Sydney recommendations please!

[cranky]

Hello all, I hope you have started recovering from the silly season and are set to get stuck into a new year of work

I am hoping that some kind folks could do a short list of restaraunts, brasseries, and the like worth patronising while my wife and I are in Sydney for a week in February, hopefully in the vein of the great reply about Melbourne from Andy a while back.

We are staying in the CBD near the Rocks, and hope to stay reasonably close to our centre of operations, so a nice place in the Blue Mountains may not be the most appropriate recommendation

We have already booked a private room at Shiki for our second night (hmmmm, many fine sakes!), and enjoyed Doyle's at Circular Quay last time we were in town, may go back this time. Suprisingly good house semillion, and one of the first places in town to offer Little Creatures Pale Ale

Favourite styles inc. Japanese, Thai, Seafood, and Steak, but occasional fancy fusion or lighter French is good too.

Decent wine by the glass is pretty important, as otherwise I may have to drink whole bottles by myself over a meal. Okay sometimes, but not every night for a week! I would like to get out during the day, too!!! I don't want to have to go to Taronga Park or jetboating with a horror hangover

Also... good Cafes for breakfasts or lunches, and spots with good cake & coffee for afternoon teas would be well appreciated!

Looking forward to some good replies... If anybody wants some advice on Perth, I can return the favour!

Cheers

[bacchaebabe]

Just a quickie if you're staying near the rocks and do end up with a hangover. The Bourse cafe in Bridge St (in the Stock exchange and just a short jaunt up George St from the rocks) has an excellent breakfast deal of a bacon and egg roll (huge with lashings of bacon) and a coffee take away for only $5. Was $4 until recently! My preferred hangover option and a very cheap breakkie.

For hatted options for dinner with very good wine lists, I can recommend both Quay and Cruise which are at opposite ends of the Overseas Passenger terminal in the rocks but are both quite pricey but worth it. Cruise is cheaper.

Atelier in Newtown (can get there by train quickly) is a great neghbourhood mod oz restaurant. One hat I think and cheap (comparitively) and BYO. Get out at newtown station, go left and cross the road almost immediately before the town hall pub. Head down King street to the left and it's about 20 - 50 metres along.

If you're looking for a great lunch, there's an amazing sandwich shop in a small arcade on the corner of george and bridge sts. It's on Bridge st proper and you go down the steps and it's next to the STA travel shop in the arcade. The biggest, freshest, yummiest sandwiches you'll ever have for $7 each and worth every cent. Great to buy and take down to circular quay and eat in the park near the MCA. My favorite is the Italian meatballs but it's not on every day. The chicken schnitzel is very good but I haven't had a bad one from them.

[cranky]

Thanks Kris, good stuff.
One question... hatted? Is that a Sydney guide equivalent of Michelin stars?

Have now changed and booked hotel... closer to middle of town, Castlereagh near Hyde Park.

[Andy]

Thanks Kris, good stuff.
One question... hatted? Is that a Sydney guide equivalent of Michelin stars?

"Hatted" would refer to the Sydney Good Food Guide, an annual publication with a Melbourne sister (Fairfax publications). Generally high class guides that are very useful. To be awared a hat (or two, or three) indicates a high quality restaurant - similar idea to assesment a la Michelin guide.

While certainly no expert on Sydney restauraunts, the town does posess the establishment I would like to visit more than any other in Australia - Tetsuya's. You say you like Japanese, and occasionally fusion - this would be perfect as the big treat. I have a feeling that they have an excellent wine list (with several by the glass) but may allow BYO as well. Others here would know better???

Another which sounds brilliant is Billy Kwong - but I understand you can't make reservations and may have to line up. It is BYO though . Anyone else got some thoughts on this one?

[Davo]

Hey Cranky, if the last Perth offline is anything to go by, and if the same rebrobates attend, you will not be in any fit state to travel by March, let alone Feb.

A couple of less flash food joints I have really enjoyed as a tourist in Sydney are:-
1. the Glenmore Hotel above the Argyle Cut ( up above the Rocks) which had reasonable food, cheap beer and a view from the roof beergarden that is sensational.
2. The Watson Bay Hotel beer garden for lunch. Great seafood cooked to order (it is owned by Doyles) plenty of beer and a great view up the harbour. A quick walk, before you get pissed, takes you to either the South Head or the Gap or both if you are interested. The ferry goes direct from Circular Quay, leaves about 11am and back at 3pm.


Also do a walk along King Street, Newtown. Plenty to pick from and as Kris says, just a train ride away.

[Guest]

Billy Kwongs is fantastic...as previously mentioned you can't book but there's a pub across the road and they'll call you up there when a table comes up...try the crispy twice cooked duck in blood plum sauce.....awesome!

Just down the road from Billy K's is Tabou a little French bistro that has a great $30 three course lunch special which is super value.....good for dinner as well....

Japanese.....Wasavie at 5-ways in Paddington is brilliant....tiny and no bookings taken....put your name down go to the renowned Royal Hotel about 40 foot down the road (my local) and wait for the phone call, it's next door to 5-way cellars which has a great selection of wines to take in.....try the pork belly....it's fantastic

Dave

[bacchaebabe]

I can definitely recommend a visit to Tetsuya's

http://www.tetsuyas.com

Quite pricey at $175 but it is a 10 course degustation and you can BYO or they have a matched by the glass wine option or you can buy bottles off their extensive and not too ridiculous (for high end anyway) wine list. It's that once a year special occasion and definitely worth it. The signature confit of ocean trout is almost always on the menu.

