18 To Book: The New Sydney Restaurants, Bars and Cafes We Got Excited About in May

• One year in, this banh mi shop is considered one of the city’s best (including by a top chef).

• Buoy Kiosk feels like a holiday, with bacon subs, cheesy “mousetraps” and an exceptional on-the-water view.

• Some of the best Ethiopian food in NSW is found in a suburban living room. Each month, a handful of guests gather to tear injera bread and tuck into delicious stews.

• First look: a Japanese wine bar with a Michelin-credentialled chef hits Surry Hills. Slink in for potato mochi topped with “mountain caviar” and, soon, a chef’s table experience.

• Surry Hills brisket favourite MLK Deli has hit The Rocks with the same standout sandwich list. There’s the saucy Afghan meatballs number and grilled haloumi, too – plus, a new morning bun with MLK brisket, a fried egg, cheese and house-made maple sauce.

• Specialty coffee house Dutch Smuggler expands to Bridge Street, delivering its hit mie goreng toasties and brews made on house-roasted Indonesian beans – bringing the team’s location count to six.

• Sydney lands a second outpost for Michelin-recommended Mensho Tokyo. The newcomer opens on Thursday May 28, with its signature soup and house-made noodles – plus a venue-exclusive bowl.

• First look: “Japanese Starbucks” arrives in Haymarket, with slow-brewed matcha, extravagant parfaits and a lengthy menu of savoury dishes.

• First look: a beloved Nigerian pop-up finally finds a permanent location in Darlinghurst. Head in soon for jollof rice, grilled suya and palm wine.

• At Tommy Panini, sandwiches arrive like laundry – a trend we’re seeing take off around Sydney. The Brookvale-born joint just opened in the CBD, adding a snacky happy hour to the mix too.

• Quay’s dining room returns as part of a multi-level hospitality precinct – with dining spaces spanning beer garden, pub and restaurant.

• First look: Bangkok’s famous beef noodle soup is hidden in a Haymarket tunnel. Broadsheet visited and found a soup “like no other” and a riff on a decades-old Hat Yai fried chicken recipe.

• First look: Irish stout, live music and spice bags revamp an underground space by the beach.

• Bar Bruno hits the CBD with house-made pasta and radicchio spritzes. Plus, there’s a daily aperitivo hour and a late-night Daiquiri bar next door.

• The first Aussie outpost of a world-famous Tokyo pizzeria opens in Sydney – marking the lauded pizzaiolo’s largest location, too.

• First look: the chefs behind a standout northern beaches bakery open a pastry club – with crème brûlée doughnuts and croissant-infused iced lattes – closer to the city.

• First look: live jazz and vinyl DJs set the mood at Meadow Music Room, Cronulla’s newest bar.

• Chat Thai’s Palisa Anderson adds a rice-powered Thai lunch counter to her corner of The Galeries’ food court. You’ll find bowls like bright blue butterfly-pea jasmine rice topped with poached chicken and nam jim jaew. Plus, coconut-milk soft serve.

Closures

• The Lox in a Box team closes its “bustling” Bondi bistro six months after opening. “This is not about the performance of the Bistro,” owner Candy Berger shared.

• Celebrated fine diner Bentley to close after two decades of service – for now.

Additional reporting by Howard Chen, Lucy Christopher, Ben Hansen, Lee Tran Lam and Pilar Mitchell.