Sydney is that kind of place where you can savour mouth-watering delicacies from popular chefs, whilst also enjoying the expansive views of the harbour city. There is a good list of award-winning restaurants spread evenly through the metropolitan, with exceptional service and curated wine lists complementing the scrumptious dining experience. Here are some of the highly rated restaurants in the city, which you can easily access via minibus charter in Sydney, especially when you are out for a group dining experience.
Hubert
This Frenchified restaurant from the bar boys of the Swillhouse Group is led by one of the most innovative chefs in the city, Daniel Pepperell. The moment you enter this elegant space through the wooden doors, it’s a different world altogether. This candle-lit restaurant is filled with music and buzzing with people all the time. There are a couple of low-lit bars, with bar stools and intimate booth seating to make you comfortable. The atmosphere at night is so good that you would just want to come here for a late night drink.
Chicken items dominate the menu, and you get the entire bird drenched in tarragon-infused gravy with confit button mushrooms, sautéed shiitake and porcini bread sauce. The inexplicably juicy and pillowy-tender breast is seriously good, while the steak tartare with a pile of crunchy fries. The Rabbit Rillettes are topped with Melba toasts, and the cocktail, wine list is exemplary. And then, there is Melon en Surprise and crème caramel as the desserts.
Automata
There is no place like Automata, offering a menu, which is both challenging and utterly delectable. Clayton Wells is the man behind this phenomenon, being one of the most unique gastronomic voices in the city. Take a dish of finely sliced, raw scallop paired with sansho pepper and Cape gooseberries. The creamy and sweet and Morton Bay bugs come with dulse seaweed, earthy poached rhubarb, crisp fried capers and silky eggplant puree. The vegetarian dish just outclasses everything else, including raw Swish brown mushrooms and Roasted shiitake coupled with a spattering of thyme, pureed celeriac, rubble of toasted buckwheat and fermented Swiss brown butter sauce.
Long Chim
Thai food has been a cuisine of international level for many years, and the city of Sydney has long prided itself on delivering the best. David Thompson created the Long Chim Empire to take Thai culinary to an all new level. The sort of menu offered here will either see you throwing cash to try out everything or paralyse you with options. The $45 set menu is perfect to get a bit of everything in reasonable portions. Don’t forget to get your hands on the famous marinated pork skewers that are sweetened and tendered with black pepper. It features constantly on the menu, even if the other dishes change. The pan-fried chive dumplings are mouth-watering, while the fish cake decorated with coriander, cucumber, ginger ribbons and fried red chilli is inexplicably good.
Billy Kwong
Billy Kwong is a sensational fusion of native Australian and Chinese cuisine, which combines the warmth of ambiance with the vigour of an open kitchen, offering a chance for the visitors to come and dine in a nurturing atmosphere. To start things rolling, get the saltbush cakes, whereby crispy pastry is stuffed with saltbush leaves and chilli sauce on the edge. Don’t miss out on the steamed mini-pork buns that are filled with meat marinated in honey and served with more of fermented chilli sauce. The wide selection of drinks also complements the culinary delights.
Bar Brosé
This is a not just a bar, but also a restaurant, thanks to the luscious food that is so good, you can’t avoid, even if you are here only for drinks. The wine list vibes perfectly with the ambiance at this new joint from the ACME crew. This elegant space has three dining rooms designed by Luchetti Krelle, but it’s the back room that catches our attention with a glass-walled private dining area and light-rimmed mirrors.
The comte-imbued choux is a must order here, as it melts on your tongue like a cheesy cloud. Also, savour the weekly terrine made from the head of the pig. Remember to order it warmed up, so as to get softened meat, served with sourdough and acidic pickles. The richness of the meat is highlighted by its tenderness, as its flecked with tarragon, giving it a different tone.
Porteno
Ever since the time Porteno opened its iron gates in the year 2010, it has been an awesome ride for them, and why not, when you are being offered a meal at $3 per person. Back in those times, there were long queues down the Cleveland Street and people would wrestle to get those Brussels sprouts and 8-hour wood fired pig. 6 years down the lane, pate is still the best starting point, as your bread roll arrives with chimichurri and a bowl of olive oil to refresh things up. Once your hunger cravings are satisfied, it’s time to wet your throat. The Sommelier and also the co-owner, Joe Valore, has curated one of the finest wine lists in town, with a South American twist.
Cho Cho San
Cho Cho San probably has one of the best interior decors in the city, thanks to the exceptional work of the designer George Livissianis. It’s an amalgamation of Japanese refinement and Nordic Cool with pale birch plywood furnishings, whitewashed bricks and polished concrete. The ceiling is made up of a light box that can be faded and brightened at the touch of finger. There’s also hidden acoustic foam, which allows you to hear conversations in spite of the place being packed.
Talking about food, kick off things with pork katsu buns, which are literally panko-encrusted shredded pork, fried to perfection. Try scampi, if you are looking for something clean. It is served raw in a light ponzu dressing, along with kohlrabi matchsticks, which elevate the silky and soft texture of the shellfish. For something purer, taste the king prawn charred over coal and blended in kombu butter.