"The Argentine restaurant that tookSydneyby storm in 2010—and even rose from the ashes of a fire that originated in its charcoal grill—finally outgrew its Cleveland Street Surry Hills digs and reopened on Holt Street in late 2016. The old parilla and asado fire pits were transplanted to the new location, this time positioned behind the counter of the open kitchen, and the rockabilly vibe lives on, albeit in a bright, plant-filled, parquet-floored space decorated with vintage sports and movie posters. Old menu favorites like the grilled Wagyu skirt steak and deep-friedBrusselssprouts can now be paired with a seafood cocktail, or wood-fired pumpkin tamales smothered in mole. End with the flan or melon ice cream served in the rind."

"A wine bar with excellent eats Sydney is only just getting into the wine-bar-with-fantastic-food thing, but so far it's doing it extremely well. The new digs of sommelier and local wine expert Nick Hildebrandt and chef Brent Savage (the pair also own the more serious Bentley Bar) has been decked out by designer Pascale Gomes McNabb. It is dark and elegant; a beautiful, long, stool-lined counter runs from bar to kitchen, and the walls are lined with bottles from the 500-strong, leaning-towards-natural list. You can drop in for a glass of wine (the place has just won a best wine list award for 2014), but I'd recommend making the most of this wine-and-dine bar. A house-cured beef pastrami, made from beef tongue, is curled on a finger-length spelt crouton with pillowy goat's curd and pickle. Calamari is served with a black sausage puree and fresh broad beans."

"Beachside Dining This Hawkesbury river boathouse looks like it's come straight from a shoot with Vogue. Elegant and casual, fun and cheery, it's worth taking a day trip to Palm Beach for. Red-and-white awnings hang over charcoal-painted tables where the white umbrellas don’t reach. Tin pots of orchids and tulips sit on stools. It's lazy, albeit very busy (be prepared to queue), and linen, jeans and flip-flop clad diners order from a large blackboard. The signature beer battered flathead and chips are light and crispy, served in a little wooden box. The pot of herby Boston Bay mussels are small and sweet. For breakfast, the fluffy French toast, piled up with mixed berries and drizzled with maple syrup and mascarpone, and the Boathouse baked beans are hard to beat."

"Mexican bites, Sydney El Loco does an excellent taco for a fiver. A crunchy tangle of chopped cabbage, coriander, spring onion, and a spiced mayonnaise done in messy zigzags over the lot arrives at our table. Little cubes of "mystery" meat, offal perhaps, are tender and packed with flavour. El Loco’s safer selection of $5 tacos – chicken with sweet corn salsa, chilli marinated tofu, prawn and salsa verde and lemongrass beef, are also good. El Loco is a flip-flop, sand-in-the-shorts kind of place, though it tends to attract a suited or hipster crowd. Mexicana cactus and sunset mural walls suggest tequila is consumed to fit a general festive hot sun vibe, not just to get drunk. For the jalapeno margarita, the barman shakes up a shot each of Herradura Reposado Tequila, Cointreau, roasted jalapeno syrup, lime juice and a wash of Ilegal Mezcal agave with some clunky icecubes, and throws it in a clear plastic cup with some roasted jalapenos. It’s a sweet and acidic muddle of completely awesome. Two in our party get the Excelsior hot dogs ($9) because of ordering envy on a previous visit to El Loco. The foot-long dawg is a grilled pork Frankfurt in an almost-as-long soft bun. Picked jalepenos are hidden in there, and the top is laden with pico de gallo, a fresh finely chopped salsa of tomato, white onion, chilli and lime juice, then it’s squiggled with mayonnaise and so much cheese. Both diners held their bellies while I ordered another taco."

