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Local Knowledge

Exploring Sydney’s many cuisines and communities, week by week.

For many people in Sydney, dining out isn’t just a fun thing to do, it’s a part of their identity. Whether it’s Southern Italian, Javanese or Uighur, almost every community has a place they go that represents them and their cuisine. In this weekly series, Broadsheet ’s Nick Jordan explores the eateries that are at the heart of the city's different cultural communities.

Local Knowledge: Sydney’s Best Regional Chinese Food, Part One

Local Knowledge: Sydney’s Best Regional Chinese Food, Part One

A guide to Chinese cuisines and where to find them in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Billu’s

Local Knowledge: Billu’s

North-Indian classics and Punjabi specialities from a Harris Park institution.

Local Knowledge: New Chambers Greek Islands Taverna

Local Knowledge: New Chambers Greek Islands Taverna

This Sutherland restaurant is one of the only places to find Greek “auntie food”.

Local Knowledge: Alice’s Makan

Local Knowledge: Alice’s Makan

A CBD food-court stall selling incredible Malaysian sweets and fried noodles.

Local Knowledge: La Mesa Philippine Cuisine

Local Knowledge: La Mesa Philippine Cuisine

A hidden Haymarket restaurant with a menu that covers Filipino drinking food.

Local Knowledge: David’s Larder

Local Knowledge: David’s Larder

Traditional Scottish haggis, black pudding, tattie scones and fresh Scotch pies.

Local Knowledge: Enjoy Mie

Local Knowledge: Enjoy Mie

This Kensington restaurant is known for bakmi – a choose-your-own Indonesian dish of noodles, meat and bok choy.

Local Knowledge: Bottola

Local Knowledge: Bottola

Bangladeshi fish curry, biryani and fuska.

Local Knowledge: Sweet Kiss Cake Shop

Local Knowledge: Sweet Kiss Cake Shop

A 28-year-old Clovelly cake shop with the most incredible Hungarian strudel.

Local Knowledge: Yang’s Dumplings

Local Knowledge: Yang’s Dumplings

This tiny Burwood takeaway shop does some of the best Shanghainese dumplings in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Ovo Cafe

Local Knowledge: Ovo Cafe

A small, easy-to-miss cafe inside a mall does incredible Brazilian cakes and home-style meals.

Local Knowledge: Cyprus Community Club

Local Knowledge: Cyprus Community Club

Sweets and souvlaki plus shots of grappa and dancing on a Saturday night.

Local Knowledge: Student Biryani

Local Knowledge: Student Biryani

With five-person buckets of biryani for $9 per person.

Local Knowledge: Thai Thai

Local Knowledge: Thai Thai

This tiny restaurant has been serving some of the best Thai noodles in Sydney for more than 25 years.

Local Knowledge: Scoop Gelato

Local Knowledge: Scoop Gelato

One of Sydney’s best scoops is in a Campbelltown shopping centre.

Local Knowledge: VN Street Foods

Local Knowledge: VN Street Foods

If you want to try northern Vietnamese food in Sydney, this is where to go.

Local Knowledge: Madera Kafe Restoran

Local Knowledge: Madera Kafe Restoran

Serbian food made the traditional way.

Local Knowledge: Sydney’s Best Regional Chinese Food, Part Two

Local Knowledge: Sydney’s Best Regional Chinese Food, Part Two

A guide to Chinese cuisines and where to find the best in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Tawandang

Local Knowledge: Tawandang

Central Thai food from a German-style microbrewery.

Local Knowledge: Medan Ciak

Local Knowledge: Medan Ciak

Try rendang curry and fried chicken at a new restaurant serving dishes from one of Indonesia's food capitals.

Local Knowledge: Farsi Restaurant

Local Knowledge: Farsi Restaurant

A traditional Persian restaurant that looks and feels like a little hotel.

Local Knowledge: Pamana Cafe and Filipino Restaurant

Local Knowledge: Pamana Cafe and Filipino Restaurant

Everything’s laid out on the table – no plates, no cutlery. Just fight for what you want.

Local Knowledge: Burman Kitchen

Local Knowledge: Burman Kitchen

The Burmese community is very excited by this new restaurant.

Local Knowledge: Trovatino Cafe

Local Knowledge: Trovatino Cafe

Sicilian granitas and traditional gelatos in Wareemba.

