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Our expert guides to the best restaurants across Australia.

Sumptuous dining room at Saint Peter - Australia's best restaurant

Top 100: Best restaurants in Australia

This list of the best restaurants in Australia is all you need to ensure you enjoy countless dining experiences wherever you might be. Our team of reviewers spend months crisscrossing the country, knife and fork in hand, kicking the tyres of old favourites, putting new players through their paces and generally taking stock of the […]
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The busy dining room at Saint Peter restaurant at The Grand National Hotel, Paddington.

The best restaurants in Sydney right now

The best restaurants in Sydney, as reviewed for our annual Restaurant Guide. There are old favourites, new trailblazers, and a lot of dining out to be done in the harbour city. Pull up a seat.
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The dining room and bar at Muni in Willunga, South Australia.

Muni

Annual Restaurant Guide: South Australia Top 10
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A ceramic plate with four nigiri sushi dishes as part of the omakase

Mu Omakase

Mu’s 12-course menu, based on the Japanese omakase and served at a counter, delivers an array of small jewels both subtle and robust.
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Exterior view of Millbrook Winery restaurant in Perth Hills suburb of Jarrahdale

Millbrook

Annual Restaurant Guide: Western Australia Top 10
Nu Nu

Nu Nu

Annual Restaurant Guide: Queensland Top 15
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Attica in Ripponlea, Melbourne dish of whipped emu egg with sugar bag

Attica

Annual Restaurant Guide: Victoria Top 25
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Kiln in the Ace Hotel, Surry Hills Sydney and its popular calamari dish

Kiln

Annual Restaurant Guide: NSW top 25
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Bentley Restaurant & Bar in Sydney, dining room

Bentley

The nugget of rosemary-skewered kangaroo that opens your Bentley voyage might look simple, but a bite detonates a flavour-packed core.
Same Same

Same Same

Same Same's main room provides dining drama aplenty: flames flashing, woks hissing in the central open kitchen, bustling communal tables channelling Thailand's streets through a glamorous lens.
Anekawa Japanese restaurant Gold Coast, Queensland dessert dish

Anekawa

This pint-sized, chef-run venue isn't quite a portal to Shibuya, but it does leave the Gold Coast behind.
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Institut Polaire restaurant and bar in Hobart Tasmania. Photo of wagyu tartare and glass of pale pink wine

Institut Polaire

It's a rare and impressive feat for a restaurant to both rock a theme and look cool doing it.
Van Bone restaurant in Marion Bay, Tasmania and its sleek dining room

Van Bone

Van Bone exemplifies destination dining, with every mouthful as uniquely Tasmanian as the stunning coastal views.
Arkhé restaurant in Adelaide snack dishes

Arkhé

Of course there's (very good) steak at a restaurant focused on cooking with fire, but the joys of Arkhé are in the unconventional.
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Tulum restaurant in Melbourne dish

Tulum

Perhaps it's the glowy backlighting, moody as all get-out. Or maybe it's the genuine sense of hospitality, instantly evident in the bright-eyed welcome.
Omnia in South Yarra, Melbourne dish

Omnia

Old-school, theatrical hospitality is where Omnia shines.
Kazuki's in Carlton, Melbourne

Kazuki’s

The dramatic transformation that occurs as you step from hectic Lygon Street into the upholstered serenity of Kazuki's is one of Melbourne's great dining overtures.
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Piece of white fish in a bowl at Clarence in Brisbane

Clarence

You'd be crazy to forgo the flavour-forward $75 prix fixe menu at this bastion of fair pricing, but be sure to add a turnip cake or two.
Morks restaurant Canberra, ACT. Photo of beef short ribs in a bowl with sauce poured over the top.

Morks — CLOSED

Morks may no longer be the well-kept secret it was when the brothers Ratanakosol took over their parents’ restaurant back in 2013, but its relevance and fandom have not waned.
The vegetable fritters served at Chae.

Chae

Patience. You'll need it to land one of six seats at chef Jung Eun Chae's Cockatoo home, where the seasonal, medicinal, ferment-heavy Korean menu unfolds.
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Her Bar in Melbourne, Victoria. Photo of the ceviche decorated with colourful edible flowers.

Her Bar

Her Bar keeps feet on the ground with a swanky fit-out and a menu delivering greatest hits in the key of France.
Market Bistro in Maroochydore, Sunshine Coast Queensland. Photo of red wine served with duck and a salad.

Market Bistro

Don’t let the location – in the heart of Maroochydore’s new CBD, surrounded by construction – put you off.
Patch Kitchen and Garden in th Adelaide Hills, SA. Photo of a pasta dish with parmesan and radicchio

Patch Kitchen and Garden

Andrew Davies, much loved for his work at Osteria Oggi and Press Food and Wine, recently took over a cottage-style building in Stirling – and, of course, diners have followed.
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The dining room at Topiary in Tea Tree Gully, South Australia

Topiary

The flora-packed Newman’s Nursery grounds provide a fitting backdrop for Topiary.
Yiamas restaurant in Perth WA. Photo of dolmades cabbage rolls sprinkled with dill and covered in sauce

Yiamas

The title of “cool new kids on the block” looks good on team Yiamas.
Bar Vincent in Darlinghurst, Sydney photo of dining room

Bar Vincent

Some restaurants like to surprise. Bar Vincent prefers to delight.
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Brasserie 1930 restaurant in the Capella Sydney hotel in the CBD, photo of elegant dining room

Brasserie 1930

The signature restaurant at the swish new Capella Sydney nails the five-star hotel restaurant brief.
Clam Bar in Sydney CBD. Photo of its burger and honeycomb macaroni and cheese at Clam Bar in Sydney.

