Alice Ellis

Ever been to Auburn's Gallipoli Mosque?

Qudos Bank Arena is being rebranded as Afterpay Arena

It's worth a trip over the bridge for one of these rotisserie pork rolls

Australia’s biggest gardens (Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan) come complete with lakes, swamp wallabies and native fruit orchards

Our up-to-date insider's guide to the best restaurants in Sydney in May 2026. They're all perfect for a special occasion.

These's a lot of choice in Sydney's Coolest Neighbourhood – our editors help you narrow it down to some of the must-have eats Wonder Skewers is a lively Chinese barbecue skewer restaurant on Burwood Road that is open till midnight every night. From chargrilled lamb to flavour-packed pork belly, skewers are marinated, then grilled until tender with that signature charred edge, before being finished with spices and served on a hotplate . The set-up is casual and communal, with a focus on picking a mix of skewers to share. This place is famous for its generous servings of Northern Chinese-style freshly pulled noodles with serious chew and flavour. The signature biang biang noodles with chilli oil, meat and veg are a must-order. Bonus: i f you're feeling extra hungry, they even offer free noodle refills! As the name suggests, this place serves food from the Xi'an region in north-western China (Shaanxi cuisine), where handmade noodles are a big feature. The biang biang noodles here are renowned, and just $15.80 for a generous bowl. The flat but thick and silky noodles come topped with stir-fried meat, diced veg, oil and chilli, which you mix in to coat the noodles with glossy flavour. More than just a place to eat, Burwood Chinatown is a neon-lit maze of hawker-style eateries and buzzing day-to-night energy that has become one of Sydney's biggest dining destinations. W ith loads of different Asian cuisines packed into the precinct, y ou can graze your way through everything from dumplings to yakitori, Korean street snacks, malatang and egg tarts. The best bit: the Night Markets, which take over the outdoor grounds from Thursday to Sunday from 5-10pm. Open until 1:30am every night of the week, this is the place for northern Chinese comfort-food hits. The menu features street food including Chinese savoury pancakes, Chinese "pies" and dumplings, as well as hearty soups. This casual spot delivers the kind of affordable, satisfying eats Burwood does best. This dumpling chain originated in Shanghai more than two decades ago. They are now in Burwood, Newtown and Five Dock, and they specialise in juicy soup dumplings. It's also worth ordering the pan fried pork and shepherd's purse dumplings. This café's grey hygge-meets-wabi-sabi interiors are so minimalistic that at first glance, the space appears unfurnished. But it was intentionally designed like this to create a zen zone where guests can fully focus on their chosen brew. Pillar takes their coffee seriously – it's one of the only cafés in the Inner West that pours cult-followed boutique roaster Skittle Lane for their house-batch brews. The food menu is also intentionally simplistic, ensuring it never outshines the specialty line-up of single-origin coffee – they serve toasties and sweets, but it's all good. The decor is stripped-back (and they don't have a website or Instagram account), but this family-run restaurant serves excellent Xi'an-style dumplings and thick, chewy noodles. Come for golden, pan-fried pork potstickers with a frilly lace, juicy pork and chive steamed dumplings, and garlicky, oil-splashed noodles. Dishes range from $10-$20. Lovin' Lamb is a bustling skewer eatery – more of a takeaway than Wonder Skewers – at the Burwood Road entry to Burwood Chinatown. They turn out some of the area's most addictive grab-and-go street food. Specialising in Xinjiang-style lamb skewers, the meat is grilled over open charcoal until smoky and tender, then dusted generously with cumin, salt and chilli if you're up for it. It's the perfect place for an afternoon, pre-dinner or post-dinner snack as you're walking by. This is a large, all-you-can-eat hot pot restaurant built around the classic communal dining experience, where you cook fresh ingredients directly in simmering broth at your table. Choose from a wide spread of thinly sliced