Bills Darlinghurst ★ 4.5
Bill Granger's original Bills on Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney since 1993. All-day brunch menu, weekend queues, specialty-coffee program.
Order: Ricotta hotcakes with banana and honeycomb butter.
Where to brunch in Sydney: morning rooms worth the queue.
Where to brunch in Sydney. The morning rooms worth the queue, and the kitchens still doing it right at noon.
Bill Granger's original Bills on Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney since 1993. All-day brunch menu, weekend queues, specialty-coffee program.
Order: Ricotta hotcakes with banana and honeycomb butter.
Farm-to-table all-day cafe at the Cannery, Rosebery, Sydney. Sustainable sourcing, daily-changing breakfast plates and a wood-fired evening menu.
Order: Eggs Benedict with house-cured ham hock and pickled green tomato.
Coastal all-day cafe on Ramsgate Avenue, North Bondi, Sydney from Three Blue Ducks' Darren Robertson. A$85 bottomless brunch, focaccia and burrata plates.
Order: Honey-drizzled house focaccia and creamy burrata.
Beachside Bills on Hall Street, Bondi, Sydney. Ricotta hotcakes and sweetcorn fritters two blocks from the sand; the dish Bill Granger sent global.
Order: Ricotta hotcakes with banana and honeycomb butter.
Bondi beach brunch on Wairoa Avenue, Sydney. Acai bowls, smoothie bowls and paleo plates with the post-swim regulars. Sydney venue with a regular local crowd.
Order: Acai bowl and the avocado smash.
Modern Asian-Aussie brunch cafe on Barangaroo Avenue, Sydney. Korean fried chicken bao, Devon Benedict and matcha pancakes; harbour terrace seating.
Order: Eggs Blini and the Devon Benedict.
Japanese-Scandinavian brunch and roastery on Steam Mill Lane, Haymarket, Sydney. Soufflé pancakes, udon with bacon dashi, single-origin pour-overs.
Order: Japanese souffle pancake with pistachio cream and elderflower rhubarb.
Surf-club brunch on Ramsgate Avenue, North Bondi, Sydney. Power breakfast and acai bowls perched directly over the sand at the North Bondi corner.
Order: Avocado smash and a long black.
Japanese-Australian brunch cafe on King Street, Newtown, Sydney. Katsu hamburg, karaage rolls, specialty matcha; walk-in only, kitchen closes 2:30pm.
Order: Katsu hamburg steak and the chicken karaage roll.
Modern vegetarian cafe on Chapel Street, Marrickville, Sydney. House pasta at lunch, brunch plates that lean seasonal Aussie veg, slow-roast specials board.
Order: Mushroom toast or the kimchi-pancake stack.
Industrial brunch compound on Huntley Street, Alexandria, Sydney. Roastery, garden cafe, brunch counter and a kids' farm; weekend queues from 9am.
Order: The Grounds breakfast plate with house bacon and herbed eggs.
Latin American brunch and roastery on Albion Street, Surry Hills, Sydney. The Colombian arepa, huevos rancheros and single-origin filter coffee.
Order: Huevos rancheros or the Colombian arepa.
Specialty coffee anchor on Reservoir Street, Surry Hills, Sydney. Coffee flights, simple breakfast bowls, the city's longest-running specialty espresso bar.
Order: Filter flight with a sourdough toastie.
European bakery and cafe on Cleveland Street, Chippendale, Sydney. Sourdough loaves at the counter, weekend queues from open and savoury baked goods.
Order: Bacon, manchego and pickle ciabatta toastie.