15 Hatted Restaurants in Sydney to Book a Table At

For foodies with their finger on the pulse, the annual release of the Good Food Guide’s Chef Hats is a pretty big deal. For chefs and restaurants, getting a ‘hat’ is the highest honour. To score a hat, a restaurant needs to tick all the boxes with considerations including ingredients, taste, presentation, technique, value, and consistency. As for two or three hats, the competition is stiff. 

Not sure where to start? For food with all the frills, tip your hat to this edit of our favourite award-winning, hatted restaurants in Sydney — which ones will you be booking? 

Hatted Restaurants in Sydney: Three Hats

Oncore by Clare Smyth

Set 26 levels above Sydney Harbour, with one of the best views in the city, Oncore is a world-class restaurant from Clare Smyth, the only British female chef with three Michelin stars. It’s little wonder this year Oncore has maintained its three hats! Oncore, Smyth’s first international restaurant, pays homage to Core, Smyth’s UK restaurant, and highlights sustainable ingredients. The seasonal tasting menu is worth saving your pennies for but you’ll have to be organised if you fancy scoring a booking here.

Level 26, Crown Sydney, 1 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo

Sixpenny

Helmed by Daniel Puskas and Anthony Schifilliti, Sixpenny has been awarded three Chef Hats for six years in a row, thanks to its ever-changing modern Australian menu. Housed on a corner terrace near Stanmore station, Sixpenny oozes elegant dining with a cosy venue and innovative dishes. The ever-changing menu plays on seasonal produce, which keeps diners constantly intrigued. Enjoy masterful creations like potatoes with oysters and raw mushrooms or lamb rump with leek and caramelised pumpkin juice. 

83 Percival Road, Stanmore

Quay

Situated in one of the city’s most impressive locations, Quay has held onto its three Chef’s Hats for the 23rd year in a row, making it one of the most-hatted restaurants in Sydney. Executive Chef Peter Gilmore’s nature-based menu has been the recipient of many accolades, and a quick Instagram trawl of Quay’s masterfully plated imaginings will give you a clear demonstration of why — every dish is a work of art.

Overseas Passenger Terminal, Hickson Road, The Rocks

Saint Peter

Saint Peter has long been a favourite for Sydneysiders who love seafood. Owner and chef Josh Niland and his team let the produce speak for itself. You can dine a la carte but we recommend the tasting menu which will encourage you to try dishes you might not otherwise order. 

Sitchu Tip: If you’re struggling to find a booking that works, consider popping into the bar for a Yellowfin tuna cheeseburger, some oysters and a very swish wine list. 

362 Oxford Street, Paddington

Hatted Restaurants in Sydney: Two Hats

Aalia (Image Credit: Jason Loucas)

Aalia 

Prepare for your experience of Middle Eastern food to be forever altered. The flavours coming from this unassuming two-hatted restaurant are nothing short of impeccable. Located in the centre of Martin Place, the experience at Aalia is a breeze from the get-go with a relaxed, modern and elegant dining room that fuses indoors with out.

Executive Chef Paul Farag’s (winner of the 2025 best chef award) menu incorporates flavours from his travels in the Middle East and North Africa, resulting in dishes you won’t find elsewhere. Start with a handful of raw dishes, move into mezze, mains and sides and do not leave without dessert. To top it off, the staff here are exceptionally well-informed and friendly to boot. 

25 Martin Place, Sydney 

Ester

With polished concrete arches and lights hanging from the ceiling, Ester is the perfect backdrop for a flavoursome feast. Ester’s fare is honest and wholesome, but that doesn’t mean it lacks complexity. Seasonal Australian flavours and unique international influences are woven throughout the menu with ingredients like finger lime, black garlic, macadamia and sake making regular appearances. The woodfire oven is also in frequent use, which adds a further element to the layers of intrigue within each dish.

46-52 Meagher Street, Chippendale 

Aria

This two-hatted stalwart delivers ‘haute cuisine’ with gastronomic artistry rarely matched in Australia. Just steps away from the Opera House, Aria champions local produce and in every dish, expect full flavour and impeccable presentation.

1 Macquarie Street, Sydney

Bennelong

Celebrated Australian chef, Peter Gilmore (from the three-hatted stunner, Quay) is also at the helm of Bennelong, one of Sydney’s most picturesque fine dining experiences. It’s set within the iconic sails of the Sydney Opera House, taking full advantage of its multi-level layout ensuring that every patron takes in a full view. Much like its landmark surroundings, the menu is aptly Australian, championing local produce and wine throughout. 

