Sydney’s best fine-dining restaurant Oncore by Clare Smyth just became more accessible

One of Sydney’s best fine-dining restaurants remained out of reach to some foodies. But it has just become more accessible.

Clare Smyth at The Bar which has recently opened next to her restaurant Oncore by Clare Smyth. Picture: Richard Dobson

One of Sydney’s best fine-dining restaurants has just become more accessible.

Oncore by Clare Smyth is the Australian offshoot of one of the UK’s most successful chefs, with Smyth receiving three Michelin stars.

Since it opened in 2021, the restaurant at Crown Sydney has received critical acclaim and deemed one of the best this city has to offer. However, with the set lunch and dinner menu starting at a price tag of $350pp, it remained out of reach to some foodies. Until now.

Smyth, who has appeared on MasterChef as a guest, has introduced a bar menu with courses costing $150pp.

Clare Smyth at The Bar which has recently opened next to her restaurant Oncore by Clare Smyth. Clare is launching a new menu, which is a tasting menu of hero dishes but comes in a lot more affordable at $150pp. Picture: Richard Dobson

The Bar tasting menu features smaller versions of classic dishes served at Oncore by Clare Smyth, as well as dishes from Smyth’s newly opened Notting Hill bar Whiskey and Seaweed inside her restaurant Core. There is also a selection of dishes that can be ordered a la carte like the Core fried chicken with caviar.

One of the dishes on the menu is the dessert from the finale of MasterChef 2024, the ‘Core-teser’, which is her take on a Malteser.

Smyth said the decision to launch the menu was so more people could enjoy her restaurant.

Clare Smyth has created a menu at Oncore by Clare Smyth that allows people to try some of her famous dishes, without the price tag. Picture: Supplied

“We had an amazing space here with incredible views and wanted to open it up more … it’s a nice way for people to eat less formally.”

Smyth added in a cost of living crisis, the menu also is less of a commitment from guests.

“It offers the flexibility to have as much or a little as they like … and it allows people to get an idea of what Oncore is like, if you’ve never been.”

Despite the restaurant serving unapologetically fine-dining food, Smyth never wanted that to be intimidating.

“We’ve never want people to feel that its not for them. It’s for everyone to enjoy and we want people to feel at home,” she said.

Smyth herself calls Sydney her second home and is here multiple times a year. When she’s not, she’s speaking with her team everyday.

“I never sit back and think I’m done. We are only as good as our last meal,” she said.