Time Out Food & Drink Awards 2022: Best Casual Dining Venue

Dan Pepperell and his co-pilot, Fat Duck and Rockpool Group alum Michael Clift, manage to pack plenty of points of reference, in-jokes, winks and nudges onto the single-page carte of this increasingly popular French bistro. The other cog in the polished wheel of Bistrot 916 is Andy Tyson, the powerhouse young sommelier responsible for establishing the expansive wine programs at Restaurant Hubert and Alberto’s Lounge. Given this talented triad’s track record and intelligently irreverent approach, it’s little wonder that primetime bookings are elusive.

Everything old is new again, which rings true on several levels at Da Orazio Pizza + Porchetta, chef Orazio D’Elia’s return to the same Bondi address that he first lent his name to back in 2013. Sydney isn’t short on good Italian restaurants, but where there’s demand, there’s supply, and given the roaring trade D’Elia’s Bondi resurrection is already enjoying, it’s clear to see the decision to take another crack at this location was a sound one. And sure, we're not seeing much now that we hadn't already seen from Da Orazio then, but it's still good to be reminded why it was so damn beloved in the first place.

Behind a gold pigeon embossed on a Surry Hills glass shopfront you'll find the brainchild of Gahoi (ex-Four Seasons Hotel) and co-owners Javed Khan (Delhi O’Delhi) and Kunal Patel. Foreign Return – named affectionately for expats who leave India and come back home – is nixing the idea that Indian food is all creamy sauces, soft breads, and two-note spice blends, and putting 'lost' recipes back onto leather-bound menus. Foreign Return is bringing Indian cuisine in Sydney into the 21st century – an irony, given that from its long-lost recipes, to its nostalgic decor this is a restaurant that also has one eye fixed affectionately on its past.

We know Sydney loves a waterfront restaurant, and if it comes with a view of the Harbour Bridge, well that's just an added bonus. So what would you say if we told you there was an absolutely killer Italian restaurant right underneath our famous Coathanger, where you can get a beautifully executed meal that won't set you back an arm, a leg, or a kidney? This family-run, closely guarded secret of Milsons Point offers a taste of modern Italian, with wide-spanning glass windows and a minimalist yet chic interior run by a father and daughters team, ducking and weaving through white linen-topped tables with good humour and the kind of efficiency that can only come from working with kin.

Imagine a piano keyboard that sounds amazing regardless of what order you play the notes. That’s the approach here: sweeten your curry with a spoon of beetroot, brighten your dahl with lime and chilli. Scoop everything onto the crunch of pappadams and accept that you will not finish it all. You will, nevertheless, throw yourself at the mercy of the dessert gods to ensure your share of caramelised pineapple pieces on sour kefir mascarpone finds safe passage. Lankan Filling Station is the tropical heat wave that stormed onto Sydney’s dining scene, and now we can’t remember a time when hoppers weren’t the first thing we wanted when someone suggested dinner out.

This small but perfectly formed walk-in-only diner puts accessibility and sustainability front and centre. It takes the form of a casual cafeteria with a focus on "true nourishment," according to Kwong. Her determination to make Cantonese-Australian cuisine with sustainably sourced produce is a thread that carries right through the menu, which she personally oversees at the open-plan kitchen, summoning servers to deliver orders with a distinctive double clap. And trust us, seeing such a culinary great in action is essential viewing.

Maydanoz is worth the visit for aesthetics alone, with tumbling heirloom pumpkins on display and gorgeous verdant subway tiles across the entire space. The only thing better is the food. Here it's all about the celebration of vegetables typical of the Aegean coastline (though there's plenty to keep the carnivores happy) where mind-bending contrasts abound; slow-roasted and smoky eggplant mains are served cold, while cheese courses come en flambé with their own teeny tiny grills for a touch of theatre, which is perhaps gilding the lily, given how vibrant and drop-dead gorgeous every dish at Maydanoz is, although you won't catch us complaining about it.

Opened in 2018, Poly is tucked into the bottom corner of the Paramount Building in Surry Hills, a wine bar sibling to Mat Lindsay’s iconic Chippendale restaurant, Ester. While the underlying vibe is similar (woodfired oven, arches, elegant neutrals with a few pops of colour), where Ester is light and airy, Poly is sexy and cool. This venue sees itself as a “barstaurant” so you don’t actually have to dine to drink. However, like a lot of Sydney hotspots, the clientele really decides what it is and Poly feels like it is treated as a restaurant. Besides, it’s always hard to turn down an oyster or two with an aperitif.

You will find no sombreros here, nor will you find a zig-zagged taco stand. The words ‘California’ and ‘Baja’ are but a distant memory from the moment you ascend the staircase, leaving Clarence Street behind and landing firmly in an Oaxacan casa. The soaring chamber of a converted CBD warehouse is one of a series of new openings by the Milpa Collective – the newcomer hospitality powerhouse sweeping across Sydney on a mission to showcase the very best of regional Mexican cuisine. In the spirit of Oaxacan hospitality, the dishes are generous and the drinks will flow, whether you’ve stuck to the mezcals, a brew or two, or one of the many Aussie wines on the list.

Time Out’s People’s Choice Awards this year invited readers to select their favourite restaurant, bar, pub and café, and the votes are in.