Sydney’s Best Just Keeps on Getting Better
Last Monday my sister and her family of four flew in from California for a week. While the entire City Hub crew worked feverishly to produce our 15th anniversary Best of Sydney edition, I was left with the task of showing my nieces and nephew Sydney’s other side. Armed with a multitude of excellent suggestions from the regular readers of Sydney’s alternative press, we hit the road to investigate some of the inner city’s best retail shops, restaurants and urban walkabouts right here in postcode 2010. No matter how much we locals love to whinge and moan about where we live, work and play, the Emerald City really does sparkle and shine.
Sure Paris has the Seine, London the Thames and San Francisco may have a bay, but name another major metropolitan downtown centre on planet earth where you can walk the distance from Hyde Park all the way to the Royal Botanical Gardens through open space – skirt high-rises, amble through grand public gardens past gold crested cockatoos and napping bats: to arrive on a craggy Harbour and the soaring sails of the Sydney Opera House.
Here in Darlinghurst 2010, the dogs walk us as far as the Domain most mornings. On special occasions they drag us for a swim outside Russel Crowe’s mansion, which is perched on his own private pier. Say “Woolloomooloo” to the fur kids and they cock their ears, eager to sniff the sandstone cliffs and wade into the cool pools for a paddle. Monday morning was a special occasion. The jet lagged Californians were dragged past Archbishop Pell’s bells, Parliament’s backside and a museum or two as they tried to spell WOOLLOOMOOLOO, which, it turns out, is even longer than the Mississippi.
For breakfast we tried Kawa in Crown Street (Surry Hills 2010), the best organic café this side of Northern California. The owner, Megan Hewitt offers a range of organic produce “better than what you find in the Berkeley coops,” according to my sister Jackie. And for a semi practicing vegan (such as my sis), Kawa actually serves three delicious animal free dishes. For dinner my sister and I enjoyed Pino’s mouth watering hand made, home cooked pasta in Little Italy at Spigolo in the heart of East Sydney 2010 while young Delaney slept over a delicious plate of gnocchi and the rest of the jetlagged crew ate Pino’s take away pizza ($10 Monday though Wednesday) back at the Cambridge Hotel in Surry Hills complete with stunning views of the Opera House. For lunch that next day we met in Chinatown at Sydney’s Best Chinese restaurant: Eric and his partner Linda have operated the Golden Century for 21 years and the award winning restaurant offers up a sumptuous banquet of seafood, noodles and fried vegetables (complete with enough crabs attempting to escape from their tanks to entertain an army of young dining companions) followed by slices of watermelon and delectable hand-made cookies that are prepared by three in house pastry chefs. And finally for dinner it was the bustling buzz of Xage in Crown Street back in Surry Hills. Opened by the owners of Summer Rolls in the City, (winner of Best Vietnamese in Sydney once again), Xage serves crisp spring rolls, succulent curry dishes and fried rice so good that seven year old Delaney personally told the owner Minh his food was as good as her best friend’s father back home who owns three Vietnamese restaurants around San Francisco.
Sometimes it takes out of town visitors to remind you that we really do live in one of the world’s best cities: sure the mass transit may suck and a torrent of inconsiderate car drivers makes walking around this town a challenge, but all in all Sydney is just about as good as it gets in terms of stunning natural beauty, hip urban enclaves and world class dining. In celebration of fifteen years of publishing the City Hub, we once again produce our comprehensive guide to the Best of Sydney, as recommended by you, our readers. We hope you enjoy following up these local hot spots almost half as much as we did.
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Why We Are Publishing the City Hub
1) To print the news and raise hell. To offer an independent alternative to Australia’s media conglomerates. To be unique, vital and indispensable.
2) To fight for progressive social change. To see that everyone gets a fair go. To look out for the underdog (who better than an alternative title to fight the good fight?).
3) To champion local Australian arts and culture. To counter the cultural cringe. To define what is next. To seek what is new.
4) To provide creative individuals with a forum for intelligent discourse. To develop fresh talent. To encourage well-written, accurate and insightful prose.
5) To give every employee the opportunity to grow and advance. To respect our staff. To have fun.
6) To empower our managers to run each department entrepreneurially and responsibly. To encourage new ideas. To develop a collaborative team effort.
7) To serve the interests of young urban readers. To always put our readers’ interests first. To ensure that every publishing decision expands our readership (by so doing our advertisers’ interests will be served).
8) To offer advertisers an effective, targeted advertising alternative. To provide small, locally-owned businesses with an affordable advertising option. To help our clients grow.
9) To operate profitably and with fiscal responsibility. Revenues are the means by which our message is delivered. Profits ensure that our business is secure.
10) To seek expansion opportunities within our defined market niche. To grow and grow again. To guarantee that our community hears an opinionated, independent voice.
