Prices in Sydney’s restaurants vary. Breakfast at a standard cafe (food plus a coffee or juice) can cost anywhere up to $20 for a full English breakfast or other substantial meal. A main meal in a mid-range restaurant is around $25-35. Upper mid-range averages around $35-45. At the real top-end places a dinner for two with wine can run up to $400-500 and beyond.

For the more budget-conscious, Sydney’s multicultural demography means plenty of quality ethnic cuisine for cheap prices, particular Asian restaurants. Many restaurants particularly in the city will also offer “lunch specials”. Newtown in Sydney’s inner-west is renowned for its inexpensive cafes and restaurants on King St, in particular Thai food. It is highly popular among students from the nearby Sydney University.

For an Asian bent, head to Chinatown for authentic Asian cheap eats. As well as restaurants, there are numerous food courts scattered throughout Chinatown packed with Asian eateries where the rock bottom priced food (but no less tasty) can be found. Plonk down at a laminate table shoulder to shoulder with hungry locals for some bubble tea and a sizzling plate of delicious Asian food. If you have a little money to spend, yum cha (dim sum) for lunch at one of the many Cantonese restaurants around Sydney is a regular ritual for many Sydney siders. Yum cha can be had in Chinatown (avoid the touristy al fresco places on Dixon St, go to East Ocean or Marigold instead), the city (Zilver, Sky Phoenix and others) and most urban centres around Sydney. Expect queues on weekends and brusque service all days – it’s all part of the charm of yum cha. Some yum cha restaurants have now abandoned the trolleys, and instead give you a menu to tick your items which will be brought to your table. Some only have trolleys for specials or on weekends.

Cafés serving breakfast start opening at 06:00 and breakfast is usually served until 11:00 or, occasionally, all day. Orders for lunch start at about noon and continue until about 15:00. Many cafes will start closing late afternoon, although a few may remain open for dinner.

Restaurants usually open for dinner around 17:00-18:00 and while there are exceptions (usually concentrated in areas with active nightlife), last orders for dinner are typically taken around 22:00. Restaurants in business areas open for lunch as well. It’s common for restaurants in suburban locations to sometimes be closed on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday nights. It is more expensive to get a sit down meal in the evening, than it is for lunch.

Just about every suburb in Sydney has a restaurant or two, a cafe or coffee shop, and a place that sells takeaway food. However, there are a number of places in Sydney where you can window shop through many restaurants and make your choice.

All of Darling Harbour is like this, there are restaurants of every variety all along the waterfront. East Circular Quay in the City Centre is similar, along with the International Passenger Terminal on the west of Circular Quay – however many of the restaurants in this area are expensive and loved more for the view than the quality of the food. There are (pricey) exceptions, such as Cafe Sydney, Aria and Sailors Thai.

Circular Quay / the Rocks has many pubs to choose from which serve meals. The Australian Hotel serves local specialities such as crocodile pizza.

In the east of the city, Victoria Street in Darlinghurst and Crown Street in Surry Hills (between Oxford and Cleveland Streets) has a large range of funky cafes, small bars, pubs, patisseries and restaurants. Darlinghurst and Surry Hills has it all, from cheap Asian take-aways to high-end restaurants. Many trendy restaurants in this area don’t take bookings; often you wait at the bar for a table. These suburbs are popular with hipsters, yuppies and the gay community.

Just east of the city is Woolloomooloo Wharf which boasts a fantastic view across the harbour and several upmarket restaurants, including excellent steak, Chinese, Italian and seafood restaurants. Perfect for lunch on a sunny day.

King Street, Newtown, centred on the railway station, has a constantly changing selection of good value restaurants, pubs, cafes and bars. You can find many various types of cuisine here; mainly cheap Thai, but also Vietnamese, Italian, Turkish, Japanese and modern Australian. This area isn’t touristy, but popular with students from the nearby Sydney University. The area has its own alternative style, which makes for great people watching.

On the Lower North Shore Willoughby Road at Crows Nest, has honest and consistently good Indian, Japanese, Thai, steak, a handful of small bars. Military Road through Cremorne and Neutral Bay have a smattering of decent restaurants, mostly Japanese. Kirribilli has a few nice cafes and restaurants, and a short after dinner stroll will take you by some of the best views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

While Australia’s cafe culture may have its roots in Melbourne, Sydney has well and truly taken up the joys of good coffee and tasty, easy food. It is of great pride that most cafes are locally owned. Big overseas chains like starbucks have had to close many of original stores in the city

The best cafes are usually in the inner city and the inner west. Many Sydneysiders take great joy in good coffee, and the very best places for this will be the likes of Campos Coffee on Missenden Road in Newtown, Coffee Alchemy in Marrickville, Mecca Espresso in Ultimo or King Street in the City, Single Origin Roasters near Elizabeth St in Surry Hills, or The Source Espresso Bar in Mosman. Other well-known favourites include Three Blue Ducks in Bronte (also open for dinner and run by ex-head chef of Michelin starred Tetsuya’s), Bourke Street Bakery in Surry Hills (where a very good bakery is crammed into a tiny corner terrace), and Black Star Pastry in Newtown. You can expect to line up for any of these, though the wait is worth it.