7 Best Restaurants in Inner City and the Eastern Suburbs, Sydney

The fashionable and famous just adore perching like seagulls over the swimming pool at the south end of Australia's most famous beach. It is one of the must-visit restaurants in Sydney, for both the sensational view and the exquisite food. The menu featuring modern Italian- and Mediterranean-inspired dishes, with signature options like spaghetti vongole and crispy skin barramundi. The elegant space includes a stylish bar with a broad selection of cocktails, fine wines, and craft beers. But it's the floor-to-ceiling windows providing breathtaking views of the iconic surf and coastline that is the true drawcard here—along with celebrity spotting. 

The creation of three Italian brothers, this trendy Paddington eatery is a winner for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The menu is designed to offer a genuine taste of Italian home cooking no matter what time of day you dine. At breakfast, a light polenta porridge arrives with figs. For lunch, a fresh caprese salad and dinner, their self-titled "best lasagne ever." You can even grab a takeaway, with a wide range of Italian baked treats which are baked on-site daily and good coffee.

Chef Armando Percuoco established this Italian gem in 1987 and continued to run it until 2018, when longtime head chef David Wright and his wife Rosalba Bertocci took over. The menu remains rooted in traditional Neapolitan cuisine, featuring small starters of raw or lightly cured seafood, handmade pastas, whole fish, and rich, meaty mains such as slow-cooked lamb shoulder with ricotta, mint, and lemon. Ingredient sourcing is meticulous, with dishes often showcasing a light touch and frequent use of lemon, olive oil, capers, and Parmesan. The stand-out dish is the renowned truffle-egg pasta with only a few skilled staff members trained to prepare it. The extensive wine list, with over 200 selections, predominantly features Italian wines, though a selection of local options is also included.

This gem for pasta aficionados, offering a delightful journey through artisanal Italian flavors, offers a range of freshly made pasta crafted daily with meticulous attention to detail. From rich, velvety tagliatelle to perfectly stuffed ravioli, every bite reflects a dedication to quality and authenticity. The atmosphere is charming and rustic, capturing the essence of Italian culinary tradition while nestled in the lively Darlinghurst neighborhood.

Few restaurants have the magnetic pull of Otto, a place where radio shock jocks sit side by side with fashion-magazine editors and confirmed foodies. Yes, it's a scene, but fortunately one with good Italian food prepared by chef Richard Ptacnik. The homemade pastas are menu standouts; try the spaghetti, baby octopus with trapanese, a Sicilian pesto sauce. The selection of Italian wines is expensive but rarely matched this far from Milan.

A charming slice of Italy nestled in Paddington, originally established as a delicatessen before evolving into a beloved local café. Serving as a bridge between Paddington’s retail and residential areas, it's become a second kitchen for many regulars who visit daily. The cozy interior, adorned with dried oregano and hanging prosciutto, exudes warmth and charm, creating a welcoming atmosphere where you can share benches, high tables, and small stools while enjoying paninis and Allpress coffee. 

Found a little farther up Bondi Road, away from the beach, this restaurant has been a bit of an unexpected hit since opening in 2018. Unexpected because it's housed above a run-down pub called The Royal, but once you're up the stairs it's an incredibly classy restaurant serving Italian-inspired wood-fired mains. The chef Khan Danis has worked at some of the best restaurants in Sydney and is hailed as the king of wood fire in the city. Each dish is impressive, with pizza-size flatbreads arriving with house-made charcuterie, pickled fish, and seasonal fruit. There's also alfresco dining available, and there's lunch and dinner served every day.