Still packing the house after almost 20 years, it’s not so much longevity for which Il Bàcaro should be commended, writes Michael Harden, but more its unfailing class.

REVIEW Locally sourced goat, storied wines from a cellar that holds up to 30,000 bottles, and a kitchen plot bigger than most market gardens. This is the culinary toybox available to chef Robin Wickens. There can be few shorter distances from paddock to plate than at this upmarket country pub in Victoria’s pastoral Western District. […]

REVIEW With a graphic-design degree tucked up the sleeve of his chef’s whites, Julian Hills brings an artist’s sensibility to the kitchen, balancing flavours, texture and pops of colour. And thanks to a smart revamp, Paringa’s interiors now match that contemporary aesthetic. Rich timbers, a black leather banquette and charcoal carpet bring a fresh level […]

REVIEW Hotel restaurants must cater to all tastes and often the result is a menu that neither offends nor delights. The Argus is not such a restaurant, yet it offers the pluses of 1930s hotel dining – the grand entrance, the sense of occasion. Chef David Willcocks reboots expectations from the get-go with a raw […]

REVIEW In a town where reliable beachside eats are still thin on the sand, this bustling multi-tasker manages to do everything from breakfast, lunch and dinner to all-day coffee and wine. Like the airy yellow-splashed interior, the menu is fresh, fun and unashamedly Italian in spirit. Bowls of clams strewn with prosciutto lardons and garlic […]

REVIEW Chicken pâté sushi. It’s not exactly textbook Japanese cooking, doubly so when deep-fried and accented with spicy moro miso. But that’s precisely the kind of open-mindedness that defines Miki’s Open Kitchen, a dedicated – yet decidedly relaxed – tempura restaurant in the wine and surfie hamlet of Margaret River. Tempura parcels of nori-wrapped garfish […]

Monster has the requisite wow-factor but, more than that, it has charm and ambition matched only by its performance, writes Pat Nourse.

In his latest encore, Andrew McConnell slips smoothly from mod Asian to Parisian-style bistro, writes Michael Harden. Luxembourg, take a bow.

Potts Point newcomer Cho Cho San is no paint-by-numbers creation, but rather a free-form rendition of hip Nippon dining, writes Pat Nourse.

Fresh faces in the kitchen and on the restaurant floor give new life to classical bones at Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, writes Pat Nourse.

The bookings system and menu themes may be novel, but the appeal at Prix Fixe, writes Michael Harden, is simply good cooking and great value.

The new Fish Face Dining in Double Bay marks a welcome sea change for marine maestro Steve Hodges and his able protégé, writes Pat Nourse.

George Calombaris’s latest Press Club incarnation is modern Greek meets Aussie kitsch – bold, playful and at times puzzling, but without doubt memorable, writes Michael Harden.