Can also recommend both the Glenmore in the rocks, up the stairs near the bridge climb, and the Watsons Bay hotel on a sunny day. If you go to the Glemore, make sure you get up to the roof to enjoy a schooner or five.

Billy Kwongs is also great and BYO. Get there at 6pm to get a table or do the waiting thing at the pub. Tabou (527 Crown St) is great food too and BYO but a hefty corkage for the type of restaurant. If you go there make sure you have the Creme Brulee - best in Sydney! Both on Crown St in Surry Hills. Also very good there is Marque (355 Crown St). http://www.marquerestaurant.com.au/ Almost next door to Billy Kwongs but a fine diners and bookings are recommended. Also BYO. Another of Syndey great institutions is Claudes at the top end of Oxford St in Paddington.

http://www.claudes.org/

Another fine diner allowing BYO. I would think more Grange has been consumed there than any other Sydney restaurant.

Another one along the lines of Billy Kwongs is Longrain, 85 Commonwealth St Surry Hills. A communal table but great food and great atmosphere: http://www.longrain.com.au/ You could walk from your hotel - it's about half way between your hotel and central station - maybe 15 minute walk depending on how fast you walk.

King St in Newtown has a myriad of restaurants, heaps of Thai but heaps of everything. Good for a shopping stroll and then dinner. Most shops are open quite late every night too. Most restaurants have mains between $10 and $15 and all are good and tasty. I can recommend Simply Thai for a cheap and cheerful Thai. There's also a dendy movie theatre there to catch any of the latest independant films. It's also licensed so you can take a beer or glass of wine in. Plenty of good cafes too. Book stores by the dozen too. The busiest part of Newtown is to the right of the train station as you come out but you can go left for quite a way too without being bored.

If you have any specific questions feel free to ask. Enjoy your trip.

[Mike M]

Cranky,

Couple of suggestions from a Yank that's had the good fortune to travel to OZ over 30 times since my first visit in 1978. I usually show up annually and start the visit in Sydney, and will stay in the CBD, near Circular Quay and The Rocks.

One of my favorite restaurants for wonderful Aussie seafood is The Pier in Rose Bay. It's a taxi ride away, but for my money, the food is better there than at Doyle's. The Pier will be quieter and have better service, and every time I've eaten there, the meals have been wonderful. Doyle's has the reputation - it's big, busy, noisy, but it doesn't always deliver value for money.

Another suggestion close to where you're staying is One Alfred Street. It's a smallish bistro restaurant at Circular Quay located at --- 1 Alfred Street. It's only open weeknights and for lunch. They have a good selection of wines by the glass, and the meals are good. It is actually right next door to The Australian Wine Centre, where you can go before or after your meal to search through a very good selection of Oz's best wines, although some are priced higher than they should be.

There a few interesting places as you stroll along George Street in The Rocks, including the good but pricey Rockpool. There are a number of restaurants along The Waterfront, but pretty touristy. There are other much better places than those.

Sydney's a great place for good eating choices, too many choices and never enough time. You've got plenty of good suggestions here. The difficult part is to sort through them all and make some bookings. Happy hunting!

Cheers dears.

[cranky]

So, we made it there and back okay, but I've only just now made time to type a bit.

First up, a great big THANK YOU to all who replied.

We managed to get to a few of the suggested spots, and found some others which cannot go unmentioned.

The Glenmore does indeed have reasonable food at good prices, and would have had a great view of the Opera House if not for the QE2 being parked in the way!
The Watsons Bay hotel looked great from the ferry, but Mrs cranky wanted to get back to Double Bay to visit Jan Logan Jewellery (very nice, with a wide range of prices. The credit card is happy with her selection of semi-precious stuff )
A very cheap harbour cruise, though!

The Doyle's at Circular Quay was adequate for a decent seafood lunch on another day. Too tired to travel further at the time, probably should have.

We didn't feel up to the intensity of Tetsuya's this time, but can HIGHLY recommend a private room at Shiki if you would like fancy traditional Japanese. We did pass on the NY's special of live lobster sashimi, but it was delicious grilled with a salt crust.

Another very good japanese, a lot cheaper, is Sakae on Liverpool St. Licensed, too.

The best coffee I had was at the Retro Cafe in the State Theatre. Good breakies at a low price, too.

Avoid the cafe in the ladies DJ's like a corked Mathew Lang. Crap. Only survives on little old ladies who don't have the energy to walk out after they sit down and look at the menu.

The Bathers Pavillion in Balmoral was fantastic! Only tried the cafe side, though we dressed for the fancy restaraunt side. Still great food with a stunning view (during daylight... later, lots of gulls on the shark net!)

The Australian Wine Centre was well worth a look, got a couple of bottles which are impossible to find on the west coast, but Mrs c. didn't want to have lunch with the young suits who were all over One Alfred St. So what if I had a Cramps T-shirt and daggy shorts on! I am sure that the staff would have still been professional...

The Ultimo Wine Centre was well worth the walk (well, I thought it was worth it... ) but I didn't really know anything about any of the imports which were actually in my price range . I did score a Wantirna cab though (which, of course, I had never seen over here in the most isolated capital city in the world )

Taronga Park Zoo was great, will be even nicer once the massive building works are done. All the food outlets were a bit sad, though. Over priced, under quality, poor choice. Oh well, they do have a captive clientele...

Finally, I can recommend the Central Park Hotel for location and cost. No room service, but they do have complimentary apples and minties in the foyer!

Cheers
Not-all-that-cranky-really.

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