meats, seafood, vegetables, noodles and more, alongside a variety of soup bases ranging from mild and savoury to more spicy options. It's known for its huge variety and self-serve stations, making it a go-to for group dinners and long, social meals. For more than two decades, Sahara By The Park has been serving generous Turkish feasts opposite Burwood Park (on the ground floor of Westfield), earning a loyal following for its charcoal-grilled meats, freshly baked pide and colourful spread of meze plates. Whether you're settling in for a family feast, grabbing a quick lunch after shopping, or wanting to start the day with a big brekkie, the warm hospitality and crowd-pleasing menu make it one of Burwood's enduring dining institutions. This is a highly rated Hong Kong-style hot pot restaurant, but they're also known for their d esserts. They have everything from Chinese hot desserts to Cantonese cold ones – plus a mango, papaya and even durian menu. At SixPo Hot Pot , where ingredients – everything from meat and seafood to mushrooms and corn – arrive skewered and ready to be dunked into bubbling Sichuan-style broths. The self-serve format keeps things lively and interactive. At the time of our visit, they had an epic all-you-can eat special for just $45 per person to celebrate the restaurant's 9th anniversary! Doodee King is Burwood's go-to spot for bold, punchy Thai flavours, in a fun, bright setting with yellow and red accents. For a chain restaurant (it also has locations in Castle Hill, Chatswood, D arling Quarter, Hornsby, North Sydney and Haymarket), the food is surprisingly good. We particularly love the pork belly with morning glory (pictured), the hot som tum papaya salad, and the crying tiger sliced steak. This place is that popular that it's vibing at 3 or 4pm – plenty of tables are full at that in-between-lunch-and-dinner hour. As well as the regular sashimi, sushi rolls and noodles, they offer Japanese sandos – like the wagyu beef sando on Japanese shokupan bread with katsu sauce and kombu seasoning. The sushi rolls come generously packed with salmon, and we particularly like the miso wagyu beef yakitori stick – beef brushed with housemade miso glaze and grilled over charcoal. This nostalgic Hong Kong-style restaurant has locations in Chatswood, Haymarket, Eastwood and Burwood. Get around Kowloon Cafe's hits, including its crispy butter pineapple bun and stir-fried black bean beef and rice noodles. Want a sweet treat? Kowloon Cafe's signature Hong Kong-style French toast will hit the spot. Think: two super thick slices of white bread toasted until golden brown, topped with melted butter, drizzled in sweet and creamy condensed milk, and served with honey and maple syrup in case you feel like going to town. This popular Vietnamese eatery specialises in northern-style Hanoi pho, where the emphasis is on a clear, deeply flavoured broth. The signature beef pho arrives steaming hot with silky rice noodles, tender slices of beef and an aromatic stock that has earned a loyal following among Sydney pho devotees. It's the kind of place that works equally well for a quick lunch, a comforting meal on a cold Sydney day, or a late-night feed (it's open till 10.30pm most nights). Ever tried one of these Japanese pastries? You'll find Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tart stores in Shanghai, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei and Malaysia – as well as in different parts of Australia. One of their Sydney stores is here in Burwood. So, what do these tarts taste like? The base is a sweet , shortbread pastry, which is contrasted with a buttery yellow filling, reminiscent of a cheese spread from your childhood. The cheese flavour isn't bite-y like a cheddar you'd find in other savoury tarts or soft like ricotta, but is somewhere (oddly) in between. Nev Bagriyanik and his wife Zeyneb opened their first Hakiki ice cream parlour (in Newtown) to bring the traditional sweets of their hometown of Maras to the Inner West. It was so popular, they opened an outpost in Burwood. Expect sour cherry, Turkish delight, date, pistachio and the simple combination of milk and sugar to flavour your iced confections. They use salep, a flour made from orchid root that gives Turkish ice cream its super tacky consistency.