Bennelong Point, Sydney Opera House, Sydney

Hatted Restaurants in Sydney: One Hat

Mister Grotto 

From the talent behind Continental Deli, Mister Grotto is so impeccable that they’ve managed to score a hat within their first year. The intimate 30-seat seafood bar has a seasonal menu that shifts daily, depending on the day’s catch. Freshly shucked oysters, charcoal-grilled fish and a raw bar are just some of the delights diners have to look forward to. Don’t even get us started on the elevated fisherman core interiors. 

208 Australia Street, Newtown

White Horse

White Horse has secured the recognition it deserves with a hat for the second year in a row. Somehow managing the near impossible feat of creating a multi-space venue (we’re talking public bar, garden terrace and restaurant) that feels intimate and warm, this restaurant nails a luxe for less approach. The modern Aussie menu with a French twist covers off all manner of creative dishes — think creamed warrigal greens, a beetroot mille-feuille with muntries and native thyme and veal tongue French toast. The same theme can be found woven throughout the deceptively simple yet incredibly delicious cocktail menu. A 100-strong wine list rounds out the offering for the oenophiles.

381 Crown Street, Surry Hills

Cibaria Manly

An all-day Italian dining destination Cibaria Manly takes guests from their morning espresso at the caffetteria to gelato at the champagneria and all the way to a pasta feast at the spaghetteria. And behind it all? None other than celebrated restauranteurs Alessandro and Anna Pavoni of a’Mare and Ormeggio at the Spit. Having fast become a local favourite, we’re not surprised this glorious spot has received a hat after just one year.

This multi-venue Italian ‘piazza’ hosts a number of different spaces including a spaghetteria, a bisteccheria (where dishes are cooked over coals and embers) and a pasticceria full of Italian desserts. Other highlights include a gorgonzola trolley, lobster rolls and Nutella bombolone. 

Manly Pacific Hotel, Manly

Tilda  

Elegant, sophisticated and uniquely Australian, Tilda has nailed the elegant modern Australian aesthetic and the dishes to match, as evidenced by their brand new hat. Start with Tilda’s already iconic bread and butter service before delving into luxurious bowls of handcrafted pasta and fresh plates of seasonal seafood cooked over charcoal.  

61-101 Phillip Street, Sydney  

20 Chapel 

After scoring a hat in their first year of operation, 20 Chapel has done it again. With a custom-built wood fire grill, produce direct from Allison’s farm and an on-site aging room, you’re in for culinary a treat. You can expect a range of lesser-known cuts to grace your plate at 20 Chapel alongside local brews and negronis on tap (literally). Their bottomless brunch is one of the tastiest (and best value) in Sydney.

20 Chapel Street, Marrickville 

Itō (Image Credit: Jiwon Kim) 

Itō

Head Chef Erik Ortolani has combined his Italian heritage and passion for Japanese cooking to craft something truly unique. Dishes like yellowfin tuna served on bonito bread with shaved bottarga and Wagyu mafaldine paired with white shimeji and miso grace the menu and will give you a whole new appreciation for fusion cuisine. 

Key to the Itō experience is the drinks menu which features Japanese inspired classic cocktails, a quirky selection of wines from Japan and an extensive sake selection. The pared back interiors with fun pops of colour set the scene for the perfect night out. One of our favourites! 

413-415 Crown Street, Surry Hill

Restaurant Ka 

Every now and then you stumble across a restaurant that has you feeling like a regular from your first visit. Restaurant Ka is just that! Ka means family and that’s how you’re treated from the moment you walk in the door and sit yourself at the 10-seater bar. The casual yet elegant dining experience is not one you’re going to forget anytime soon. Chef Zac’s regularly rotating menu blends modern Australian, Cantonese and Japanese cuisine seamlessly and crafts dishes that are as unsuspecting as they are delicious. Even the palate cleanser and cheese course will catch you by surprise in the very best way. It’s little wonder they’ve maintained a hat since their first year of trading! 

13B Burton Street, Darlinghurst 

Bagged yourself a table at one of these hatted restaurants in Sydney and looking for something a little more lowkey? From edgy Chinese restaurants and unbeatable Italian eateries to group dining favourites and BYO gems, there are so many cool restaurants in Sydney to visit.