"Nose to Tail in Paddington Four in Hand, a gutsy pub-side restaurant, has a loyal local following of those who crave honest cooking. Paddington is hardly a culinary wasteland, but Colin Fassnidge’s bistro remains the area stalwart of unfancy yet brilliant dining. On-menu entrees are immaculate renditions of nose-to-tail food. Ginger-braised pig tail comes with prawn and crackling. Roast Flinders Island wallaby is served with local garlic and artichoke slivers of bonito fish, raw but for a smoky sear, are served in heavy black earthenware on heirloom tomato pieces, cubes of watermelon, thin sticks of dried seaweed and a subtle citrus dressing. Ingredients and techniques, especially in the main courses, are an almost wintery affair at times; lots of braising and slow roasting, with carrots and celery in abundance. The pub-style simple décor, a wall-long mirror flanked by an inky drawing of a squid, is a cozy and elegant match for the food. There’s ordering envy when we spot the Macleay Valley lamb shoulder special, slow roasted and huge. But the suckling pig with crisp tail, parsnip and sprouts gets its own jealous stares from nearby tables. Suckling pig and veal tongue also appear on the menu, executions of a philosophy of nose-to-tail eating, done well."

"Chef's Garden and Table, Central Coast A day trip from Sydney to Stefano Manfredi’s restaurant in the Central Coast national park, Manfredi at Bells, is worth the drive. The restaurant is sophisticated, with a casual coastal tilt. There's blue-and-white-striped awnings and starched white tablecloths, a sprawling garden outlook and the faint smell of the sea. The garden has a huge influence on the food the chef serves—he grows his own beans, tomatoes, arugula (rocket), silverbeet, chard, sorrel, onions and potatoes, and so much more. The garden spans about 500 square meters and supplies the restaurant with more than 15 percent of the produce on the menu. We visited the 50 free-range hens, which supply fresh eggs to the restaurant. Visitors can wander into the gardens and see the produce while they wait for their meal. Manfredi himself is often around to talk through the more usual vegetables, handing over leaves of sorrel or arugula to taste. Stay over in one of the little private cottages, which are quaint and luxurious. There's an outdoor pool for warmer months. Or pop down to the local beaches for crashing waves."

"Ever Munched on Atriplex Nummularia? Commonly known as Oldman Saltbush, this plant is native to Australia and adapts well to arid environments with saline soil. Grain, the new bar at Sydney 's Four Seasons Hotel, serves up the fried twigs, and you better believe it: they're surprisingly delicious! (Too dark to take pictures in the bar–the Four Seasons kindly let me use their image above.) http://www.grainbar.com.au/"

"A scoop of Italy inSydney, this gelato mecca has foodies and bloggers queuing up all week. Go for the salted-caramel-and-white-chocolate gelato, one of the store’s best sellers, or try the “Poached Figs in Marsala” flavor, which is beautifully sweet and infused with a real fig taste. Also not to be missed is the ice cream cake cabinet, which features a dazzling display of colorful, futuristic-looking creations. Gelato Messina’s original location is in Darlinghurst, but outposts can be found in Surry Hills, Pyrmont, and Bondi Beach, among many other neighborhoods."

"Sourdough and Tarts, Surry Hills Queues consistently spill out onto the footpath at this little corner shop. A rusted metalwork sign above the tiny bakery café, situated on the leafy Bourke Street Surry Hills, reads ‘Boulangerie’. The creme brulee tarts are locally famous, and we're here all the time for a loaf of sourdough (plain, seeded, hazelnut and raisin, fig and cranberry or potato and rosemary). Nab a corner booth seat if you can."

"Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, Sydney Overlooking iconic Bondi Beach, Icebergs is arguably Sydney’s most scenic restaurant. The food, from local shrimp to braised beef cheeks, lives up to the setting. 1 Notts Ave., Bondi Beach, 61/(0) 2-9365-9000. This appeared in the August/September 2013 issue."

"Speakeasies and secret bars are an ongoing trend in Australian cities, namely Melbourne andSydney. Down an unassuming alley off Crown Street, behind an equally unassuming doorway, lies Shady Pines Saloon—if it weren’t for the alcohol license on the door and the bouncer outside, you would never know it was there. Inside, the décor is reminiscent of an old hunting lodge or saloon in the American West, with mounted animal heads, vintage beer trays, dim lighting, Johnny Cash on the stereo, and peanut shells coating the floor. Mustachioed bartenders mix craft cocktails and can advise you on their selection of bourbons and whiskeys. The fresh-pressed apple juice and whiskey is always tasty, while the mystery moonshine in the “leg bottle” makes for an adventurous choice."

