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Where to find Sydney’s best crepes
08 Feb 2023
08 Feb 2023
There are many great reasons to stop for lunch during the work day...
It’s always tempting to just work right through your lunch hour and dine al desko, but the lunch break exists for a very good reason. So go ahead and bond with your team, seal that deal, or just have a leisurely lunch all by yourself at one of these fab restaurants in and close to Sydney’s CBD. It’s a guaranteed way to make the work day speed by especially if you have a cheeky midday wine (or two)!
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If New York steakhouse vibes with a dollop of Little Italy in historic Australian surroundings sounds like the perfect lunchtime venue to you, head to Gowings.
Under the creative direction of super chef Sean Connolly, expect a raw bar with everything from sea urchin to caviar, handmade pasta, a selection of top quality steaks and a bunch of sides which will make you swoon (duck fat roasted potatoes anyone?).
Open for lunch from Wednesday to Friday, take the whole work crew and indulge in a cocktail or two. We can’t go past the camino del fuego, smoky chilli infused Mezcal, pineapple juice, fresh lime, agave and egg white. That will make the work week go faster!
Dish Cult’s top pick: Saltimbocca chicken ‘Saskia Beer’, salsa verde and roast lemon ($38)
Otto is one of Sydney’s top destinations for lunch which is no surprise considering it has world-class waterfront views, great people-watching possibilities, and an Italian menu with a distinctly Sydney twist.
The star on the menu here is house-made pasta with an abundance of local seafood, and you can’t go wrong with the spaghetti which comes with spanner crab, chilli and garlic crumb. It makes the perfect main, but beforehand you should start in style with rock oysters, 24-month old prosciutto and lush Woodside goat’s curd drizzled with truffled honey. Matched with wine from northern Italy, lunch here will make you believe you are living la dolce vita.
Dish Cult’s top pick: Spaghetti, spanner crab, chilli and garlic crumb ($39/$59)
Feel like a luxe dim sum lunch amidst intricate paintings of 1930s Shanghai women, birdcages, and hanging ducks enclosed in a cavernous retro-colonial building? Mr Wong can make that particular feeling a reality.
The kitchen here serves up to 80 dishes and has a dedicated Peking duck kitchen. Start with an Asian-inflected cocktail like the Nyonya gimlet, with gin, house made cucumber and pandan cordial, and lime, before diving headfirst into the luxurious dim sum spread including lobster and scallop dumplings, king crab and prawn dumpling with black garlic and trout roe, and a wagyu and truffle puff.
The clear crowd favourite is the whole Chinese roasted duck, though the wok-fried XO pippies, pork buns, and salt and pepper calamari are definitely worthy of your time.
Dish Cult’s top pick: Chinese roasted duck ($50 half/$90 whole)
Hubert is a place with history, romance, and some of the best French food in Sydney. Open for lunch from 12pm on Thursdays to Saturdays, this wood-panelled basement restaurant features a main dining room, bars, cellars, kitchens, and even a 100-seat theatre.
You could go after hours, or you could get your closest work mates together for a seriously special Friday work lunch. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth it! Spring for a martini and oysters and then order escargots with XO butter and Wagyu tartare. Follow with Murray cod or chateaubriand although the duck liver parfait and whole chicken fricassée with a side of pommes Anna will be hard to pass up. Then toast the fact that the weekend is nearly here with a bottle of something French and fantastic.
Dish Cult’s top pick: Chicken fricassee ($89)
Lunch at one of Sydney’s longest-standing fine diners is an exceptional affair, just don’t expect to fit this into a regular 9-5 lunch break, but go on, you deserve longer anyway!
Bentley’s industrial-chic space is now a go-to destination, particularly for the office crowd. Seafood and exotic vegetables dominate the modern menu. Start off with rock oysters followed by Bay lobster with persimmon, kumquat and smoked sour cream. For mains, choose either the eggplant with black barley and watermelon radish or the Spring Ridge venison which comes with radicchio, beetroot and hazelnut. Finish with the truly surprising combination of Jerusalem artichoke ice cream with milk chocolate, pear and black lime.
Dish Cult’s top pick: Two courses for lunch ($90)
Located on the waterfront at Barangaroo, Cirrus is another great venue for a leisurely long lunch that’s perfect for wining and dining the pickiest of palates.
If you’re after sterling seafood and amazing wine, this is the place! Opt for the seven-course tasting menu and a bottle of French rosé for lunch on a Friday with your mates.
If you’re not doing the tasting menu, start with rock oysters and charcoal-grilled bread with whipped ricotta. Then feast on the pan fried snapper with pickled leeks and fish stock sauce. Top off the meal with the sensational miso caramel sticky date with pear and vanilla ice cream.
Dish Cult’s top pick: Tasting menu ($110)
Take in the buzz of the city when you lunch at Babylon’s rooftop restaurant which is inspired by the metropolis of the ancient world.
It’s opulence personified, with Italian travertine archways, velvet upholstery, spotted gum timber and marble finishes. With a custom-built mangal (Turkish grill) and two rotisseries, it should be no surprise that the menu here is predominantly eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern.
Start with cocktails and accompany them with Turkish bread, hummus, eggplant salad and za’atar butter. Move on to the lamb and pistachio kebab with smoked eggplant, yoghurt and sumac onions, but don’t miss the slow-cooked lamb shoulder, garlic labna, zhug sauce and lamb jus.
Round off your meal with kazandibi, the heavenly stretchy burnt milk dessert topped with cinnamon for a sweet finish.
Dish Cult’s top pick: Ali nazik, lamb and pistachio kebab, smoked eggplant and sumac onions ($36)
