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Clam Bar

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20 of Sydney CBD’s very best restaurants for Vivid (and beyond)

Sydney’s city restaurant scene is sizzling right now, with hot new openings and fabulous classics making deciding where to eat more difficult than ever. Let us help.

20 stories
Monopole
Good Food hat15.5/20

Monopole is the archetypal Sydney dining experience

Clam Bar is a New York-style steakhouse from the Pellegrino 2000 and Bistrot 916 team.
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

Clam Bar is Sydney’s best new place to eat right now

  • Callan Boys
The clamorous dining room has a 20-seat private room and a stool-lined bar saved for walk-ins.
Good Food hat15/20

Palazzo Salato serves up proper pasta and candlelit glam

  • Terry Durack
Burrata, broad beans, prawn oil.
Good Food hat15/20

Ragazzi is the place for almost perfect pasta

  • Terry Durack
Extravagant menu: The ornate seafood tower.
Good Food hat15/20

Mary’s Underground for fantastic food and live music

  • Terry Durack
The har mee bomb smashes prawn, pork, and bean shoots into five big, meaty, dumplings.

Ho Jiak Town Hall is one of Sydney’s most exciting Malaysian restaurants

  • Terry Durack
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Go-to dish: Smoked pig jowl, fan shell razor clams, shiitake, sea cucumber crackling.
Good Food hatGood Food hatGood Food hat19/20

Quay nails high end luxury like no other restaurant

  • Terry Durack
Wood-fired bread at Bar Totti's in Sydney.
Good Food hat15/20

Bar Totti’s puffball bread is better than pizza

  • Terry Durack
Go-to dish: Stir-fried pipis with XO sauce.
14/20

XOPP is code for one of Sydney’s most memorable dishes (hint, it has pipis)

  • Terry Durack
Bright new executive chef Thomas Gorringe is taking over from Joel Bickford at Aria.
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

Aria has jaw-dropping views and fine dining food

  • Terry Durack
Oncore at Barangaroo. Potato and roe. 16th Dec 2021. Photo: Edwina Pickles / SMH Good Food
Good Food hatGood Food hatGood Food hat18/20

Oncore by Clare Smyth at Crown Sydney is a three-hatted delight

  • Terry Durack
A new stage is set, complete with grand piano and chrome mic stand.
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

Restaurant Hubert is a dazzling restaurant that will steal your heart

  • Terry Durack
Preview of Le Foote, 101 George Street, The Rocks.

Le Foote is the most exciting opening in The Rocks in years

  • Callan Boys
Smoky, charred and salty bistecca alla fiorentina.
14.5/20

Bistecca is Sydney’s T-bone-only restaurant

  • Terry Durack
Wagyu rib cap with fermented black bean sauce, pencil leek and native pepper.
Good Food hatGood Food hat17.5/20

Bentley is the place for wine enthusiasts wanting a big night out

  • Callan Boys
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Mr. Wong
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

Mr. Wong combines glam Chinese nightclub vibes with great food

Crisp choux pastry puff filled with oyster cream.
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

Shell House Dining Room and Terrace is a bright light in the big city

  • Terry Durack
Go-to dish: Whole roasted duck to share, $190.
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

Brasserie 1930 hits the heights of luxury and quality

  • Terry Durack
Go-to dish: Baked tiger prawns with vermicelli.
Good Food hat15/20

Porkfat is quite possibly Sydney’s best Thai restaurant

  • Callan Boys
Be sure to order the trofie al pesto, prepared tableside.
Good Food hatGood Food hat16/20

a’Mare at Crown Sydney proves Italians do it better

  • Terry Durack

Original URL: https://www.smh.com.au/goodfood/sydney-eating-out/20-of-sydney-cbd-s-very-best-restaurants-for-vivid-and-beyond-20230525-p5dba4.html