Meals in Sydney Australia

[monicajay]

When we went to Sydney we found the restaurants pricy, the exchange rate was not favorable when we traveled. We had to look hard for good yet affordable meals. The best meal we had was a restaurant called Chat Thai on Campbell St. It was awesome, reasonably priced and the bring your own wine option helped keep the price down.

 

If you go, there is a board as the entrance where you sign up for a table. Sort of a self serve hostess system. From what we were told there is almost always a wait.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Thanks JJJ. If my comment about melb vs Syd was all I had posted to help the OP then maybe I deserved the rant. But it wasnt. ;). Interesting history there hey?

 

Weird! :rolleyes:

 

Anyway with the current exchange rates anyone from the US shouldn't be complaining too much.

 

Lemme see, say $15 for that burger, no additional tax but do check the fine print on the menu in case it is one of those restaurants that charges a weekend surcharge. :rolleyes:

No tip required either so bill is still $15, convert to US, that's $11.47. Maybe not quite as cheap as the US but a fair price.

[CathyCruises]

Just paid $26 for a burger in Oslo, two burgers and two ciders, $70. Give me Sydney's prices any day!

 

When we were in Oz a few years ago, bad exchange rate, a simple pasta dish, no meat, ala carte, was $29. I don't care whether tip/tax was included or not, the 'value' was about $10. But when in Rome. . .

 

Also, when in Sydney having lunch, we were confused about the no tipping issue. We had been told there was no tipping, yet there was always a line for the tip on the credit card slip. We asked some local ladies dining next to us, and they were aghast, said they 'always' tip, and acted as if we were some sort of morons. So it's not as clear cut as some of you locals think.

[ozark74]

We will be staying in Sydney Australia for 6 evenings .

 

We understand that Sydney is expensive ,like London . In London there are the Pubs ,at more reasonable prices .Are there similar eating establishments available in Sydney ?

 

TIA for your replies

 

Two great pubs in The Rocks are the Lord Nelson Hotel and Brewery. It is the oldest licensed hotel in Sydney. The food and beer were very good. Just down the street from The Lord Nelson is the Hero of Waterloo. It has been around since 1843. Did not eat there but had a few pints. It is a very historic pub.

As someone said the Sydney fish market for lunch is great. So many choices.

[chemmo]

As we were visiting Sydney with our adult son we wanted suite type accommodation (bedroom and lounge with bed/settee. We quickly found that many suites also come with conceirge lounge offering a decent breakfast and evening snacks and drinks with a great view of the city!

 

Our meals budget remained largely untouched as we found after our free breakfast we were not hungry until late afternoon. We would then eat wherever we were sightseeing. In the evenings we could not have done justice to a meal but enjoyed the tasty snacks provided with the bar service.

 

For us our 'treat' of suite accommodation paid for itself in terms of money saved on food and drinks. May not suit you but just an idea. We stayed at the Intercontinental but several other hotels had similar deals.

[Pushka]

You really don't need to tip in Australia. Period. You can if you want to. I only tip for above and beyond service. Ignore that space if you choose.

[gek]

Yep. And I stand by it. :p.

 

In case you don't believe me:

 

http://m.heraldsun.com.au/travel/australia/melbourne-named-among-worlds-top-18-foodie-cities/story-fnjjv1f4-1227085987184

 

The Herald Sun is a Melbourne news paper so of course they would say that.

 

Actually, 10 or so years ago I would have agreed that Melbourne was the food capital of Australia but these days Sydney is much better. Melbourne got lazy and Sydney overtook it.

[gek]

You really don't need to tip in Australia. Period. You can if you want to. I only tip for above and beyond service. Ignore that space if you choose.

 

Very true. I tip whenever the service is good (which is most of the time) but I have never felt obliged to. Nobody gets angry if you don't.

[mcrcruiser]

Thanks every one for your posts & information:D . We now have a lot of information to digest . ;)

 

Our hotel is at 90 Williams Street ,The Sydney Boulevard hotel & it seems that there are Pubs & some really good restaurants in that area .all within walking distance .:)

 

We are taking the HOHO bus for 2days & the HOHO cruise for one day .This will help us with getting around Sydney ;)

[Pushka]

I was on the HoHo boat a few weeks ago, but did the trip where you didn't get off. It lasted around 90 minutes and I thought it was an excellent way to see the Harbour.

