Markets; Fishbowl, the Bondi-based DIY poke-bowl chain, and Bekya, a middle-eastern venue featuring Egyptian street food.
Anchoring the precinct are South Eveleigh ambassador Kylie Kwong’s latest restaurant, Lucky Kwong and Matt Whiley’s zero-waste bar, Re, which on December 3, will transform into the epicentre of this vibrant new destination’s Open For Lunch event: South Eveleigh Alfresco Disco.
After months indoors, guests will relish the outdoor dining set-up almost as much as the food and drinks.
Tickets are $30 and include one of Kwong’s signature Hokkien noodle dishes (seafood, meat, vegetarian or vegan options) and a drink from Re (choice of Artificer or Market & Growers cocktail, red or white wine, or Yulli’s Sea Bass beer).
Live DJs including The Original Roman, Boogie Fingers, Levins, Joyride, Ayabatonye, Deepa and Tyson Koh will be providing the tunes from 12pm-10pm for all the disco action on the mirror ball-adorned dance floor, and guests can purchase additional drinks from Re’s adjacent pop-up bar.
Two sittings: 12pm-3pm, 6pm-10pm, Tickets: $30; book via eventopia.co/event/South-Eveleigh-Alfresco-Disco
— Innovation Plaza, Locomotive St, South Eveleigh; southeveleigh.com
ADDITIONAL DINING PRECINCTS
The best-laid plans, well, don’t always go to plan, so if you can’t make one of the ticketed events, head to some of Sydney’s other favourite dining precincts, where most celebrations will continue through December 10.
Along the water’s edge, The Streets of Barangaroo is emerging from lockdown with Bloom, a pop-up art garden featuring 500 colourful art installations spread out throughout the precinct, weaving past eateries such as Untied, a rooftop bar offering a three-course vegan brunch ($60pp, 11am and 2pm sittings) with bottomless Frosé for an additional $39pp, and Devon Cafe’s feast of signature dishes ($69pp) with 90-minutes bottomless sparkling wine for an additional $20pp.
Follow the esplanade through Darling Harbour to Square, which will be transformed into an alfresco cabaret for the weekend (December 3-5) with wandering minstrels, vaudeville performances, and delightful singers strolling amidst the 20 plus shops and eateries, including XOPP by Golden Century which will offer an “Open For Lunch” $59 lunch banquet featuring the signature XO Pipis, a selection of dim sum, along with bottomless Domaine Barons de Rothschild Golden Century sauvignon blanc, and on Saturday modern Vietnamese restaurant Hello Auntie will offer lunch with bottomless spritz accompanied by a range of brand new dishes including Ca Hoi Tai (cured salmon with creme fraiche, tamarind gel and Jerusalem artichoke) and their popular rice-paper roll kit ($70pp, 2-10 people).
— thestreetsofbarangaroo.com; sq.com
YCK Laneways Open For Lunch – individual events
A Taste of Kent Street Long Lunch @ Since I Left You
There won’t be any “Peaches and Herb” but, as they sang Reunited and it feels so good, the same could be said for a long lunch at Since I Left You in Kent Street, Sydney.
The three-course lunch is a collaboration between Since I Left You and three Kent Street eateries, explicitly chosen to represent the precinct’s diverse cultural offerings.
Each restaurant will prepare one course: Japanese-fusion restaurant, Kuro Bar & Dining will provide the entree – ceviche with compressed cucumbers, pink pepper and black lavosh; Indonesian restaurant The Sambal, will provide the main, beef rendang with rice, sambal and pickled vegetables; and Meduse Greek Taverna has dessert covered with baklava, syrup and honey yoghurt; and precinct’s diverse culinary offering as well as the signature drinks by Since I Left You. (12pm start, $75pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets)
— 388 Kent St, Sydney; sinceileftyou.com.au
Tequila on Temperance Long Lunch
Did you know that Tequila is a town in Mexico ideal for growing the blue agave plant, the primary ingredient in its namesake’s spirit, tequila?
About 300 million plants are harvested each year … a fact you can share with the Patron ambassador at the Tequila on Temperance Long Lunch next Friday. Using traditional Latin American cooking techniques, Esteban will serve up the foodie flavours of Mexico in its three-course Mexican-inspired meal and three matching Patron cocktails.
