Eat in Darlinghurst, Sydney

Vin-Cenzo's ★ 4.4

Italian with French and Spanish flourishes on Palmer Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. House-rolled pasta, a tight Mediterranean wine list, neighbourhood vibe.

Signature: Cacio e pepe, Pici pasta, Tiramisu

Bills Darlinghurst ★ 4.5

Bill Granger's original Bills on Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney since 1993. The ricotta hotcakes with honeycomb butter went global from this counter.

Signature: Ricotta hotcakes, Sweetcorn fritters, Scrambled eggs

Order: Ricotta hotcakes with banana and honeycomb butter.

Tip: Walk-ins only; arrive before 9am to skip the weekend wait.

Gelato Messina Darlinghurst ★ 4.5

Gelato Messina's Darlinghurst flagship on Victoria Street, Sydney. House-churned gelato, weekly special-flavour drops, walk-in friendly weeknights.

Signature: Salted caramel and white chocolate, Pannacotta with fig jam, Doughnut sandwich

Order: Two-scoop cup of salted caramel and pannacotta.

Tip: The doughnut sandwich is a hidden Messina menu item, ask at the counter.

Edition Coffee Roasters ★ 4.5

Scandi-Japanese cafe and roaster on Riley Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Open kaiseki-style brunch, beans roasted on-site, sake and Scandinavian pastries.

Signature drink: Pour-over filter

Infinity Sourdough Bakery ★ 4.4

Long-running sourdough bakery on Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Loaves go to the city's top restaurants; the retail door is open daily for hot bread.

Worth the queue: Light rye sourdough

Love Tilly Devine ★ 4.7

Back-alley natural-wine bar on Crown Lane, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Matt Swieboda's room has poured one of Australia's deepest minimal-intervention lists.

Signature pour: Skin-contact gewurztraminer from Alsace

Wine focus: Natural and biodynamic wines

Food: Charcuterie and bar snacks

Della Hyde ★ 4.5

Champagne-led wine bar on Stanley Street, East Sydney. Caviar service, grower-Champagne pours by the glass, the kind of room booked for celebrations.

Signature pour: Grower Champagne by the glass

Wine focus: Champagne and traditional-method sparkling

Food: Caviar service and oysters

Shady Pines Saloon ★ 4.4

Below-street dive bar on Crown Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Taxidermied walls, country music, American whiskey and Tecate-and-shot service.

Signature drink: American whiskey flight

Food: No food

Gelato Messina Cone ★ 4.5

Sydney's most-walked-past gelato counter on Victoria Street, Darlinghurst. The salted caramel and white chocolate cone is the takeaway icon.

Try: Salted caramel and white chocolate gelato cone

Mr Crackles ★ 4.4

Pork-belly sandwich shop on Oxford Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. The roast pork hot roll with crackling and applesauce is the signature lunch.

Try: Pork belly hot roll

Kings Cross Organic Food and Farmers Market ★ 4.3

Saturday organic market in Fitzroy Gardens, Potts Point, Sydney. 30 certified organic stalls; a smaller, locals-only version of Carriageworks.

Kenny's Pork Rolls ★ 4.3

Kenny's Vietnamese bakery on Oxford Street Darlinghurst: crisp pork-belly banh mi plus 11 other rolls and a Saturday-night 3am window for after-dark cravings.

Try: Crisp pork-belly banh mi

Bills Ricotta Hotcakes ★ 4.5

Bill Granger's original ricotta hotcakes at Bills on Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney for A$25. Walk-in brunch counter, the canonical Sydney breakfast.

Try: Ricotta hotcakes with honeycomb butter

Bones Darlinghurst ★ 4.4

Why locals love it: Hidden Japanese ramen counter on Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Open till 1am, ramen-only menu and an under-the-radar cult following.

Tip: Walk in after 10pm; the ramen-only menu is at its sharpest after the late-night crowd lands.

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.

Shady Pines Saloon ★ 4.4

Below-street dive bar on Crown Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Taxidermied walls, country music, American whiskey and Tecate-and-shot service to midnight.

Try: American whiskey and a beer

Gelato Messina Darlinghurst ★ 4.5

Late-night gelato counter on Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. The salted caramel with white chocolate is the takeaway icon; closes 11pm.

Try: Two-scoop gelato cone