Food lover’s guide to Parramatta Square

From burger joints to swanky bars and the best gelato this side of Italy, these are the eight must-try eateries within Parramatta Square, which is undergoing a $3.2 billion redevelopment.

Jorge Farah and Ibby Moubadder opened LilyMu at Parramatta Square.

From burger joints to swanky bars and the best gelato this side of Italy, the food domain in the $3.2 billion Parramatta Square redevelopment appeals to all palates.

Here’s where to enjoy a chow down in Sydney’s second CBD and foodie’s paradise.

Ruse Bar & Brasserie

The bar opens today and the brasserie gets sizzling next Wednesday when you can expect smoking flavours and the expert touch from head chef Jay Rao, who was the sous chef at hatted Newport restaurant Bert’s Bar and Brasserie.

Rao, of North Rocks, says diners can expect simple but rich flavours with nothing but handmade cuisine, including breads and pastas, and charcoal-kissed meat and fish sourced from NSW seas and farms and into the 360-degree charcoal oven.

“It’s all about charcoal, that’s what we based the whole restaurant around,’’ Rao said.

“Everything in some way touches the charcoal. It’s really understanding the whole science behind wood and charcoal.’’

A selection of the fish and meat cooked over wood and charcoal at Ruse.

Diners at the 150-seat brasserie can witness their dinner being prepared in the exposed kitchen and the basque grills.

After your protein, round out your protein with an indulgent dessert.

“The desserts are quite creative,’’ Rao said.

“They look deceptively simple but every mouthful’s very different, lots of flavour lots of textures. I get bored very quickly with food, there’s no monotone flavours.’’

Rao also mentions “approachable’’ cocktails and after working on the northern beaches is excited to bring something different to his backyard.

“It’s going to be hard because nothing like that has been done in Parramatta before,’’ he said.

“Because I’m a local, when I think of Parramatta there’s nothing like this.’’

Threefold Pastry

Ruse Bar and Brasserie owner John Vissaritis also helms cafe Threefold Pastry where croissants are sweet and savoury and include creative offerings such as the chocolate, hazelnut and lavender croissant.

Pining for some citrus? There’s also the orange, pistachio and white chocolate croissant or gourmet sandwiches for a savoury change.

The cafe’s name is celebrated by paying homage to the threefold pastry technique used in the making of the pastry store products.

There’s also a selection of pies, pastries, sandwiches and great quality coffee by Single O.

Croissants with a twist: Threefold Pastry.

Harvey’s Hot Sandwiches

Retro-inspired milk bar Harvey’s Hot Sandwiches boasts about bringing back big, stuffed sandwiches and it doesn’t disappoint.

Sandwiches brimming with lashings of meat are on the menu in a diner inspired by 1950s US eateries and classic Aussie milk bars.

Described as a “slice of the bygone era’’, the “mighty tasty’’ rolls are stuffed with extra portions of meat and cheese and dressed in bold, tangy sauces.

The American diner comes to Parramatta at Harvey's Hot Sandwiches. Picture: Nikki To

A mix of favourites, signatures and classic sandwiches, plus sides, with cookie sandwiches topped with warm Nutella from a fountain make up the food menu.

The fresh lemonade is not to be missed.

LilyMu

After six years working in the UK, LilyMu executive chef Brendan Fong has joined head chef Songthum (Bass) Kumponthanatat for a menu that draws inspiration from his Fijian and Chinese heritage, and Kumponthanatat’s Thai lineage.

“We wanted to bring something fresh to Parramatta Square. There’s a lot of just Chinese, just Thai restaurants and obviously a lot of Italian,’’ Fong said.

“Rather than just trying to be just an Asian restaurant we’re trying to blend the cultures together.’’

Clockwise from top left: Lamb curry, kingfish sashimi, Tom yum dumplings and black garlic mie goreng. Picture: Monique Harmer

The pair is especially proud of the Tom yum prawn dumplings, with the flavour of the soup captured in a morsel.