These are the best places for after-dark fun in the Randwick, Coogee and Maroubra areas Kalyx is a late-night live music venue, open 6.30pm to 3am Friday and Saturday, and 7pm to midnight on Tuesdays. The two-storey lounge and club has retro bohemian decor and a diverse gig line-up – check out what's on over here . We also love that it's pokies-free. With a distinctive Art Deco design and impressive sound system, they've been puttin' on the Ritz here since 1937. This family-owned six-screen cinema is both a local landmark and an important hub of film culture in Australia. It's an excellent venue for catching the latest mainstream movie releases and retrospectives, along with off-beat cult classics and arthouse films – and even live performances! This heritage building was first erected in 1887, with several bars and The Royal Bistro, which serves elevated pub classics. They have dinner specials, including a $20 chicken schnitzel on Mondays and a $23 lamb shank on Tuesdays. Get Spritzes for $14 and cocktails for $18. The Lounge Bar is open till 2am Thurs-Sat, 1am Mon-Wed and midnight on Sundays. Bat Country is a neighbourhood bar inspired by legendary journo Hunter S. Thompson. Settled opposite the Ritz Cinema it stands out among the cafes and suburban shops at The Spot. Get well-crafted cocktails, a list of local and international wines as well as craft beers. When we visited, the menu was focused on share-style dishes and good drinking accompaniments like plates of prosciutto with dill pickles. Love to party Irish style? Jimmy's is your place. Go for Irish food (they even have a spice bag burger!) and a well-poured pint of Guinness. It's open until midnight every night except Sunday (when it closes at 10pm). The Coaches has been pouring beers in Randwick since 1864. These days, they have three bars: a sports bar, lounge bar and a fairly leafy beer garden. Take advantage of one of their $18 weekday lunch or dinner specials. And the best bit? They're open proper late – until 5am Friday and Saturday nights, 4am Monday to Thursday nights, and 2am Sunday nights. The DOG (DOG stands for Duke of Gloucester) is a solid put with dozens of beer taps, good pub grub, plenty of screens for watching sport, and a weekday happy hour – from 4-6pm Mon-Fri, you can get $7.50 schooners and $10 pints of select house beers, $7.50 house spirits, $7.50 house wine, $15 Aperol Spritzes and $18 cocktails. It's open till 2am Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights – and closes a bit earlier on the other days. Burger 10 might just look like a burger joint, but it's open until 10.45pm most nights of the week, and they have some great drink specials, including beer and wine from $9 a glass. The burgers are good, but they also serve nachos and quesadillas, mixed grill plates and meal deals. It's a decent cheap eat. Tucked near the Ritz Cinema at The Spot, The Spanish Fly has been bringing Mediterranean-inspired tapas, cocktails and lively atmosphere to Randwick for many years. The menu is built for sharing, with classic Spanish-style small plates, seafood dishes and chargrilled meats designed to be paired with a glass of wine or one of the bar's signature cocktails. Just try to walk past the pretty Dolce Fiori frontage (covered in greenery) without wanting to stop by for an Aperol Spritz – either outside under one of the bright-orange umbrellas, or inside the elegant dining room that transports you to Italy. They have an extensive cocktail list, which heroes Italian drinks. If you're after a late-night feed, this pizza restaurant is open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays (but only until 9pm every other night). Arthur's has been making pizzas since 1970, and they have locations across Sydney, so they know what they're doing when it comes to a good slice. Due to its proximity to the UNSW campus, this is a student destination. They're also dog friendly. And this is a popular spot for late-night karaoke – every Thursday night from 10pm, you can belt out your favourite tunes in front of a crowd. This is the home of the South Sydney Junior League Club, and offers everything the senior version might provide: a fitness centre, function and entertainment spaces, plus multiple bars and eateries. The large Eastern Suburbs venue also hosts public events, regular games nights and screenings of the footy. It's more convenient to get to now, thanks to the light rail that stops nearby. This four-level pub in a restored heritage building features multiple bar and dining areas. They have food specials, including $22 sirloin on Tuesday nights and $18 chicken schnitzels on Wednesdays – plus $5.50 beers from 4-7pm on Saturdays (cheers to that!). They're open until 3am Thursdays to Saturdays. The Roundhouse (in the University of NSW) is actually one of Sydney's OG venues, having been host to live concerts, film premieres and parties since the 1960s. Check out what's on over here Being by the beach is all well and good but once the sun goes down, the surfboards, goggles and togs get put away and those sun-kissed bodies need a place to let off steam. And that place is the Coogee Bay Hotel. The Bay has no lack of loyal followers. The Clovelly Hotel's pretty Art Deco past is seen in the beautiful lighting above the Lounge Bar. To feel like you're near the ocean, take the stairs to the second level and out to the beer garden with views (of sorts) out to sea. And this is a Swans-friendly venue for AFL fans. When the Sydney sunshine revs up, you're hard-pressed to find an opening in the beer garden. Little Jack Horner is a colourful beach cafe across the street from the Goldstein Reserve that opens bright and early at 6am. But then the revelry continues on into the night – they're open until midnight on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. At this slick, Mediterranean-leaning wine bar and restaurant you can keep it classic with cheese and charcuterie if you're down for simple snacking in the front bar, or go hard and follow some freshly shucked Sydney rock oysters with a bowl of Alaskan king crab pasta or MBS 5+ Wagyu scotch fillet with brandy Dianne sauce and crisp king browns. As the name suggests, they have a large wine list (400 labels that span Australian and European drops). This multi-level party palace has something for everyone. You'll find downstairs heaving with everyone from young families to long-lunch crews thanks to a wood-fired pizza oven, oyster bar and playground kitted out with ping-pong tables, giant Scrabble board and blocks. Then there's the rooftop, with 270-degree beach views. This cheap and cheerful waterfront venue boasts an all-glass facade with uninterrupted ocean views, plus other spaces downstairs. If you need somewhere to go late at night in the 'Bra, this is probably the place, since they're open until 3am every night except Sunday (when they close at midnight). Southend is the only motel in Maroubra, but it's also a family-friendly bistro with live music and other entertainment. They offer a menu of bistro classics, plus Irish favourites including Irish chicken curry, chips with McDonnells curry sauce and cheese, and spice bags. This Italian-inspired restaurant and bar sits across from the gorgeous stretch of sand that is Maroubra beach. It was opened by locals Georgette Unger and Patrick Agostinelli (originally from Valtellina). The duo wanted to create a relaxed yet elegant seaside venue that's suited for special celebrations as much as it is for a post-surf Spritz and pizza. Note they close at 9.30pm though, by which time you'll need to move onto one of these other joints. Don't expect to have an all-nighter here – they close at 9.30pm – but as long as you don't mind having to depart after dinner, South Coogee Bowling Club (and it's restaurant, Bistro on the Greens) is a great place for a family night out.