[idlenote]

One thing we found when we were in Sydney last year was that the portions that are served are huge. Normally we could split one plate between both of us and still have food left over. BTW they don't do doggie bags, apparently it's not permitted.

 

Still laughing over one place, we ordered shepherds pie, said they were out of mashed potatoes and could they substitute chips (french fries) instead. The topping on shepherds pie is, of course, mashed potatoes.

 

Spent two weeks in Australia and had an absolute ball.

[gek]

Thanks every one for your posts & information:D . We now have a lot of information to digest . ;)

 

Our hotel is at 90 Williams Street ,The Sydney Boulevard hotel & it seems that there are Pubs & some really good restaurants in that area .all within walking distance .:)

 

We are taking the HOHO bus for 2days & the HOHO cruise for one day .This will help us with getting around Sydney ;)

 

The Sydney Boulevard has a lot of history. In the 70s almost every visiting celebrity stayed there. Frank Sinatra's visit was particularly memorable.

 

Great spot. You'll find lots of great places to eat nearby but don't get too excited if you look at a map and see the cluster of restaurants up the hill in Kings Cross. The Cross is a sleazy area which periodically tries to change its image and usually fails miserably. You'd be better of looking in nearby Darlinghurst which is everything South of William St.

[OzKiwiJJ]

When we were in Oz a few years ago, bad exchange rate, a simple pasta dish, no meat, ala carte, was $29. I don't care whether tip/tax was included or not, the 'value' was about $10. But when in Rome. . ..

 

Sydney is just like most other major tourist destinations. There are places that sell poor quality food at inflated prices and often these sorts of places pop up in tourist areas. :mad: Even I've been caught out by one or two. :( Usually they don't stay in business more than a year or so.

 

But I've also found the same problems in other major cities around the world. Rome, Paris, London, to name but a few.

 

Also, when in Sydney having lunch, we were confused about the no tipping issue. We had been told there was no tipping, yet there was always a line for the tip on the credit card slip. We asked some local ladies dining next to us, and they were aghast, said they 'always' tip, and acted as if we were some sort of morons. So it's not as clear cut as some of you locals think.

 

The difference is that no-one will chase you down the street if you don't tip. ;) It is not mandatory but it is appreciated. We usually just round up the bill to the nearest $5 or $10, maybe adding a little more if we feel it is warranted. Rarely more than 10%, and nothing if the service was just adequate. It also depends on the type of restaurant. I don't usually tip at a very casual cafe, especially if I'm just having coffee - the type of cafe where you order at the counter and pay, or with table service but where you pay at the counter after your meal (although I might drop any coin change in the tip jar in this case).

 

These days most restaurants have hand-held credit card machines that they bring to your table (no slips) and you key in your pin to confirm the transaction. In some restaurants, there will be an opportunity to enter a tip or you can just press enter. Warning - do not key in your pin at the tip prompt :eek: although most waiters check for this. In some restaurants the waiter will actually bypass the tip entry screen for you.

[CathyCruises]

Sydney is just like most other major tourist destinations. There are places that sell poor quality food at inflated prices and often these sorts of places pop up in tourist areas. :mad: Even I've been caught out by one or two. :( Usually they don't stay in business more than a year or so.

 

But I've also found the same problems in other major cities around the world. Rome, Paris, London, to name but a few.

 

Sorry, I should i've said this happened in Broadbeach, QLD, in a small neighborhood cafe in a residential area, not in a tourist area. My daughter lives nearby. But i did enjoy Pie Face!!

Edited May 31, 2015 by CathyCruises

[OzKiwiJJ]

Sorry, I should i've said this happened in Broadbeach, QLD, in a small neighborhood cafe in a residential area, not in a tourist area. My daughter lives nearby. But i did enjoy Pie Face!!

 

:eek:

 

My local neighborhood cafe charges $12 for pasta with a neopolitan sauce, and $18.50 for pasta with prawns in a white wine sauce.

 

Still, restaurants charge what they can get away with. A popular restaurant in another suburb close to where I live charges up to $29 for pasta with meat-based sauces. Very big serves though.

[GUT2407]

You will also have all the fast food options, like KFC, Maccas, Subway, Hungry Jacks [burger Kings in US].

