Sea-urchin crumpets? Grouper-head terrine? Here, they’re a thing. Chef Josh Niland is a pioneer of “fin-to-scale” cooking and will have you eating parts of the fish you barely knew existed. With the help of his fish butchery and an on-site dry-ageing room, he’s doing things with seafood you can’t find anywhere else in Sydney, or in the world.

Dinners at Ester don’t feel like a big occasion, even though Mat Lindsay’s consistently delicious menu is also one of the most inventive in Sydney. The place has an easy, effortless feel that off-duty chefs have fallen hard for. It helps that the set menu includes Ester’s many woodfired hits (classics such as the fermented potato bread and blood sausage sanga recur frequently).

After leaving the kitchen at influential, now-closed Newtown diner Oscillate Wildly, Dan Puskas always planned to do something similar in the inner west. Sixpenny is his next chapter, where he and head chef Anthony Schifilliti use ingredients from small local suppliers to create a menu that’s inventive, accessible and deeply Australian all at once. It’s a vision brought to life in a tiny, historic building on a quiet suburban backstreet.

Ho Jiak’s Junda Khoo grew up on the Malaysian island of Penang, and his food is inspired by the homey nyonya food of his childhood. Char kway teow noodles with jumbo prawns, comforting hainan chicken rice and a signature wok-fried crab are just some of the hits here. Downstairs is styled after the Penang street where Khoo spent his youth; upstairs is a mirror image of his grandmother’s home.

Frat Paz, as its many regulars call it, has been doing its very confident thing since 2001. That is: feeding and watering everyone from nonnas to the city’s A-listers, people who come back regularly for dishes such as calamari Sant’ Andrea and what could possibly be the best tiramisu in the city. This bustling, all-day operation is by the same people who brought us 10 William St.

A Bondi institution that’s kept up with the times. The long-serving staff continues to deliver exemplary service, and chef Sean Moran remains laser-focused on what’s Australian, what’s ripe and how best to prepare and present it in a way that best shows off each ingredient’s natural flavours. Understated but glorious, this is a quintessential Sydney dining experience – even more so than the flashier restaurants on this list.

Around 60 styles of sake are pouring at this intimate drinking den, inspired by the vinyl-spinning jazz bars of Japan. Expect rare Japanese gins and whiskies too, plus a Euro-Japanese snack menu by a former Pinbone and Billy Kwong chef.

The Middle East’s lesser-known cuisines brought to light on a menu informed by ancient recipes and modern techniques. You can also try wines from Syria, Jordan, Morocco and more, in a stunning contemporary space in the former MLC Centre.

Not quite Neapolitan, not quite New Yorker – the pizza at Bella Brutta is a style all of its own. Expect a puffy, blistered crust, a sag-proof base and a raft of creative toppings (a slice of the white clam pie with fermented chilli is a must). From the teams behind LP’s Quality Meats and Porteno.

Get the best Australian produce from both the paddock and the soil, and cook it over an open flame. That’s it. It’s an extremely simple concept, but one few execute with the precision and aplomb of chef Lennox Hastie, who learnt the trade at Spain’s pioneering Asador Extebarri. Sit at the kitchen bar and watch Hastie roast a dry-aged steak, a prawn straight from the tank or a simple potato.

Until Lumi and its Miso-strone came along, the idea of a Japanese-Italian restaurant sounded distinctly unappetising. But in the hands of chef Federico Zanellato (ex-Noma, Attica and Ormeggio at the Spit), this fusion not only makes sense – it makes you wonder why more people aren’t doing it. Enjoy multiple courses with matched wines from Michela Boncagni (Lumi’s sommelier and Zanellato’s wife), with serene views of Pyrmont Bay to keep you occupied between acts.

An institution among Laksa addicts. Today the name has two locations under its banner, but the original, now-closed Hunter Street shop was ladling bowls of piping hot laksa all the way back in 1987 – long before most of the CBD’s other Asian restaurants joined the party.

The Newtown sequel Pasi Petanen’s boundary-pushing Darlinghurst venue is a little more casual now, but the chef's incredible dishes have never been harder to pin down. There’s a lot of Finnish, a little bit of Italian and some inspiration taken from right here in Australia. Vino maestro Giorgio De Maria wine list emphasises drops that are fun, interesting and go exceptionally well with the food.

The food here is very Sri Lankan – there’s a traditional fish curry, hoppers (bowl-shaped crepes made from fermented rice flour), an array of sambols and fluffy dal – but this narrow restaurant is a reflection of chef and owner O Tama Carey. She wanted to bring her experience of the island to Sydney, along with what she likes to drink: Australian-brewed mead, pét-nats, a coconut and coffee slushie, and wine poured from a tap.

Enter this iconic Sydney restaurant for Med-inspired dishes spanning inventive charcuterie and charcoal-fired plates. Plus, a wine list highlighting Australian producers great and small.

A Long Chim alumnus is behind this 30-seat Chinatown restaurant, where you’ll find punchy takes on classic Thai street food and home-style cooking. Think deep-fried barramundi with mango salad, Phuket-style curry with tiger prawns and betel leaves, and a refreshing coconut ice-cream with roasted peanuts and candied pumpkin.

This hidden restaurant in Sydney’s inner west celebrates the cultural diversity of the city’s suburbs. Behind the roller door, find creative nods to our Greek and Middle Eastern communities, and a cocktail list built around a classic Balkan spirit.

You can always count on fresh oysters, complimentary bread and a razor-sharp wine program at this exemplary neighbourhood diner. Come for an Italianate menu, served in one of the inner-city’s most romantic dining rooms.

This elevated vantage of Bondi’s sloshing surf is one of Australia’s great views – one a less conscientious restaurateur might easily lean on. Not Maurice Terzini, who’s been pushing his resplendent Italian diner to greater and greater heights since 2002. Long lunches in this smart aquamarine room have never been better, largely thanks to an insistence on top-quality Australian seafood, which makes the mostly classic menu sing.