Wonder Skewers is a lively Chinese barbecue skewer restaurant on Burwood Road that is open till midnight every night. From chargrilled lamb to flavour-packed pork belly, skewers are marinated, then grilled until tender with that signature charred edge, before being finished with spices and served on a hotplate . The set-up is casual and communal, with a focus on picking a mix of skewers to share. More than just a place to eat, Burwood Chinatown is a neon-lit maze of hawker-style eateries and buzzing day-to-night energy that has become one of Sydney's biggest dining destinations. W ith loads of different Asian cuisines packed into the precinct, y ou can graze your way through everything from dumplings to yakitori, Korean street snacks, malatang and egg tarts. The best bit: the Night Markets, which take over the outdoor grounds from Thursday to Sunday from 5-10pm. Browse the stalls, grab some food and and snacks, and call it a great night. With room sizes for small groups all the way up to 20+ people, this is a great place for planned parties or spontaneous singalongs. They have more than 250,000 songs across multiple languages, as well as a fully-stocked bar and a food menu. They're open until 11:30pm Sunday to Thursday, and midnight Friday and Saturday. Hungry? This epic all-you-can-eat buffet hotpot on Burwood Road is open until 11pm every night for your late-night big-hunger fix. The Burwood Hotel really leans into its location next to Burwood Chinatown – it's a colourful, neon-lit pub and a great place for a late-night bevvie. They're open until 4am Monday to Thursday, 6am Fridays, 5am Saturdays and 2am Sundays – plus you can get a feed until midnight. They also put on live music every Friday and Sunday night. This dessert bar is open and buzzing until 11pm on Friday and Saturday nights. They serve fluffy desserts, including souffle-style pancakes, a popular sweet dish called kakigori, creme brulee, and a new mochi tiramisu souffle. They also serve Insta-worthy drinks, featuring flavours of matcha, Biscoff and coconut. This is a cutesy Korean-style photo booth studio plus karaoke booths, all in the one brightly-lit venue on Burwood Road. The ph otos start from $15 for two copies, while the karaoke starts at $5 for 10 minutes. They're open every day until late. Skye Bar & Lounge is atop the Crowne Plaza hotel at the park end of Burwood, and it offers views over this neighbourhood and beyond. They're open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, and 10pm Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. This dumpling chain originated in Shanghai more than two decades ago. They are now in Burwood, Newtown and Five Dock, and they specialise in juicy soup dumplings. It's open from 10am to 1am every day. Feel like a cocktail? Try to get a seat at the small, colourful lounge at the entry of the Grand Shanghai Hotel (away from the pokies). They have an extensive cocktail list, and they're open until midnight every night except Sunday (when they close at 10pm). Is Skye Bar already closed? This bar slash bistro down the Crowne Plaza end of Burwood Road is open for drinks and sports screeninghs 11am to 4am every day, though the kitchen closes at 8.30pm.

Get one of Sydney's best lasagnes at this neighbourhood delight

The Intercontinental Sydney Coogee Beach is the perfect stay to experience the Sydney you see on postcards