Local Knowledge: 257 Home Kitchen

Local Knowledge: 257 Home Kitchen

A rare kind of soup dumpling, sweet-and-salty pork belly and smoked fish – some of the best Shanghainese food in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Kabul International Restaurant & Bakery

Local Knowledge: Kabul International Restaurant & Bakery

Huge, tandoor-cooked Afghan breads for $1.40 and a restaurant next door with biryani, kebabs and curries.

Local Knowledge: Topping Mad Pizza

Local Knowledge: Topping Mad Pizza

A tiny Brazilian pizzeria in Bronte does an all-you-can-eat pizza service, starting with Brazilian street snacks and ending with dessert pizzas.

Local Knowledge: Haji's Biryani House

Local Knowledge: Haji's Biryani House

Rice with goat, rice with lentils, rice with potatoes, rice with butter – this is where to try the gamut of Bangladesh’s mixed-rice dishes.

Local Knowledge: Al Barakeh Charcoal Chicken

Local Knowledge: Al Barakeh Charcoal Chicken

The best way to eat it: chicken skin, garlic sauce, chicken, a slice of pickle, chips and more garlic sauce.

Local Knowledge: Amma’s Modern Kitchen

Local Knowledge: Amma’s Modern Kitchen

Have you tried Malaysian-Indian cuisine?

Local Knowledge: Bamboo Village BBQ

Local Knowledge: Bamboo Village BBQ

Sour, spicy and very different – this is the place to try one of China’s lesser-known cuisines.

Local Knowledge: Polish Club

Local Knowledge: Polish Club

Polish beers and dumplings in the restaurant; poppy seed cakes and doughnuts in the cafe; and handmade charcuterie and pickles in the deli.

Local Knowledge: Al-Dhiaffah Al-Iraqi

Local Knowledge: Al-Dhiaffah Al-Iraqi

This legendary, 20-year-old Iraqi restaurant in Fairfield serves a mean roasted barramundi.

Local Knowledge: Dainty Taipei Bakery

Local Knowledge: Dainty Taipei Bakery

With the Moon Festival around the corner, we find a Taiwanese bakery making some of Sydney’s only fresh mooncakes.

Local Knowledge: Sri Venkateswara Canteen

Local Knowledge: Sri Venkateswara Canteen

Helensburgh’s Hindu temple runs a vegetarian canteen on the weekend serving savoury Indian doughnuts, dosa, biryani and deep-fried flat breads.

Local Knowledge: Asal Sweet

Local Knowledge: Asal Sweet

A Persian sweet shop in Merrylands and Granville.

Local Knowledge: Ferah Café & Restaurant

Local Knowledge: Ferah Café & Restaurant

An old homewares store in Newtown serving incredible Turkish breakfasts.

Local Knowledge: Copernicus Cafe and Delicatessen

Local Knowledge: Copernicus Cafe and Delicatessen

The best Polish doughnuts in town, hands down.

Local Knowledge: Mie Kocok Bandung

Local Knowledge: Mie Kocok Bandung

Tender fried chicken, shaken noodles Bandung-style and more varieties of cracker than you can try in one visit.

Local Knowledge: Gloria’s Portuguese Restaurant

Local Knowledge: Gloria’s Portuguese Restaurant

From this restaurant, Little Portugal in Petersham grew.

Local Knowledge: Café Nur Muhammed

Local Knowledge: Café Nur Muhammed

The only Malaysian restaurant in Sydney that specialises in Malay food.

Local Knowledge: The Muglan

Local Knowledge: The Muglan

The Muglan serves the food of the inns and homes of the Himalayas.

Local Knowledge: Fiesta Hot Food and Take Away Shop

Local Knowledge: Fiesta Hot Food and Take Away Shop

The best Filipino food in Sydney is found in Blacktown.

Local Knowledge: Where and What to Eat During Eid al-Fitr

Local Knowledge: Where and What to Eat During Eid al-Fitr

Afghani breakfasts, Lebanese shortbreads stuffed with dates, Malay rendang and a festive Indonesian rice-cake salad.

Local Knowledge: Dodee Paidang

Local Knowledge: Dodee Paidang

The place to go for a ridiculously cheap Thai breakfast.

Local Knowledge: Colombia Organik

Local Knowledge: Colombia Organik

It looks like an average cafe, but it sells some of Sydney’s best Colombian food.

Local Knowledge: The German Butchery

Local Knowledge: The German Butchery

An award-winning German butcher serves meat platters, traditional frankfurter rolls and some incredible liver cheese.

Local Knowledge: Sinma Laksa House

Local Knowledge: Sinma Laksa House

One of the best Malaysian eats in Sydney can be found in Kingsford.

