2025 is the year of considered spending; cost of living increases and tighter budgets are shaping what we want from our dining powerhouses, and right now, the expectation is clear: we want quality, but we also want value.
This isn’t to say that three-course meals and indulgent dégustations have lost their footing — only that we’re increasingly searching for more accessible entry points to the establishments we love. And Sydney’s sharpest restaurateurs are meeting us where we’re at, tailoring their menus to oblige. As Tristan Rosier, founder of Jane in Surry Hills explains, it’s about finding creative ways to offer great value so that “people want to keep coming back”.
This year belongs to the savvy diner — the one who slips into a banquette for a high-value express lunch; meets friends for snacks and drinks at the bar; or times their socialising in the evenings around generous golden hours.
So pull up a stool, these are the best lunch specials, set menus, bar menus and Sydney happy hours for affordable fine-dining in 2025.
Best lunch specials and set menus in Sydney
King Clarence
This much-loved neon-tinged hotspot wins bonus points for its lunch set menu. For under $50, you can get the best of King Clarence’s fare – including the famed fish finger bao on Nigella’s hitlist.
Morena
Housed in the historic GPO building in Martin Place, Morena offers an express wine and dine lunch set from noon till 3pm, Monday to Friday. Pick from a selection of Latin American entrées, mains and sides for $59, or go all out with a butternut flan or rice pudding for dessert.
Dean & Nancy on 22
The sky-high cocktail bar by The Maybe Sammy crew is taking things to new heights with its lunch-with-a-view special. From Thursday to Friday between noon and 2.30pm, guests can enjoy a choice of starter, main and side for $49, or opt for a spaghetti, house wine and sourdough combo for just $39.
Lottie
Redfern’s rooftop restaurant has scored a $55 lunch set packed with favourites from the full menu. Expect to see Lottie’s signature guac showered with pepitas, herbs and tomato; then, take your pick from four standout mains. Will it be the tender pork jowl in cola mole? Or grilled fish with a fiery salsa?
Aalia
To experience a quick taste of Paul Farag’s wood-fired Middle Eastern menu at Aalia, try the express lunch option, where $70 will get you a snack and a choice of entrée and main to share — including Murray cod masgouf or lamb neck shawarma.
Bistro Moncur
Woollahra favourite Bistro Moncur has a daily two-course lunch menu for just $65 per person, which may include crowd-pleasers like steak tartare and steak frites.
The Charles Bar
It may not be as grand as its big sister brasserie next door but The Charles Bar serves up chic NYC energy with its all-day bar menu and generous lunch special every Monday to Saturday, which features aged wagyu cheeseburger and choice of house wine or beer for just $25.
The Wine Bar at The International
Thirty dollars won’t get you much these days, but from noon till 3pm every Tuesday to Saturday, The Wine Bar at The International is slinging an express lunch menu for time-poor workers. Featuring $15 flame-kissed pizza made with 72-hour fermented sourdough and a rotating roster of $25 handmade pastas, it’s almost too good to be true. Plus, $10 glasses of wine.
Olympus Dining
Since opening in late 2024, the dining room at Olympus has been a hive of activity. Fun and fashion-forward crowds pile in, hankering for taramasalata and warm pita; lemon yellow avgolemono soup that reminds owner Jonathan Barthelmess (The Apollo) of his childhood; chowing down charred octopus with almond skordalia and potato; and devouring slow-cooked lamb shoulder. For a taste of all the favourites, opt for the full taverna. At $77 per person, you’ll get all the usual suspects — olives, taramasalata, souvlaki and hand cut chips — and then some.
Best Sydney happy hours
Parlour
Besides bringing old-world glamour and Parisian charm to an unassuming building in the CBD, Parlour is dazzling city workers with its Spritz O’Clock menu. Say “santé” with $10 house cocktails, $1 escargot and $2 oysters dressed in mignonette.
Toki Bistro & Bar
This modern Asian bistro might have brought fine-dining to North Sydney, but it’s pairing it back with a daily happy hour. From 5.30pm to 6.30pm Monday to Saturday, Toki is pouring $12 Aperol Spritz and $15 Negronis, joined by $15 duck sausage and complimentary fried olives.
Akti
Waterside Greek is Sydney at its peak, but it gets even better: ocean views make for an idyllic backdrop to Akti’s happy hour, featuring $12 wines, $15 Aegean Palomas, Spritzes and Margaritas.
Loulou
Regardless of whether you take a seat at one of the street-facing tables or at the bar, you’re in for a good time at Loulou’s L’Apéro hour. An order of the luxe $2 escargot is a must, or the $18 cheeseburger and frites if you can’t wait till dinner.
Morrison’s
The go-to spot for an after work oyster, Morrison’s delights with $10 Negronis and Aperol Spritzes, alongside $2 Sydney Rock oysters shucked in front of you. Nab a seat outside and dine al fresco or head into the newly refurbished room indoors between 4pm and 7pm.
