Always feel guilty eating meat around your vegetarian friends?
Do you nibble nervously on steak while you’re glared at over slices of lentil pie? Never fear, we’ve taken the pain out of planning a vegetarian fine-dining experience for you and your veggie friends. Read on.
Rockpool
Neil Perry’s answer to chic dining in Sydney will bring you a gastronomic experience you won’t forget. Let their friendly staff know that you’re bringing a vegetarian along upon booking, and they’ll transform their seasonal tasting menu into something a little more herbivore-friendly. Matched wines are available on request.
11 Bridge St, Sydney, 02 9252 1888
Est.
The impeccable service of Est. is just one element that makes this restaurant brilliant. Again, let the relevant people know upon booking that you’re in the company of a vegetarian, and they’ll tailor the menu to your companion’s liking. A sommelier will help to match wines to the dishes produced on the night. If you feel like kicking on afterwards head upstairs to Hemmesphere bar for a night cap.
252 George St, Sydney, 02 9240 3000
Bentley Restaurant
Chef Brent Savage’s tasting menu is straight-up amazing. Going for the nuanced feel of ingredient listing, you can only imagine the golden gloriousness that pumpkin + blackbean + persimmon + yolk would equal. Add matching wines for an extra amount, and enjoy a night of innovative eating. Oh, and don’t forget dessert. Violet ice-cream, cocoa honeycomb, and blueberries. Yum!
Ground Floor, Radisson Blu Hotel, 27 O’Connell St, Sydney, 02 8214 0505
The Bridge Room
Understood as one of Sydney’s best vegetarian-friendly restaurants, The Bridge Room also has a set veggie menu. The kipfler potatoes with mushrooms cooked over coals, grilled onions, a soft egg and grilled bread served in a cast iron pan is heavenly winter fare, and will challenge anyone’s assumption that vegetarian cuisine won’t leave you full. The dessert menu is equally impressive, with the perfumed fruit, custard apple ice cream, mandarin curd , guava, cape gooseberries and citrus ash creation a definite favourite.
44 Bridge St, Sydney, 02 9247 7000
Bennelong
Recently overhauled and reopened by Peter Gilmore, Bennelong has never been a more covetable place to eat. Their slow cooked heirloom pumpkin with Bruny Island C2 cream, Manjimup truffle and roasted seeds may well be heaven on a plate – meat or no meat. Alternatively, if you opt for the ‘Cured and Cultured’ menu, try the raw mushrooms with eggplant goat’s curd, grains, nuts and seeds.
Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point, 02 9240 8000
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