Sydney Restaurant Tips by amyhenderson

Restaurant Name: Watermark

Located right on Balmoral Beach, great food, good for breakfast on the weekends, good place for a special occassion, they also have very good wines!

Favorite Dish: Mmmm... favourite menu item? The whole menu is mouth-watering modern Australian cuisine...

Categorised in 'Best Restaurants of the World'

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Theme: Other
Comparison: more expensive than average
Prices: US$31-40  » Currency Converter
Address: 2A The Esplanade, Balmoral 2088
Other Contact: 02 9968 3433

Restaurant Name: Firefly Espresso and Wine Bar

MMmmmm.... I love it here. It's small but perfectly formed, good food and a good attitude to service. The drinks list has been carefully compiled; there are cocktail staples as well as specials.

It was one of the first places opened at Walsh Bay, but its now established & popular. It attacts many theatre-goers as the theatre is just across the road.

Open: Mon-Fri noon-11pm, Sat and Sun 8am-11pm
Crowd: Pre- and post-theatre
Vibe: Relaxed and social
Highs: The service, food and drinks
Lows: Can't think of any
Drinks: Hamelin chardonnay $11, Wild Turkey julep $18 ,42 Below martini $10 .

Favorite Dish: I love the salt and pepper kingfish rolled in prosciutto, olives and parsley and the divine crispy potatoes with herbs and sea salt.

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Theme: Seafood
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$11-20  » Currency Converter
Phone: TEL: 9241 2031
Address: PIER 7, 17 HICKSON ROAD, WALSH BAY, THE ROCKS
Directions: Walsh Bay - just around the corner from the Park Hyatt thats under the Harbour Bridge at the Rocks.

Restaurant Name: The Opera Bar

The eastern side of Circular Quay has been developed quite a bit in the past years. Opera Bar is one of the elegant drink & dine spots in this row of restaurants and bars.

Opera Bar is the most northern of all bars & restaurants and therefore, you have no other such establishments blocking any harbour or Opera House views.

You have the option to sit inside or outside. I would recommend sitting outside either on a balmy Summers evening under the stars or even during a sunny Winters day by the sparkling water. The harbour views and atmosphere are a real treat.

A perfect pre-theatre dining option, a lazy Sunday lunch or if you prefer, a romantic, cosy option inside with comfy cushions.

Check out their website for music performances. But the jazz on Sunday afternoons/evenings is a regular, and its great!

Favorite Dish: Modern Australian cuisine. Whats that you ask? Grilled serloin steak in a red wine jus on a mustard mash... or perhaps you prefer the Tasmanian Salmon on a bed of rocket salad, with a side of (popular Sydney snack) wedges with sweet chilli sauce and sour cream?

Service is swift & friendly. Bag clips located under table to protect against bag-snatchers (very touristy area), good people-watching spot & a great place to really enjoy the Sydney-ness of it all!

Between AU$10-25 for a main

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Theme: Other
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$11-20  » Currency Converter
Address: Lower Concourse Level, Sydney Opera House, Sydney
Directions: On the east side of Circular Quay, right by the Opera House
Website: www.operabar.com.au

Restaurant Name: Hugo's Pizzeria

Hugo's Pizzeria opened this month (July '04) and is just below the reknown Hugo's Lounge. Thin-crust neopolitan pizza, impressive wine list, great service, buzzing atmosphere and definitely my new favourite Sydney restaurant!

There is also a bar in the restaurant where one can have a drink if you're there on a busy night and waiting for a table. Also a nice experience.

Bi-fold windows allow the restaurant to open up quite a bit and share inside with outside and vice-versa.

Most importantly, make sure you leave room for dessert!

Favorite Dish: We started off with a mezza plate to share... this included beautiful black olives, fresh oysters with a strawberry sorbet on the side, salt & pepper calamari, black olives & thin breadsticks wrapped in proscuitto. presentation 10/10, cuisine 9/10. $15 pp

We ordered 2 pizzas to share between the two of us. Pizzas were fabulous and I don't think you could go wrong with choices here. Presentation 8/10, cuisine 10/10. Between $15-$19 each.