Local Knowledge: Club Uruguayo de Sydney

Local Knowledge: Club Uruguayo de Sydney

An open-fire South American barbecue, Uruguayan cakes and a really good vibe.

Local Knowledge: Java

Local Knowledge: Java

Forget the Deep South, have you ever tried Indonesian fried chicken?

Local Knowledge: Harbin Skewers

Local Knowledge: Harbin Skewers

The only place you’ll eat toast on a skewer.

Local Knowledge: Vinata's Hot Bread

Local Knowledge: Vinata's Hot Bread

One of the best $5 you’ll spend in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Art of Gelato Michelangelo

Local Knowledge: Art of Gelato Michelangelo

One of the best scoops of gelato in the world, and hardly anyone in Sydney has heard of it.

Local Knowledge: My Chinese Kitchen

Local Knowledge: My Chinese Kitchen

Try Huaiyang cuisine, one of China’s popular regional fare.

Local Knowledge: Fuji Japanese Bakery

Local Knowledge: Fuji Japanese Bakery

Try doughnuts filled with custard or apricot jam; glutinous rice dumplings dusted in soy-bean powder, and pillowy buns packed with mashed red beans.

Local Knowledge: Al Afrah

Local Knowledge: Al Afrah

Have you ever tried a znood? It’s like a deep-fried spring roll filled with clotted cream.

Local Knowledge: Ram’s Indian and Sri Lankan Food

Local Knowledge: Ram’s Indian and Sri Lankan Food

A hidden takeout joint is doing some of the best and cheapest Sri Lankan food in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Mezzapica

Local Knowledge: Mezzapica

Leichhardt’s 64-year-old Italian cake shop still makes the same cakes it did in 1952.

Local Knowledge: Cyrus the Great

Local Knowledge: Cyrus the Great

This Persian restaurant is busiest during its community’s New Year celebrations.

Local Knowledge: Rim Tanon

Local Knowledge: Rim Tanon

Join people from Northern Thailand eating the food of their childhood.

Local Knowledge: Filicudi

Local Knowledge: Filicudi

Five Dock’s 37-year-old southern-Italian darling.

Local Knowledge: Na Zdrowie

Local Knowledge: Na Zdrowie

Schnitzel, dumplings and vodka, served Polish style.

Local Knowledge: Athena Cake Shop

Local Knowledge: Athena Cake Shop

The same customers have been visiting Marrickville’s Greek cake shop for 40 years.

Local Knowledge: Bau Truong

Local Knowledge: Bau Truong

Vietnamese New Year feasting in Cabramatta.

Local Knowledge: Eunhasu

Local Knowledge: Eunhasu

The place to eat a Korean Lunar New Year feast.

Local Knowledge: Europe Grill

Local Knowledge: Europe Grill

A Macedonian feast in downtown Newtown.

Local Knowledge: Bò 7 Món Thanh Tâm

Local Knowledge: Bò 7 Món Thanh Tâm

Southern-style pho, chargrilled meats and raw beef from one of the inner city’s first Vietnamese chefs.

Local Knowledge: Gebran Lebanese Cuisine

Local Knowledge: Gebran Lebanese Cuisine

Lebanese banquets and breakfasts modelled on the cuisine of Lebanon’s grandmas.

Local Knowledge: Taipei Chef

Local Knowledge: Taipei Chef

It’s like walking into the very yellow living room of a veteran Taiwanese chef.

Local Knowledge: A Christmas Feast

Local Knowledge: A Christmas Feast

Polish poppy-seed cake, Chilean Christmas cake, pennies in pastry and an epic Portuguese Christmas feast you can go to tonight.

Local Knowledge: Albee’s Kitchen

Local Knowledge: Albee’s Kitchen

Malaysian breakfast from five in the morning, just like you’d find it on the streets in Kuching.

Local Knowledge: Red Pepper Bistro

Local Knowledge: Red Pepper Bistro

You can find the best fried chicken in Sydney at the back of a sports club in Strathfield.

Local Knowledge: Haymarket Thai Sweet Stall

Local Knowledge: Haymarket Thai Sweet Stall

A no-name, independent stall inside restaurant Thanon Khaosan serves just about every Thai sweet that exists.

Local Knowledge: Belmore Lebanese Bakery

Local Knowledge: Belmore Lebanese Bakery

The story behind one of Sydney’s most-beloved Lebanese bakeries.

Local Knowledge: Casa do Benfica

Local Knowledge: Casa do Benfica

At the back of this tennis club lies one of the inner west's best-kept secrets. An old-school restaurant frequented only by Portuguese people, tennis players and Marrickville locals who know to ask for the seafood rice.