We don’t think you should leave without trying the sashimi, whether it’s the snapper or kingfish, or the lamb curry which tastes every bit like the “24-hour labour of love’’ that Fong describes.

LilyMu’s twist on The Mine goreng uses black garlic fused in the noodles, bean sprouts, leek, which sit below the egg yolk.

“Everyone’s had mie goreng at one stage or another in their lives so we make a version of black garlic,’’ Fong said.

Rivareno Gelato

After establishing gelateria at Barangaroo and Darlinghurst, Rivareno founder Kieran Tosolini has headed west and brought a rainbow of flavours to impress the most discerning Italian.

The signature cremino (white chocolates and hazelnut ganache with layers of gianduja) is just one of 26 luscious scoops contained in the stainless steel pozzetti (deep cylinders), used to maintain ideal temperatures.

The small-batch gelato is made daily in Rivareno’s “laboratory’’ and served just hours after preparation for an intense, creamy and velvety profile.

Rivareno makes sure no one misses out on some indulgence and has six vegan gelatos and four Sicilian granitas.

Rivareno owner Kieran Tosolini and Peter Kaos at Parramatta Square. Picture: Monique Harmer

The dairy are made with alpine milk from the Cuneo highlands, with signatures including pistachio (pistachio from Bronte, Sicily); piemonte (hazelnuts from Piedmont, Italy) and tiramisu (using high altitude mascarpone, Sicilian marsala, Arabica coffee, Savoiardi biscuits, dark chocolate shavings). The menu also includes waffles and brioche con gelato (brioche bun, gelato, freshly whipped cream, rich gianduia sauce).

CicciaBella

Maurice Terzini, the force behind Otto Woolloomooloo and Bondi Icebergs, has a classic menu paying homage to southern Italian cuisine.

Diners will find simple, intense flavours from head chef Jem Erdonmez and culinary director Nic Wong.

Whipped ricotta, wagyu lasagne, ocean trout cartoccio feature in a well-proportioned menu, rounded out with desserts including banoffee pie and tiramisu.

A recent lunch saw us feasting on woodfired bread, lashings of mortadella and prosciutto, caprese salad, shoestring fries and steak with a pesto dressing.

Each dish was a knockout.

The crab and lemon fettuccine at CicciaBella. Picture: Monique Harmer

Fishbowl

You can win friends with salads if they’re Fishbowl’s salmon, avocado and kale-packed variety.

Fishbowl founders Casper Ettelson, Nic Pestalozzi and Nathan Dalah started their business in Bondi in 2016 and have been giving Parramatta Square a healthy serving of their seafood bowls since September.

The Japanese-inspired salad bar knows how to give diners a good dose of omega-3 and leafy greens.

Wholesome seafood salads at Fishbowl. Picture: Nikki To

The most popular dish is the O.G bowl (regular $12.90, large $16.90) with salmon sashimi, shallots, kale, beets, red onion, edamame beans with roasted sesame dressing, seaweed salad, tobiko (fish roe) and crispy shallots.

A spring menu featuring pumpkin with trademark avocado chunks and tofu has been introduced while permanent menu fixtures include the Big Papi II (regular $14.90, large $18.90) with wild-caught tuna sashimi, cabbage, shallots, beets, radish, nori, tamari almonds and wasabi peas.

Betty’s Burgers

Betty’s Burgers was the first eatery to open in the underground pedestrian link between Parramatta train station and Walker Corporation’s Parramatta Square redevelopment, and it certainly packed a flavoursome punch.

You can’t go wrong with Betty’s classic beef burger with Angus beef, bacon, pickles, lettuce, tomato and cheese, a special mayonnaise sauce on Japanese-style milk buns.

Other burgers include the “shroom’’ burger (mushrooms with melted gouda and gruyere cheese) and even vegan burgers (fried brown rice and vegetables with pickles), the “bare Betty” (that’s the classic Betty without the bun) and the crispy chicken burger with southern fried chicken.

Sides include fries and onion rings, while thickshake flavours include chocolate peanut butter. There are also beers and ciders to round out your cheat-day nosh.

Unbeatable burgers at Betty.