The first course is Tasmanian salmon ceviche, Morita salsa, toasted miso, sesame, and yuzu soy; the second course is two Ironbark grilled achiote lamb shoulder, salsa Roja; corn and spinach salad, lime, cilantro, and Spanish onion; smoked Kipfler potatoes, jalapeño crema, and for dessert, a dark chocolate fondant, mandarin & blood orange sorbet, chocolate mousse. There are four seating times: 12pm, 12.30pm, 3pm and 3.30pm; $120pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets.
— Esteban, 1 Temperance Lane, Sydney; estebanrestaurant.com.au
Hickson Rd Gin Garden Long Lunch
After months of sitting at home waiting for NSW to crest 80 per cent and now 90 per cent vaccination, a long lunch is just the tonic. Now that we are free march down to the
The Barber Shop on York St, for the Hickson Rd Gin Garden Long Lunch.
The three-course lunch starts with a G&T on arrival, a sure bet considering that this award-winning bar boasts 700 gins from around the world, but on the day, the juniper-based spirit of choice is Hickson Rd Gin, Sydney’s latest distillery, based nearby in The Rocks.
There’ll be three different release, each one paired perfectly to the menu’s three courses: The entree is Hickson Rd Gin-cured kingfish (pickled ginger, flying fish roe, macadamia nuts and baby herbs), followed by a main of slow roast lamb porchetta with juniper jus and mint gremolata along with sides of broccolini and roasted potatoes; finish it off with a chocolate brownie.
Two sittings: 12pm, 3pm; $125pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets.
— The Barber Shop, 89 York St, Sydney; thisisthebarbershop.com
Prince of York Tokyo’s Long Lunch at Barrack St
A highlight of the laneway’s line-up will be the progressive dining lunch hosted by The Prince of York, or, more precisely, The Prince of Tokyo, with chef Norika Ikuta taking over the kitchen through the end of the year.
For the event, Ikuta has curated a menu of 10 Japanese-inspired Modern Australian dishes (share between four people), which will be served in intervals to the 125 guests along with the long table on Barrack St.
Start off with a cocktail on arrival, then head to your seat for plates and plates … and plates of dishes including salmon & coral trout sashimi; BBQ eggplant miso-glazed, mushroom, walnuts, freekeh; miso-marinated cod; wagyu sirloin Downs, mb+ 7 with wasabi sauce; and salted miso caramel chocolate tart.
The long lunch also comes with four beers, glasses of wine or soft drinks, and live entertainment throughout the day.
Two sittings: 12pm, 3pm; $120pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets.
— 11 Barrack St, Sydney; princeofyork.com.au
Christmas Long Lunch
A veritable ode to 18th-century London, The Duke of Clarence serves up cocktails, cask ale and a menu that ranges from Sunday Roasts to Thai green prawn curry.
On December 3, they’ll be serving a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimming, including
Prawn cocktails and Christmas punch.
Two sittings: 12pm, 3pm; $125pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets.
— 152-156 Clarence St, Sydney; thedukeofclarence.com
Good Morning Barrack Street Long Lunch
Taking over Cash Only Diner, Burrow Bar will be serving an array of Vietnamese bites, including spring rolls, tamarind chicken wings, pepper beef grilled skewers, turmeric savoury pancake, mochi pandan waffles, a choice of cocktail, wine or beer pairings, and modern disco tunes from DJ Duke Dulwich.
Two sittings: 12pm, 3pm; $120pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets.
— 1 Barrack St, Sydney; burrowbar.com.au
PS40 REFRESCO
Three-course lunch including Vietnamese prawn Po’ boys; Asian pickles & herbs, with grilled pork & marinated flank; with nuoc mam Africola Tiramisu.
Two sittings: 12pm, 3pm; $65pp; ycklaneways.com.au for tickets.
— 40 King St, Sydney; ps40bar.com
Winter warmers to celebrate the season
Everyone is happy to see the sun peeking through the clouds, but winter’s not all bad. Bid farewell to the colder days with one last hurrah of warming fare.
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