Best Restaurants North Sydney
From a rooftop garden bar adorned with plants to elegant hatted restaurants, discover the best restaurants in North Sydney.
Known as Sydney’s second CBD, North Sydney is so much more than just offices, offering an eclectic mix of delicious cafes, world class bars and impressive restaurants. The best eats in the area cover everything from a long lunch with the team to a proper dinner across the harbour from the city lights.
Once known mostly for weekday suits and takeaway sandwiches, North Sydney now has plenty of reasons to stay past five. Walk a few blocks from the station and you move from busy blocks with towering offices to leafy corners. Venture ust a touch further and you’ll find yourself by the water at Lavender Bay and Milsons Point, where a dinner booking comes with a view worth lingering over.
We have been eating our way around this side of the bridge for years, and we know which tables are worth booking ahead and which suit a spontaneous after-work dinner. This guide pulls together the places we send friends, colleagues and visiting family when they ask where to eat.
Whether you are planning a client lunch, a date night or a casual catch up, there is a table here to suit the occasion. Every venue is picked by our editors, so you can skip the scrolling and book with confidence. Start with the standouts below, then work your way down the list.
Rafi is North Sydney’s big, leafy crowd pleaser, a 300 seat dining room and courtyard beneath the office towers. Executive chef Matias Cillóniz cooks over charcoal with a focus on local seafood and vegetables, while the cocktail list keeps the after work crowd happy. Book for a long lunch or a warm evening courtyard table.
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Bar Lettera sits on Level 5 of 88 Walker Street, and it's the North Sydney answer to an Italian aperitivo hour. Think Italian and Australian plates made for sharing, a wine list with plenty of Italian drops and a Negroni. It works for a Friday knock off, a date or a team catch up.
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Toki Bistro and Bar brings modern Asian flavours and French technique together on Miller Street, in a moody dining room with a nod to the Parisian bistro. It is North Sydney at its most dressed up, with a storytelling streak running through the menu. Save it for anniversaries or any night that deserves a fuss.
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Poetica is a bar and grill up the stairs at 1 Denison Street, where an open kitchen and woodfired hearth do the talking. Dry aged steaks, a serious wine wall and sunny terraces make it equally good for a client lunch or an easy after work session. Go hungry and order something from the grill.
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Antica is an Italian restaurant set inside the heritage listed Montrose House on Miller Street. The deco inspired dining room is elegant but relaxed, and the kitchen, from the team behind Entrata, honours Italian tradition with a modern touch. Pasta is a highlight, and the deep Italian wine list suits long, lingering dinners with friends.
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Glorietta is a lively Italian restaurant and bar on Mount Street, with a courtyard, an open kitchen and a pizza oven that never feels far away. Part neighbourhood trattoria, part business lunch haunt, it is a safe bet for pizza, pasta and a Negroni, whether you are after a team catch up or a date.
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Miji Bar and Grill is a neon lit Japanese izakaya on Miller Street, complete with a replica Shinjuku arch and signage imported from Japan. The grilled seafood is the draw, but the real fun is the self serve drinks station, where you pour your own sake, wine and cocktails. Bring friends and stay a while.
This greenhouse-style rooftop restaurant and bar borrowed The Grounds of Alexandria's resident horticulturist to bring its luxury garden oasis to life. The result is an other-worldly backdrop that couldn't feel further from its CBD address, earning it's place on our list of North Sydney's best places to eat with the fit-out alone!
