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White cut kingfish bright with light soy and green chilli. Pork and prawn wontons intensified with a fiery Sichuan and peanut and sesame dressing. Moreton Bay bug spring rolls dipped into a creamy chilli sauce. Eastern New South Wales rock lobster served with aromatic soy, ginger and shallots. And glistening and bronzed Peking duck, wrapped up in a thin pancake alongside cucumber, leek and hoisin.
These are some of the dishes on the menu at Stanley Manly Wharf – a new, high-energy Cantonese restaurant now open on Many's waterfront from award-winning chef Louis Tikaram.
It’s the third Cantonese restaurant in recent years to set up shop in this special spot, following Queen Chow Manly and, some years before that, Manly Phoenix (shout out to Papi Chulo, which was in that space too).
Inspired by Hong Kong’s seaside Stanley Bay and Louis’s travels across the world, the 248-seat restaurant features live seafood tanks, a custom-built duck oven, plump dim sum – and plenty of harbour views.
Other menu highlights include lobster and truffle dumplings; prawn toast with truffle mayo; Lennox Head pipis with XO sauce; North Queensland coral trout; and MB9+ wagyu with black pepper sauce.
“After a long time in the making, it’s pretty special to finally have the doors open and to be back cooking in Sydney,” says Louis, who was named 2014 Josephine Pignolet Young Chef of the Year while at Longrain.
“There’s something about Manly that feels very familiar to me. Growing up on the NSW North Coast, the ocean was always a big part of my life, whether it was fishing, cooking seafood or just being by the water. That connection has naturally found its way into Stanley. Being here on the harbour shapes what we cook, the produce we work with and the way we want people to experience Stanley.”
The wine list, led by sommelier Christian Blair, spans Australia and some of the world’s great wine regions, with a focus on riesling, chardonnay, pinot noir, champagne and burgundy. As for cocktails, get around the Shanghai Highball, Stan’s Lychee Martini, Tom Yum Margarita and Fortune Cookie Old Fashioned.
Stanley Manly Wharf joins Brisbane’s Stanley Restaurant, which opened at Howard Smith Wharves in late 2019.
Cool news for Manly and Northern Beaches locals – if you dine at Stanley from now until the end of September, you will receive a complimentary glass of wine or beer with your meal.
And with the recent news that Chin Chin is coming to Manly in 2027, it’s not just the weather that’s getting hot in the 2095 ’hood.
Find out more and make a booking here.
Address: East Esplanade, Manly, NSW 2095
I was kindly hosted by Stanley Manly Wharf, but our editorial recommendations are always honest. Time Out doesn't write star-rated restaurant and bar reviews from hosted experiences – when we review, Time Out covers restaurant and bar bills, and anonymously reviews, so that readers can trust our critique. Find out more, here.
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