How To Spend 24 Hours in Sydney

Heading interstate? Broadsheet’s city cheat sheets (for Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide) cover everything from flash new spots that live up to the hype, to old faithfuls that continue to deliver. Here's everything you need to make the most of every minute in Sydney in 2026.

Eat here

Breakfast:

Sydney’s bakery scene is a hot one. And while there are some outstanding contenders for your attention, you can’t go past AP Bakery – there are eight of them now, each offering a definitively Sydney carb experience. The newest is the takeaway-only AP Point, but AP Bread & Wine is our rec for brekkie. There’s a morning mix of pastries and breads, plus coffee, eggs (drowned in chicken soup!), plate-sized pancakes and egg-filled muffins. Then, it does the wine bar thing, too. If sweet treats are your morning meal of choice, Stanmore’s Baking 101, Bondi’s Sundays and Chippendale’s Khanom House have you covered.

If you’re in the inner west, Kurumac’s Japanese breakfasts are unmissable, or head to Superfreak for a simple but excellent Scandi plate (before or after a Pilates class out back) or to Angus for a hefty hash brown stuffed in your morning roll. The Corner Deli, from the Lox in a Box team, has you sorted for bagels, brisket brekkie burritos and babka French toast.

Catch a ferry across to Manly for scrambled eggs – revved up with black lime za’atar crunch – at Noon. Make sure you add a hashbrown with dippy sauce.

Sticking to the city limits? Pina in Potts Point will deliver (but come prepared for a wait) with its outstanding sausage-and-egg roll dripping with cheese, or nab a seat at its smaller sibling Room Ten across the laneway. As will a meal at Adhika, one of 2025’s best new cafes, where you’ll find eggs stuffed into Filipino pan de sal buns, and a bunch of fluffy, photogenic drinks.

When a hangover comes knocking (or if you just love a little spice on a slower morning), head to Mami’s Casa Latina in Bondi from 9am. You’ll find street tacos, quesadillas and burritos – the pork confit carnitas is the signature.

Want a morning classic? You can’t go wrong with a trip to Bills (Darlinghurst, Bondi, Double Bay or Surry Hills).

Lunch:

Whether you want a casual sanga, a sleek fine-dining experience or a long and boozy lunch, you’re sorted in Sydney. Redfern’s Fontana is a forever favourite, with a pared-back dining room leaving homely Italo plates to do the heavy lifting. It’s ace any time, but we like parking up at a table for Saturday lunch and ordering up big on house-made ricotta, a couple of bowls of whatever handmade pasta is available, and bottles and bottles of wine. The focus here is on regional Italian specialties, so there’s a high chance you’ll try a dish you’ve not had before.

Lottie – the rooftop Mexican restaurant at The Eve, Redfern’s slick new hotel – is a knockout on a summer day. The menu spans the snacky (beetroot empanadas! Kangaroo sope! House-made tostadas topped with tuna and oomphy, orange-y salsa brava!), interesting (pork jowls cooked slowly in a mole sweetened with cola, cut with pickled fennel) and memorable. Tajin-rimmed cocktails from the mezcaleria are a must.

Nearby is sandwich joint Good Ways. Expect classics with snazzy twists, like the kangaroo mortadella sandwich with salami, ham, provolone and chilli paste. Continue your Sydney sandwich crawl with anything from Fiore Bread or Fiore Sandwich (it’s all good!), a whopping schnitty sanga at Kosta’s Takeaway (in Rosebery, Rockdale, the CBD or Circular Quay), or something from the Self Raised team in Carlton, Merrylands or Bexley North. Phew. Then, head to Clovelly Road’s Cut Lunch Deli, making sure to stick around till 3pm when wines start pouring alongside the sangas.

Want noodles? Ama – an outstanding Thai-Chinese eatery in Surry Hills run by two sisters – is for you. Order the beef noodle soup, which hits with chewy egg noodles and a punchy broth. Or, hit Yeodongsik for Korean perilla noodles, Shang Lamb Soup for “super lamb soup” and skewers, or Malay Chinese for what many think is Sydney’s best laksa.

If you’re looking for something a bit more special, try getting a seat at Corner 75, the Hungarian dining room that entered its next era with the Sixpenny and Baba’s Place teams. Or, South End in Newtown, which dazzles in its simplicity (don’t skip the potato rosti, and whatever co-owner Paul Guiney recommends you drink).

For a view of the water and a singularly Sydney lunch, book a table at Sean’s in Bondi. Across the road from the famous beach, you’ll find simple classics done brilliantly. Then, wander up to the Icebergs bar for an all-blue view and frosty Martini.

Dinner:

While we’re adoring fans of Bar Copains for its tight menu and excellent vibes, the team’s newcomer – Bessie’s and Alma’s, a bar-restaurant duo just up the road – is a hot ticket to a great time. Do as Broadsheet’s national food and drink editor did: stand at the bar with a frozen Marg while your table gets prepped, swiping up whipped cod roe with garlicky flatbread as Mariah Carey’s Heartbreaker blasts overhead, before big pork chops and a whole fish to share with your favourite people.