Bistro George
Bistro George gives happy hour fare a glow-up, serving wagyu tartare and cured yolk crostini and intercostal skewers with salsa verde for $13. Enjoy with a $10 Spritz, $11 Negroni or signature cocktail in hand ($12).
Conte
Calling all Negroni lovers and aperitivo hunters: Conte’s happy hour is channelling the Italian spirit with $16 Negronis and Spritzes accompanied by nibbles like Sydney rock oysters ($3) and fritto misto ($16).
Jane
At Jane in Surry Hills, where founder Tristan Rosier emphasises that his Australiano Hour offers the same dishes you get at regular service, just in a cheaper, more snackable form. “You can get our kangaroo tartare, which is a signature, or $3 oysters with a punchy guava vinaigrette, with the exact same oysters we normally use,” he says. “Quality for us is paramount, not just cutting the price.” Must-orders include the lamb dumplings and creatively grilled cucumbers. Run, don’t walk.
Gildas
Also in Surry Hills, Lennox Hastie’s San Sebastián-inspired wine bar Gildas celebrates after-work occasions with its Gildas Golden Hour. On offer on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 5 till 6.30pm, and again Fridays and Saturdays from 3 till 5.30pm, Golden Hour sees $12 cocktails and wines alongside its namesake snack for $5 and $12 off-menu specials. Plus, it’s launched a reasonable $65 pre-theatre menu which could see you eating gildas, lamb rump with mojo verde and popcorn soft serve with salted caramel — to name a few.
Rockpool Bar & Grill
Pulling up a seat at Rockpool’s bar is always a good idea but there’s an even better reason now. RP Hour hits the bar for two hours every weekday between 4pm and 6pm, with $12 Martinis, wines by the glass for $15 and reasonably priced snacks.
Shell House Sky Bar
Continuing Sydney’s salty trend for cheap-as-chips molluscs, Shell House’s Sky Bar has expanded its Golden Hour offer to include everyone’s favourite shelled critter: the oyster. Between 4 to 6pm every Tuesday to Saturday, guests can get oysters for $2, a signature prawn katsu sando for $15 and a Margarita for $15. Bookings are encouraged but walk-ins are welcome. Golden, indeed.
The Wine Bar at The International
The Wine Bar at The International has hit its stride, offering its Sips + Snacks happy hour every Monday to Saturday between 4 till 6pm. Sip a selection of killer cocktails, wines and beers, along with snacks like gildas, oysters and jamón with crisps — all under $12. We’ll cheers to that.
Best bar menus in Sydney
Caravin
There’s nothing like a rotating menu to keep you on your toes. At Caravin – the intimate, Art Deco wine bar in Potts Point – every visit feels different from the last. Get French-inspired plates joined by a wine list led by natural drops.
Poly
Sibling to Ester, Surry Hills favourite Poly is a heavy hitter in the bar snacks arena. Take, for example, its crisp fried potato with salted egg yolk that’s gained something of a cult following, or its calamari dipped in a chicken skin chilli crisp.
Bentley Restaurant & Bar
The bar has never been an afterthought at CBD heavyweight Bentley. Bites include beef tartare, piquillo pepper and capers, or tempura bay lobster, duck liver parfait with steamed buns, or dive into king prawn with smoked lime butter and sundew. The seafood platter is also one of the best in the city.
Bennelong
Whether you’re heading for pre-show snacks or looking for a snacky meal backdropped by some of the best views in the city, the bar at Bennelong always dazzles. Order oysters with lemon pepper granita, prawn toast with fermented chilli aïoli and zucchini, goat’s curd, pepita and hemp arancini and you can’t go wrong.
Bar Julius
The Eve Hotel’s lobby bar is bringing European-inspired snacks and cult cocktails to Redfern’s new Wunderlich Lane precinct. From beef tartare to crispy lamb belly and an All Day Mary, Bar Julius is dishing up delight. Plus, it has a solid happy hour offering from 4 to 5pm daily.
Bessie’s & Alma’s
Bar snacks and small plates rule the roost at this quaint wine bar at the top of Albion Street. Sister to Surry Hills’ favourite Bar Copains, this two-in-one restaurant and bar puts fire-forward flair on every dish. Charred, garlicky flatbread is best paired with a side of devilled eggs and mortadella. No room at Copains? No worries — lay into its signature fish sandwich at Bessie’s or Alma’s.
40Res
With an ex-Tetsuya chef on the pans, this neighbourhood wine bar delivers deceptively simple bites. Stop in for saltbush and pepperberry calamari, or a chicken croquette filled with bechamel made from rendered chicken skin, and enjoy a rotation of pasta and risotto dishes.
This article was recently updated in November 2025.