Clam Bar

In a city so packed with New York-style chophouses it's starting to feel like Manhattan Lite, Clam Bar's edgier riff on the genre is a welcome relief.
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Alta Trattoria in Fitzroy, Melbourne Italian dishes

Alta Trattoria

A Piedmontese trattoria promises to become a Fitzroy favourite with impressive dishes and wines to match.
The fish hot pot at Stanley in Brisbane.

Stanley

There’s an appropriate seafood skew at Brisbane’s top Chinese fine-diner, named after Hong Kong’s Stanley Bay.
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The Good Times list

The Good Times list

Whether dining à deux, or in a larger group, these are the places that draw a vibrant crowd in Sydney and Melbourne.
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Aru

Aru

Quite simply, this is one of Melbourne’s best places to be: a stylish bar-cum-casual-diner livened by wood fire and fermentation, curing and smoking, spotted gum and sandstone.
Hero ACMI

Hero ACMI

Melbourne doesn’t have a brilliant track record with restaurants in cultural institutions. Hero, at Fed Square’s ACMI, bucks that trend emphatically.
Gray and Gray

Gray and Gray

Think excellent flatbread served with “lumpy” butter and pickled green tomatoes, or parsnip dumplings with caramelised onion and yoghurt.
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The Corner Dairy

The Corner Dairy

Surprise! Perth’s most polished bar food isn’t found in a wine bar, but in a lively neighbourhood hangout in upwardly mobile Doubleview.
Si Paradiso

Si Paradiso

Just how does one classify this Italianate house of cool?
Millbrook

Millbrook

A day trip to this Instagram-ready cellar-door restaurant in the Perth Hills remains one of the west’s finest lunch dates.
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Frui Momento

Frui Momento

When it comes to more-is-more cooking, Frui Momento’s tightly composed plates are among the west’s best.
Arimia

Arimia

Space is integral to the work of this organically certified, off-grid farm – and Arimia really is best considered as a farm with a restaurant rather than vice versa.
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Magill Estate Restaurant

Magill Estate Restaurant

The modern dining space is set against the legendary Penfolds winery and has all the trimmings of fine dining without unnecessary pomp.
The Watervale Hotel

The Watervale Hotel

The word “epicurean” gets thrown around a lot, but the owners of this regional pub live and breathe it.
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Ottelia

Ottelia

Recent renovations have enhanced the effortless charm of this family-run establishment, which is also home to Ottelia Wines.
Herringbone

Herringbone

There’s an instant sense of comfort about Herringbone, tucked in a calm, almost suburban city backstreet.
Fugazzi

Fugazzi

Energy pulsates through this New York-inspired Italian restaurant all seven days of the week.
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Wilma

Wilma

Canberra’s appetite for contemporary Asian-inspired food seems unquenchable, with glitzy Wilma joining the ranks of established hotspots plying updates on classic Chinese dishes and familiar flavours from the rest of the continent.
Corella

Corella

Corella might be the kind of sunny wine bar/restaurant hybrid that would feel at home anywhere in the country.
Gerard’s Bistro

Gerard’s Bistro

Bring an open mind to this benchmark for innovative Levantine cooking. You’ll experience familiar flavours in novel ways and encounter ingredients not found elsewhere, thanks to tireless chef Adam Wolfers.
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GOMA Restaurant

GOMA Restaurant

Take a seat in this light-filled, gallery-like corner room, and prepare to have your senses stimulated by Matt Blackwell’s nuanced cooking.
Elska

Elska

Elska requires commitment. The simply furnished, dégustation-only venue has just 12 tables and opens three days a week.
Porcine

Porcine

It all comes to life on the upper level of a Paddington terrace crammed with Parisian curio.
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Una Más

Una Más

The menu spotlights Spanish-accented hits from Gildas, patatas bravas and croquetas through to a Basque cheesecake that rules them all.
Mr Wong

Mr Wong

The fact that Mr Wong – a walloping 240-seater offering 70-plus dishes and 40-odd pages worth of wine – continues to fire on all cylinders is a downright masterstroke.
Eschalot

Eschalot

From the hearths in the dining rooms to the heart on the plates, Eschalot offers the kind of home-style dining experience you just can’t get at home.
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Sáng by Mabasa

Sáng by Mabasa

Sáng’s mission is to present the breadth and depth of traditional Korean cuisine in a contemporary setting.
Sixpenny

Sixpenny

From start to finish, a meal at Sixpenny – complete with beautiful ceramics, smart service and imaginative beverage pairings – is a rare and exciting treat.
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Pellegrino 2000

Pellegrino 2000

This is Dan Pepperell's kitchen, so of course there are twists on the seemingly straightforward menu.
Lana

Lana

What was initially billed as a Mediterranean fine-diner has become a far more intriguing proposition under head chef Alex Wong.
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Restaurant Hubert

Restaurant Hubert

How easy is it to love Hubert? It all begins the second you step from an ordinary city street into this parallel universe heaving with life and laughter.