In the CBD, you want a booking at Grandfathers, from the Neptune’s Grotto trio. Head in for Sydney rock oysters zinged up with Chinese celery, technicolour pickle plates and a yellowfin crudo revved up with a deep-red, peppery oil. Then, steamer baskets of silky dumplings, a mouth-numbing husband and wife salad (that one chef picked as his dish of the year) and delicate chunks of steamed red emperor hiding in a deep bowl of ultra-green, super-fragrant broth.

Nearby, Soul Dining puts an Aussie spin on Korean cooking. There’s a fine-dining edge, a casual energy – and a glossy, buttery clay-pot rice that one writer can’t stop thinking about.

After a Sydney classic? Book in advance for Saint Peter, the seafood restaurant (now in a revitalised heritage-listed pub) from the peerless Josh and Julie Niland. Or, stick to the bar, where you can get that spectacular salt and vinegar-cured King George whiting, swordfish empanadas and that decadent yellowfin tuna cheeseburger with swordfish belly bacon.

The Bones team has moved its Japanese menu to bigger, better digs on Stanley Street in Darlinghurst. And a few doors up is Claret Club, where you’re sorted if you want an expertly curated wine offering, or a full Euro meal. Plus, there’s dog-friendly dining on the footpath.

Marrickville’s become a golden locale for pizza, with Oltra at Poor Tom’s, Fortune inside Grifter Brewing Co, Madre and MMC Slice Shoppe all terrific options.

Where to drink

Afternoon:

If you can’t decide between a beer garden or a rooftop, combine the two with The Taphouse. The revamped Darlinghurst boozer’s greenery-filled rooftop is a prime spot for a NSW-made beer, or catch sports in the ground-floor main bar. Or, head to Paddington’s Monica, where Mitch Orr’s snacks add to views to the city.

In the CBD, Joji (a bar-meets-restaurant on a Japanese bent) is an ace choice. Or head to the shockingly underrated bar atop the State Library.

In it for the beer? Look no further than the Inner West Ale Trail. Within five kilometres you’ll find 18 locally owned breweries – all you need for an excellent pub crawl. There’s the very-good-fun Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre – complete with easy-drinking beers, a fantastic Cantonese-Australian restaurant and a museum of Hawke memorabilia – plus Batch, Philter (with its cheery sports bar), Grifter and more. Wildflower’s the one if you’re after something different: here it’s all about native yeasts, and there’s a topnotch food menu too. If you’d prefer a locally made liquor, Ester Spirits is the vibe-heavy spot you want – with its snacky food menu and tight cocktail list – on a Friday and Saturday.

Evening:

Check in to Silver’s Motel and promptly order a Midori Splice. Or a choc-topped Old Fashioned. Or a Crown Lager. Or scoot down the road for a perfected house Martini poured theatrically from a bulbous decanter, you want Bar Planet on Enmore Road. Or simply scribble your preferred order (whether it’s dry, dirty, filthy or wet, vodka or gin) on a coaster and it’ll be made to your taste. Then, coast to The Magpie or Bar Demo or Deadwax. Perhaps a wine flight at Famelia, where female winemakers are championed? It’s nearby too.

If you make your way to Surry Hills, stop in at Gildas, the sophisticated Basque-inspired bar by one of Sydney’s best chefs, Firedoor’s Lennox Hastie. You’ll find a devotion to sherry, alongside interesting wines from Australia and Spain, and you’ll order a Gilda or two if you know what’s good for you.

Others worth drinking at? The Wine Bar at The International, for a progressive wine list next to Sydney’s “modernist mushroom”; PS40 for fun, technique-heavy cocktails, like the foam-topped Africola with house-made cola; the 20-seat Amuro, for boutique saké; and Poly, for minimal-intervention wines.

Pre-dinner, post-dinner (and dinner, if need be):

The International has a little bit of something for everyone – a sleek grill restaurant, the rooftop Panorama Bar and the aforementioned wine bar – close to our city’s theatres. We recommend an al fresco pre-dinner mango spritz on the rooftop, then pizzetta and a nice glass at The Wine Bar.

Late night:

When we think late-night, we think basement boozing – and for a city with great weather, Sydney has an awful lot of subterranean spots for drinking. Opt for Spanish snacks and plenty of wines by the glass at Letra House, or make for one of our best Margs at Centro 86. Ramblin’ Rascal, a “five-star dive bar” is consistently one of the city’s rowdiest joints – with live music and excellent cocktails. In Newtown, Pleasure Club – a psychedelic underground cocktail-bar-slash-performance-space – will host you till 4am.

Keen for a dance? Club 77 in Darlinghurst is an old favourite that’s had a welcome revamp. And Bar Freda’s returns to Chippendale with local up-and-comers (or friends of Freda’s) on the decks, along with a dance-friendly food and drink menu. Plus, 24-hour parties, if you have the stamina. 

Out and about

If you’re in Sydney, you’ll likely want to get in the ocean – or simply sit by it. Our natural swimming pool game is unbeatable. Or, you can shop.

Paddington is your stop if you’re looking for a line-up of boutiques. There’s New Zealand designer Maggie Marilyn joining a bunch of Aussies: Sir the Label, Oroton, Fella, Nagnata and Lucy Folk.

Aussie glassware brand Maison Balzac’s Surry Hills store offers a serene shopping experience, and nearby Glass Et Cetera has your vintage finds covered. Up the road, find Brie Leon, a favourite Sydney-based bag and jewellery label.