A boom in restaurant, bar and cafe openings around Circular Quay has transformed the harbour-side area into one of the hottest drinking and dining destinations in Sydney.

Three recent additions from the area are today announced as finalists in the Aurum Poultry Co. New Restaurant of the Year award, in the run-up to the release of The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2024.

The finalists are Brasserie 1930, Clam Bar and Bistro George, and they are among more than 40 venues to open between Bent Street and the Circular Quay station this year.

The past three months have been particularly busy, with the opening of Pearl (a modern Cantonese restaurant from the Lotus Dining Group); Martinez (a Mediterranean-inspired rooftop bar and restaurant), Bar Messenger (a hidden cocktail bar); and Bar Besuto (a Japanese whisky bar), among others.

“Circular Quay has always had a handful of really lovely restaurants, but over the past year, it’s gone from … being a ghost town to being one of the most vibrant spots in Sydney,” says Clam Bar co-owner Andy Tyson.

New York-style steakhouse Clam Bar opened on the border of Circular Quay in May, and is consistently booked out at peak service times.

Hospitality operators say increased development and investment in the area play a critical role in attracting culinary talent. The opening of the Quay Quarter Lane precinct last year saw 22 new eateries open, while neighbouring Sydney Place is expected to welcome more than 15.

They include several budget-conscious options such as Malay Chinese, Kosta’s Takeaway and Marrickville Pork Roll.

“I really believe in that location,” says restaurateur Maurice Terzini (Icebergs Dining Room and Bar), who partnered with Lendlease and new hospitality group DTLE to open Jacksons on George in September.

The Bentley Restaurant Group was drawn to the area by the $300 million development of high-end hotel Capella Sydney on Loftus Street, the first of its kind in Australia. They opened the elegant French restaurant Brasserie 1930 on the ground floor in March.

“We weren’t looking in that northern part of the city but … Capella ticked all the boxes,” says head sommelier and co-owner Nick Hildebrandt.

“Over the past five years it had been a bit of a dead zone, but it’s sprung back to life … as soon as it hits lunchtime or 5pm the streets are buzzing.”

Return-to-office mandates are having a significant impact on daytime trade in the area, says Tyson. Big Four accounting and advisory firm Deloitte relocated its Australian headquarters to Circular Quay earlier this year, joining AMP, Salesforce and JLL Australia.

“We couldn’t do it unless we had that city crowd coming in every day,” Tyson says.

“That’s what makes the top end of the city different from everywhere else.”

And on weekends, there’s a “fortunate onslaught” of tourists, says Terzini. By 2041, the number of visitors to Circular Quay are predicted to increase by more than 40 per cent, following state government investment to “breathe new life” into the waterfront area.

Late night trade, however, remains an uphill battle. At Jacksons on George there are plans for live jazz bands freestyle jamming until the early hours, and talks of dinner-table-dance parties.

“Sydney definitely has a lockout hangover,” says Terzini, who secured a 2am licence for the venue.

“We lost so much, over so many years, and we’ll have to figure out how late night will work again in the city.

“It’s challenging, but it’s exciting.”

Aurum Poultry Co. New Restaurant of the Year finalists

Bistro George

Sandwiched in the middle of born-again pub Jacksons on George is Bistro George, defined by creative director Maurice Terzini as a love letter to Sydney. Chef Steven Sinclair creates European-inspired bistro dishes, kicking off with salmon gravlax crumpets and clams casino, and winding down with the nostalgia-triggering charm of a chocolate after-dinner mint.

Level 1, 176 George Street, Sydney, jacksonsongeorge.com.au

Clam Bar

A Manhattan-inspired steakhouse from the team behind Bistrot 916 and Pellegrino 2000, Clam Bar is gussied up with modest chandeliers, timber booths and vintage Heinz posters. Few dining rooms are as cosy and slick, and few lamb dishes are more rewarding than Clam’s Barnsley chop, rich and grassy and juicier than a New York Post gossip column.

44 Bridge Street, Sydney, clambarsydney.com

Brasserie 1930

As if Sydney’s newest luxury hotel, Capella Sydney, wasn’t enough of a drawcard, its collaboration with the Bentley Restaurant Group’s Brent Savage and Nick Hildebrandt has created one of our most elegant dining rooms. Savage calls it “brasserie food with an Australian spin”. The kitchen shows restraint and refinement in equal measure, yet delivers on flavour, texture, contrast and surprise.

2-4 Farrer Place, Sydney, capellahotels.com

Raja

Raja is nothing like other Indian restaurants around town. Co-owners Nick and Kirk Mathews-Bowden have enlisted Ahana Dutt to lead the kitchen, and the former Firedoor chef is on a mission to introduce more Sydneysiders to the tapestry of spices, genres and styles that is Indian cuisine beyond butter chicken and naan.

1A Kellett Street, Potts Point, raja.sydney

Such and Such

Restaurateurs Dash Rumble and Ross McQuinn opened two-hatted Pilot with chef Malcolm Hanslow in 2018, dazzling Canberra with an exceptional tasting menu. Smart-casual Such and Such is their second venture, offering a la carte menu for snacks and cracking wine, or a longer play featuring duck crown heightened with quince and fish-sauce caramel. Yum.

220 London Circuit, Canberra, andsuchandsuch.com

Petermen

Josh and Julie Niland want us to eat more fish, so there isn’t a skerrick of meat on the menu of their blond, minimalist, North Shore bistro. Instead, fish is treated as if it were meat, transforming into chateaubriand and crackling. A dining experience that will have you thinking and talking, as well as eating.

66 Chandos Street, St Leonards, petermen.com.au

The winners of The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2024 Awards will be announced on October 23, presented by Vittoria Coffee and Oceania Cruises. The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2024 will be on sale from October 24, featuring more than 450 NSW and ACT venues, from three-hatted fine-diners, to suburban wine bars, regional chicken shops and food-court icons. Venues listed in the Guide are visited anonymously by professional restaurant critics, who review independently. Venues are chosen at our discretion.