Spread your festive cheer at these bars, restaurants and cafes.
Dodge the sales crowds and head to these spots.
Bit dusty? These places will sort you out.
Where to while away the dog days of summer.
Showing 56 results
A moody Mexican laneway diner in an old CBD printing shop. The upstairs restaurant serves tacos al pastor, a one-kilogram Wagyu rib eye and a sweet potato dessert. Downstairs there's a bar with more than 200 mezcals and tequilas.
This Holt Street eatery is a throwback to Bodega (which is right around the corner) in the early noughties and Italy in the ’60s. Visit for spaghetti with ‘nduja and clams, house-made gelato and fried pizza.
At Acre’s second Sydney venue, dine on Italian food made with ingredients grown on-site, pick up house-made pastries and cakes, and hang out with chooks.
This '70s-inspired cocktail lounge on the 83rd floor of Sydney Tower is the highest bar in town. Cocktails come from an ex-Baxter Inn and Hubert bartender whose drinks will almost distract you form the 260-degree views.
The laneway CBD eatery is plating up veal saltimbocca, tiramisu and lobster maccheroncini (with shaved truffles if you want it).
After 50 years of obscurity, this prime harbour spot is open to the public; serving bacon-and-egg rolls and fish'n'chips
Descend the stairs into a labyrinthine den of lush velvet booths, flowing booze and a menu that champions Black Angus rib eye.
At this offshoot of CBD diner Restaurant Leo, it's all about pastries by day and aperitivi by. Head into the laneway for innovative cocktails paired with oysters, anchovy-and-sage scrolls and parmesan custard.
David Allison supplies produce from his Hawkesbury farm to some of the best restaurants in Sydney. Now, he's doing farm-to-table dining at this urban market and cafe in a former industrial loading dock.
Eat octopus cooked on the plancha, buffalo mozzarella on lemon leaves, and cured meats paired with vermouth cocktails at this seaside eatery open until 3am.
The pizza bases here are proved for four days so they’re light and easy to digest, then topped with only a couple of ingredients, including buffalo mozzarella imported from Italy.
Four luxe villas surrounded by towering sandstone walls and a thick blanket of trees in dreamy Kangaroo Valley.
This restaurant surrounded by lush gardens is serving a modern-Asian menu inspired by Luke Nguyen’s heritage.
At this buzzing charcoal chicken restaurant and takeaway joint, match the smoky Lebanese chook with slushies or Middle-Eastern “packaged” cocktails. And get brisket-shawarma tacos and lamb san choy bow on the side.
A restaurant named after a Sydney institution's most famous dish.
This tiny bar serves old-school cocktails, classic drinks with a twist and fresh-juice highballs.
This diner brings Middle Eastern food to George Street and the Ivy Precinct. On the menu? Falafel, meze and meats from the charcoal grill.
This social enterprise serves soft-shell crab roti-tacos with mango salsa as well as more traditional home-style food, alongside punchy, spice-driven cocktails.
Visit for fiddle-leaf figs, golden cane palms and pots from around the world. Plus Tuga pastries and strong coffee.
These huge, tasty soups sold here are unlike anything else in Sydney. And they’re guided by a sustainable ethos.
A cellar door, bottle shop and late-night rotisserie for the Oaks.
Woodfired pide and Turkish breakfast spreads in Newtown
Authentic Neapolitan street food in a bright, modern setting.
A nautical-themed bar with small-batch Aussie gin, live music, and regular trivia.
It stocks 150 plant varieties – the majority of which are indoor and shade-friendly. And if you’re lacking a green thumb, it’ll help you keep your new purchases thriving.
This tiny spot does fresh sangas during the day and decadent meaty sandwiches and margaritas at night.
Dumplings and hand-pulled noodles in a beloved Haymarket joint inspired by north-western China.
One of the few places in the centre of town where you can try Nanjing specialties. If you’re into duck, this is the spot for you.
Sydney's crunchiest fried chicken. Plus katsu burgers, waffle fries and tater tots.
A handsome wine bar in a former boot factory and private eye’s office.
The smallest venue at Coogee Pavilion is packed with spritzes, Martinis and snacks. It’s also open till late on weekends.
Everything at Mschief, from the banana and pear bread to the brownies, tarts and cakes, is low in sugar.
This cafe – from the founder of The Grounds of Alexandria – is looking to reinvent the humble office lobby.
Order fettuccine carbonara and pizza slathered in cheesy sauce at this diner in Sydney’s Green Square.
This Greek cafe channels new-school Athens, serving an array of pastries, pies and cakes.
The meal deal here will get you one of the best Chinese noodle soups in Sydney, a decent-sized side and a drink.
A modern atrium space on Liverpool Road’s busy strip.
This casual eatery highlights the cuisine of southern Italy. There's slow-cooked octopus, chickpea pasta and house-made shortcrust pastries.
Go for a 120-day dry-aged beef sirloin with Café de Paris butter, an apple tarte tatin and something from the whisky cart.
A hole-in-the-wall spot where you can grab chewy bagels stuffed with cured salmon or salted beef, with a side of crisps and pickles. Or grab house-made egg dip and schmears to take home.
Italian classics and a late-night outdoor bar in a previously underused space.
Twenty-eight types of Nepalese dumplings and a full vegan menu.
The flagship location of a string of restaurants specialising in cuisine from north-east China.
This isn't just a carbon copy of the Bondi original. DJs play live sets most nights, so you can smash a flaky lasagne pie to some retro Italian tunes until 2am.
Local DJs, craft beers and beer-flavoured lamingtons bring the RSL into the 21st century.
This Crown Street eatery is a no-rules fusion joint serving spicy noodles and voluminous cocktails.
A butcher, a fishmonger and a dine-in eatery for fast-casual food and take-home produce.
Home-style cooking at this Malaysian-Indian restaurant.
A tiny grocery store with a Filipino barbeque, karaoke and a cult following.
One of Paddington's classic pubs also has one of the best rooftop bars in town.