Local Knowledge: Taj Indian Sweets

Local Knowledge: Taj Indian Sweets

Don’t leave without having a good look at the sweet selection; it’s one of the best in Sydney.

Local Knowledge: Willis Canteen

Local Knowledge: Willis Canteen

Willis Canteen’s gado gado is so popular people call hours in advance to make sure they get it.

Local Knowledge: Khushboo Sweets and Restaurant

Local Knowledge: Khushboo Sweets and Restaurant

Never tried Bengali food? Start here.

Local Knowledge: Mazar

Local Knowledge: Mazar

Relax on some pillows enjoying tea, dumplings and slow-cooked lamb shanks. This is North Afghani food.

Local Knowledge: Peranakan Place

Local Knowledge: Peranakan Place

Peranakan cuisine is one of the rarest in Sydney. One of two places in Sydney that serves it, Peranakan Place is in Auburn.

Local Knowledge: Casa Brasil

Local Knowledge: Casa Brasil

An old-school Brazilian churrascaria in Petersham, with roving meat skewers carved at the table.

Local Knowledge: Balkan Oven

Local Knowledge: Balkan Oven

Macedonian burek with buttermilk, thick coffees and homemade sweets.

Local Knowledge: Koh-Ya

Local Knowledge: Koh-Ya

A spot for traditional Japanese barbeque, where you can eat as much as you like for a fixed price.

Local Knowledge: Tandoori Hut

Local Knowledge: Tandoori Hut

Late-night Pakistani with a secret menu.

Local Knowledge: Ayam Goreng 99

Local Knowledge: Ayam Goreng 99

Sticky, tender Indonesian grilled chicken and Jakarta street food.

Local Knowledge: Yang Guo Fu Malatang

Local Knowledge: Yang Guo Fu Malatang

We learn how to order at this Dixon House Food Court stall.

Local Knowledge: Stra Haejangguk

Local Knowledge: Stra Haejangguk

Drinking food at night and hangover cures for breakfast from a Strathfield institution.

Local Knowledge: La Paula

Local Knowledge: La Paula

A Chilean bakery making empanadas and dulce de leche cakes for 30 years.

Local Knowledge: Desi Dhaba

Local Knowledge: Desi Dhaba

How much do you know about Fijian food?

Local Knowledge: Kebab Abu Ali

Local Knowledge: Kebab Abu Ali

Iraqi flat bread, sumac-encrusted lamb skewers and cardamom tea in Fairfield.

Local Knowledge: Tibetan Food

Local Knowledge: Tibetan Food

A roving stall that specialises in traditional Tibetan dumplings.

Local Knowledge: Battambang

Local Knowledge: Battambang

The best Khmer food in Sydney (according to every Cambodian we spoke to).

Local Knowledge: African Feeling

Local Knowledge: African Feeling

A hidden menu of Ghanaian specialities.

Local Knowledge: Dainava Lithuanian Club

Local Knowledge: Dainava Lithuanian Club

There’s (literally) only one place to eat Lithuanian food in Sydney, Bankstown’s Lithuanian Club.

Local Knowledge: Sizzling Fillo

Local Knowledge: Sizzling Fillo

If you love pork and you’ve never tried Filipino food, you’ve got a very happy future ahead of you.

Local Knowledge: Blue Elephant

Local Knowledge: Blue Elephant

A Sri Lankan restaurant with a secret menu full of surprises in Pennant Hills.

Local Knowledge: Darband

Local Knowledge: Darband

No-frills Persian meat and rice in Auburn.

Local Knowledge: Aaboll Cafe

Local Knowledge: Aaboll Cafe

Fermented pancakes, raw meat, spiced butter and pan-roasted coffee – if only every community in Sydney had a restaurant as dedicated to its cuisine as Aaboll cafe.

Local Knowledge: Lao Hui Min

Local Knowledge: Lao Hui Min

Find noodles stretched to order, thin-skinned dumplings and a whole roast lamb at Burwood's portal to China's north-west.

Local Knowledge: Chatkazz

Local Knowledge: Chatkazz

A new weekly series, Local Knowledge shines a light on the unassuming, authentic Sydney restaurants that are worthy of appreciation beyond the neighbourhoods they serve. First up, Indian street food in Harris Park.

Other Series

At Home: Cook

At Home: Cook

World Class Content 2017

World Class Content 2017

May 7–13, 2017 Sydney

May 7–13, 2017 Sydney

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