 

Pubs and clubs [RSL Worker's club Leagues Club] all have good deals, often a steak or schnitzel or pasta night for about $10 AUS.

 

Lots of cafe's still around.

 

Food Courts in all the shopping centres.

 

And please have a Pie at Harry's Cafe at least once.

 

A lot of choices at Darling Harbour, The Rocks and Circular Quay.

[cruiseerf]

We always stay in a Sydney hotel with a club lounge. We figure for the breakfast, coffee and tea during the day....bottled water and then Full on 2 hour happy hour with drinks and 3 or 4 hot and 5 cold snacks +dessert it is a great deal. 1/2 our group eat dinner there and call it a night.

 

Darling Harbour restaurants during the week often have price fixe 2 or 3 course lunches.....So you can eat a nice lunch for a low price and enjoy the fresh air. I believe these are only during the week.

 

There is Subway etc if you need a quick snack and China town has lots of inexpensive options as does Surrey Hills.

 

Keep in mind that like any metropolitan city.....The Best value places are quite full on the weekends so reservations are a must if you are seeking the good value and food places....the locals know them as well ;)

 

Also keep in mind that many places are BYOB with limited or no corkage....so you can pick up a bottle of wine or two at Woolies and then save yourself the restaurant mark up.

 

Enjoy, and bring your walking shoes, Sydney and the surroundings are beautiful.

 

Safe sails to all!

[The_Big_M]

Great spot. You'll find lots of great places to eat nearby but don't get too excited if you look at a map and see the cluster of restaurants up the hill in Kings Cross. The Cross is a sleazy area which periodically tries to change its image and usually fails miserably. You'd be better of looking in nearby Darlinghurst which is everything South of William St.

 

Just like was said about Melbourne changing from many years ago, the sleaze was the case in Kings Cross many years ago, but calling it sleazy now is not accurate.

 

Sure, there's still a few clubs around there, but then there also are in the city and other areas. And you could say there's an equal amount of sleaze in Darlinghurst too.

 

If you're just going to any of these areas to a restaurant or pub, then you can do so pretty reliably and comfortably.

[4774Papa]

We were there when the Aus Dollar was more than the US, still, we managed reasonably priced meals.

 

Check out the chain "Pie Face." Great little pies. Breakfast pies with egg and sausage, etc.

Lunch pies as well for modest cost.

 

 

We had dinner at an Italian restaurant at 11 Bridge Street, near George Street called "Fratelli Fresh." The food was excellent.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Not sure what is happening with Pie Face. It went into voluntary receivership late last year. I think many outlets have closed.

[GUT2407]

We were there when the Aus Dollar was more than the US, still, we managed reasonably priced meals.

 

Check out the chain "Pie Face." Great little pies. Breakfast pies with egg and sausage, etc.

Lunch pies as well for modest cost.

 

 

We had dinner at an Italian restaurant at 11 Bridge Street, near George Street called "Fratelli Fresh." The food was excellent.

 

Pie face is all but gone. Still trying to trade in a few places and trying to develop wholesale, but it's not looking good.

[CathyCruises]

Pie face is all but gone. Still trying to trade in a few places and trying to develop wholesale, but it's not looking good.

 

Aww that's sad. Great breakfast pies. Maybe they grew too big too fast.

[4774Papa]

Sorry to hear about Pie Face's decline. We heard they opened a restaurant in New York City recently.

[rayandjean]

You will also have all the fast food options, like KFC, Maccas, Subway, Hungry Jacks [burger Kings in US].

 

Pubs and clubs [RSL Worker's club Leagues Club] all have good deals, often a steak or schnitzel or pasta night for about $10 AUS.

 

Lots of cafe's still around.

 

Food Courts in all the shopping centres.

 

And please have a Pie at Harry's Cafe at least once.

 

A lot of choices at Darling Harbour, The Rocks and Circular Quay.

 

Don't miss eating A "tiger" @ Harry's; we sat on the same bench when the PBS guy reviewed this on the travel channel. It was wonderful and traditional. Also saw a great fish carry-out place as we were boarding the boat to go to the opera house and so we got some when we got back; it was delicious!

 

One night we ate outside @ a little cafe for pizza; left a tip and our waitress ran us down to return the tip money. Never had that experience before or since.

 

Australia is GREAT!!!

[mcrcruiser]

Great information every one :D.Thanks very much:D