"If you are looking to drink impeccable coffee while enjoying some people-watching, Bills is the ultimate Sydney pit stop. A small empire spanning three Sydney neighborhoods and a growing clutch of international locations, it's the place to head to for a leisurely late breakfast or brunch. Be sure to order the famous ricotta hotcakes served with banana and honeycomb butter—or if you're feeling savory, the sweet-corn fritters with avocado and roasted tomato are hard to beat."

"One of Sydney 's most celebrated cocktail bars has that speakeasy style down—dapper mixologists, glass cabinets, jazzy sound track, moody lighting—but it also delivers on the libations front. Expect inventive riffs on classic negronis, smoky mescal concoctions infused with tea and bitters and of-the-moment cocktails like a Kentucky-inspired "kick-starter" with bacon bourbon. There's also a small bar menu and a comprehensive, verging-on-scholarly whiskey list."

"Red Lantern, Surry Hills, Sydney “Our restaurant’s dining room is rustic, and we hope it feels warm and inviting, like you’re visiting our home.”— Luke Nguyen"

"The name hints at the experience, but it doesn’t quite do it justice. Pretty Beach House is not just pretty; it’s stunning. Nestled into a seven-and-a-half-acre swath of semitropical Bouddi National Park, roughly a 90-minute drive or 20-minute seaplane ride from the Harbor City, Pretty Beach House is an intimate retreat immersed in nature. Four distinctive accommodations, from the copper-sheathed, wood-beamed Bayview to the two-level Retreat pavilion that’s nothing less than its name suggests, encourage guests to disconnect, soak in their bathtubs or outdoor plunge pools, and spin a record from the in-room vinyl collection. That is, if they’re not already out exploring the wild landscapes. Owners Brian and Karina Berry, who run the beloved Bells at Killcare retreat nearby, know a thing or two about hospitality, farm-to-table restaurants, and experiences that offer a sense of place. Every evening at Pretty Beach House, guests witness a traditional welcome ceremony by a member of the Darkinjung Aboriginal tribe, who might share some of the indigenous culture that steeps the land. Afterward, a luxury Italian dinner is served inside the main house—which is crafted from local mud bricks, hand-cut sandstone, and rail pylons from the 1880s. Original works by Australian artists such as Arthur Boyd, Sidney Nolan, and John Olsen frame floor-to-ceiling windows. Outside, the peninsula’s peaks and waterways beckon guests out the next day—to hike, kayak, or ride the resort’s yacht to get closer to land and sea."

"Smoking eats in Chippendale They say: “where there’s smoke, there’s fire”. In the case of LP’s Quality Meats, there’s definitely a whole lot of hot stuff smoldering away behind sliding glass doors, down an otherwise quiet lane, tucked away in Sydney’s new darling neighbourhood for food, Chippendale. At the heart of LP’s Quality Meats pumps Australia’s only Southern Pride Smoker. Shipped straight from Tennessee, this beast of a machine creates quality, smoked meats and treats under the watchful and masterful control of eponymous and renowned head-chef/owner, Luke Powell. Start with things cured and the cold cuts. Thin slivers of belly ham will convert any hardened vegetarian, and get a bowl of pickles to cut through the meat festival that’s about to kick off. Applewood smoked salmon is served with crème fraiche, dill and capers, and the smoked beef tongue with bone marrow and eschallot vinairgrette is not to be missed. The corn on the cob is chewy, popping with juice, and roasted in palm-sized pieces. Sides include radishes with bottarga and Dijon vinaigrette. Heads are filled with loud, excellent music and there’s a fun, vibrant vibe. Don’t leave without having the pouding chomeur with vanilla icecream for dessert, it’s heart stoppingly good; one for sharing."

"Designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, the Sydney Opera House was inspired by its dramatic setting on Bennelong Point in Sydney Harbour, a location that’s long been sacred to the native Gadigal people. While construction took 16 years, including four years to figure out the spherical solution to the icon’s soaring sails, any controversies melted away when the masterpiece was completed in 1973. The same outside-the-box thinking that built the shell-shaped sculpture seeps through its walls today in the form of boundary-pushing opera, theater, and dance as well as contemporary music and mind-opening lectures. The landmark is also home to the beloved Opera Bar and Bennelong Restaurant upstairs, where diners can eat pavlova shaped like the landmark in which they sit."