OHMYGOD, the Tiramisu here is orgasmic. Now I don't use this word lightly. But really, if I was not in a public place at the time, I would have done the "oohhh" "ahhhhh" "mmmm" as I ate this. I've tried a lot of Tiramisu and this is by far the best. Better than Mums even (sorry Mum). $12 and well worth it!!!! Presentation 10/10, cuisine 10/10.

We splurged and got a bottle of wine too. Total bill was $120 for 2 people.

UPDATE: Uh oh, it's now Jul '05 and I've just learnt they constantly change the desert menu. At the moment, no tiramisu. We did however, enjoy a caramelised pear pizza. Sounds odd I know, but once again, was divine. I believe 'there is a French chef taking care of deserts there... no more needs to be said! = )

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Theme: Italian
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$31-40  » Currency Converter
Phone: (02) 9332 1227
Address: 19 Bayswater Rd, Kings Cross, NSW
Directions: 5mins walk from the Coca-Cola sign in Kings Cross. From there, walk down Bayswater Road.

Restaurant Name: TETSUYA'S

Tetsuya's used to be located in hard-to-find Rozelle, only frequented by people in the know. Now, its in the city on Kent Street, with a slightly larger dining area.

Apart from the mouth-watering meals served here, a very unique feature is that there is a set meal of 7 courses for each diner.

Each course is small, yet an absolute masterpiece, in presentation and taste. Japanese/Australian Head Chef Tetsuya Wakuda says he likes to use cooking influences from many different cultures. Most evident are Japanese, French & Modern Australian.

This is the perfect kind of place to take a very special (and lucky!) someone, especially due to the price. However, it looks like a lot of business deals go down here too.

Fully licensed

Favorite Dish: The dinner started with a bracket of five small dishes. These were a tea and tomato soup, scallops served on the shell and garnished with lemongrass, a dish of octopus served on potato and garnished with wakame, scampi with deep fried leeks and a crab sushi.

These dishes were followed by the famous confit of Tasmanian Ocean Trout (sometimes he does it with Atlantic Salmon) cooked in extra virgin olive oil and garnished with a vibrant green parsley oil.

Next we had veal served in a large white bowl with porcini mushrooms and a rich, intense broth accompanied by blanched potatoes.
A light broth accompanied spatchcock with fresh soy beans and spring onions, peas and bok choy.

We finished the meal with two desserts. An apple sorbet sitting on top of an apple jelly then a ginger creme brulee.

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Theme: Other
Comparison: most expensive
Prices: US$41 and up  » Currency Converter
Phone: +61 2 9267 2900
Address: 529 Kent Street, Sydney 2000
Directions: Kent Street in the city

Restaurant Name: Chinta Ria - Malay/Singaporean cuisine

Delicious Asian food, mostly Malaysian. Satay, salt & pepper squid, mild curries, laksa, flat noodles, oh and the duck is divine! Everything is so tasty. Great place for groups (works out to be especially good deal for groups), but even not a bad choice for dinner dates. There is usually a queue (a good sign to prove it's popularity), but they usually take your mobile number and you can go have a drink in one of the many nearby bars. Max wait time is 40mins, but usually only about 15-20min wait. Great in Summer, you can sit
outside. Good ambience, nice lighting, love the huge buddah at the entrance. You are welcome to light some incense by the Buddah and make a little prayer. Amazing website too, check it out!!

Favorite Dish: Probably the duck... but then, it was all pretty damn good!

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Theme: Pan-Asian and Pacific Rim
Comparison: about average
Prices: US$21-30  » Currency Converter
Phone: (02) 9264 3211
Address: The Roof Terrace, Cockle bay Wharf, Darling Park
Directions: Level 2, 201 Sussex Street, Sydney 2000
Website: http://www.chintaria.com/