Best Restaurants Near Barangaroo (and a Short Walk Away)

Five restaurants worth booking in and around Barangaroo, from a charcoal steakhouse on the water at Walsh Bay to the dining rooms stacked inside Crown Sydney.

Barangaroo has turned into one of Sydney’s busiest places to eat, with a run of serious restaurants inside Crown Sydney and along the harbour promenade. Step a few minutes north along Hickson Road and you are on the old finger wharves at Walsh Bay, where the crowds thin out and the water is on three sides.

These are five restaurants worth booking in Barangaroo, or a short walk away, and what each is built for.

The top 5

#	Restaurant	Where	The night it is for
1	Elements Bar and Grill, Walsh Bay	Pier 8/9, 23 Hickson Rd	Steak over charcoal with the harbour on three sides
2	Woodcut	Crown Sydney	A big night built around the open kitchens
3	Oncore by Clare Smyth	Crown Sydney	The once-a-year fine dining booking
4	a’Mare	Crown Sydney	Italian, done with polish
5	Rekōdo	Barangaroo House	Japanese plates and records on the balcony

1. Elements Bar and Grill, Walsh Bay

A charcoal steakhouse on Pier 8/9, a heritage finger wharf with the harbour on three sides and a long run of glass down the eastern face. Steak is the centre of the menu rather than an item on it, running up to an MB9 wagyu tomahawk for a table that wants an event out of dinner.

It is a short walk from Barangaroo Metro station: north along Hickson Road and you are on the wharf, away from the crowds on the promenade. That makes it the easy answer for a client dinner after work in the Barangaroo towers, or a night that starts on the train.

Every Thursday is Tomahawk Thursday, and the venue can be taken exclusively for a bigger celebration. The Walsh Bay venue page has the detail, and the Thursday deals page has the tomahawk.

2. Woodcut, Crown Sydney

Ross and Sunny Lusted’s restaurant is built around four open kitchens, so a lot of the night happens in front of you. The menu changes daily, and it is the one many Barangaroo guides name first for steak and wood-fired cooking.

3. Oncore by Clare Smyth, Crown Sydney

The Sydney restaurant of three-Michelin-starred chef Clare Smyth, high up in Crown Sydney with the harbour below. It is the booking for an anniversary or the dinner you plan a month ahead, and the price reflects that.

4. a’Mare, Crown Sydney

Alessandro Pavoni’s Italian room at Crown Sydney, with the polish of a grand hotel restaurant and the generosity of an Italian one. Come for the pasta, stay for the dessert trolley if it is on.

5. Rekōdo, Barangaroo House

A Japanese restaurant and vinyl bar inside Barangaroo House, with a big balcony over the water. Share plates, cocktails and a record playing in the background make it the relaxed pick of the five.

Getting there

Barangaroo Metro station puts all five within easy reach. The Crown Sydney restaurants and Barangaroo House are a few minutes from the station, and Elements Bar and Grill Walsh Bay is a short walk from Barangaroo Metro station, north along Hickson Road to Pier 8/9. Wynyard is about a ten minute walk, and Circular Quay is about fifteen minutes from Walsh Bay along the water.

Driving is harder on a weeknight, with the office crowd leaving at the same time. The guide to parking at Walsh Bay covers the closest car parks.

Booking near Barangaroo

The Crown Sydney rooms book out well ahead on Fridays and Saturdays, and so does the pier at Walsh Bay when there is a show at the theatres next door. Book early, and tell the restaurant if you have a curtain time or a client to impress.

Book Elements Bar and Grill Walsh Bay through the Dine with Elements booking page, or call 1300 ELEMENTS (1300 353 636). For more around the precinct, see restaurants near Barangaroo and the top 5 restaurants in Walsh Bay.