As Western Sydney’s de facto CBD, Parramatta encapsulates much of what’s great about the area, from immigrant cuisine to unpretentious cafes.

Restaurants

  • Parramatta Park’s lush Med-inspired eatery is all about communal dining. Build your own brekkie plate with focaccia, sujuk, smoked labneh and more. Or grab fancy pantry items for a picnic in the park.

  • One of Parramatta's longest standing restaurants is also the first in New South Wales to be accredited by Coeliac Australia. Come for gluten-free Italian dining, served in one of two rustic dining spaces and an al fresco area on the suburb's bustling main drag.

  • A nostalgic, subterranean sandwich diner dedicated to big, hot and tasty sandwiches. Find all the classics from a French dip to a Turkey Club, along with Nashville fried chicken, shoestring fries and house-made ice-cream.

  • Hyderabad-style fried chicken and a $16 all-you-can-eat buffet.

  • A huge multi-space fine diner with room for 350 people.

  • The third burger joint from the team behind Bar Luca.

Cafes

  • The Circa Espresso team leaves nothing on the lamination bench at this light-filled bakery. A cornucopia of treats is baked on-site each day, including croissants and banoffee choux. There's also a brunch menu packed with Middle Eastern flavours.

  • Sydney’s narrowest cafe is still going strong after more than a decade, thanks to a Middle Eastern-influenced menu and consistently great coffee. The poached Ottoman eggs are a must order, and a staple since the early days.

  • A sleek, takeaway-only patisserie specialising in eye-catching croissants. It’s also got lunch covered with savoury pastries and pies, ready-made Turkish sandwiches and wraps, and specialty coffee.

  • The pop-up so good it stuck around.

  • A tiny Lebanese-inspired cafe packing jaffles and milos with a twist.

  • Toasties and Mecca coffee in a beautiful timber coffee bar.

Bars

  • This 26th-floor stunner from the team behind legendary cocktail bar Eau de Vie is a bold tribute to the roaring ’20s. Come for the caviar and champagne towers, stay for the knee-dropping views across Western Sydney from the open-air terrace.