Eighteen levels above Wentworth Avenue in Surry Hills, fine diner Kiln is the crown jewel at Sydney’s Ace Hotel. The kitchen is led by culinary directory Isobel Whelan-Little, who previously worked at London’s Brat, the now-closed LP’s Quality Meats, and as opening exec chef for Caterpillar Club. 

The room is a tribute to the colours and textures of Australia’s landscape, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering views rarely seen in Sydney. In a nod to the site’s history (a former Kiln), designer Fiona Lynch worked with Spacecraft Studio to create pigments from salvaged waste materials found during the hotel’s building phase.

Those pigments have been used to paint linens that hang from Kiln’s walls and window frames. A striking stone, chrome and aluminium bar connects two terraces, both with retractable roofs for sunny days.