From Firepop’s chicken on a stick to Fisherman’s Friend-flavoured chocolates, there’s plenty of exciting new things to explore in the 2042 postcode.
Been a while since you set foot in the 2042 postcode? Don’t even worry about it. The things you remember being good still are, and they’ve been joined by plenty more – so many more that this list could be three times as long.
Kolkata Social has just opened at the south end of King Street, and we’re expecting delicious things from chef Ahana Dutt’s Bengali cooking. Then there’s Cairo Takeaway, Earl’s Juke Joint, Bloodwood, Russo & Russo, Maiz Mexican, Emma’s Snack Bar, Faheem and Comeco Foods to name a few.
We may well publish a follow-up list soon, but in the meantime, here are 10 places to get you started.
Deli hoagie at Soulmate
Well may you love the bap, but can you spare a moment for the hoagie? Soft in the middle, chewy on the outside and found on the menu at Soulmate, tucked away on a leafy backstreet. You’ll find that roll stuffed with provolone, salami, ham (double meat!) salad greens, pickles and herbed mayo. Adding a side of chips is optional but essential.
12/39 Phillip Street, Newtown, soulmatecoffee.com.au
Chicken tail on a stick at Firepop
Good Food’s 2025 new restaurant of the year keeps the flames burning hot on Enmore Road, where you can dig into a tightly curated drinks list while enjoying chicken tail flecked with sea salt; lamb crusted in sesame, cumin and chilli; and tofu with sesame dressing, all licked by the grill. Commit to an $80 set menu or go stick-only and make it an essential pitstop on your snack tour of the inner west.
137 Enmore Road, Enmore, firepop.com.au
Fisherman’s Friend-flavoured lobster chocolates at Mister Grotto
Now Mister Grotto, Flora and Osteria Mucca are up and running, we might need to rename Australia Street to “Paisano Parade”. These newbies join Paisano and Daughters group owners Joe Valore, Sarah Doyle and Elvis Abrahanowicz’s much-loved Continental Delicatessen. Chef Lauren Eldridge’s lobster-shaped dessert treats are a standout at Grotto, available as white chocolate filled with Fisherman’s Friend-flavoured salted caramel, and dark chocolate version with Branca Menta peppermint cream.
208 Australia Street, Newtown, paisanoanddaughters.com.au
A plain, perfect croissant at A.P Town
There’s a lot to love at the Newtown branch of chef Mat Lindsay’s bakery chain. The deeply burnished, custardy, bubbly whiskey caneles. The rich and bittersweet dark chocolate cookies. The Aleppo pepper-flecked cheese scrolls. But there’s elegance in the simplicity when it comes to their buttermilk croissants. A glossy shell hides fine layers of gossamer pastry inside – perfect with a strong black coffee.
1A Bucknell Street, Newtown, apbakery.com.au
Drive-by sausages and a clam pizza from Bella Brutta Takeaway
You might know and love Luke Powell’s pizza at Bella Brutta, but did you know they also have a takeaway version around the corner from their restaurant? And that pizza is not the only thing you can buy there? Order your pizza covered in fermented chilli and garlic, dotted with sweet surf clam meat and add a tin of fancy anchovies and a packet of kranskies just in case you’re peckish later.
170 Missenden Road, Newtown, bellabrutta.com.au
A dark beer and Roadhouse-era Patrick Swayze at The Magpie
It’s the micro-sports bar you didn’t know you needed, complete with ’80s memorabilia on the walls, Roadhouse on the TV and Guinness on tap. You’ll struggle to scrounge anything to eat here, but the owners don’t mind you ordering in. Enlist a mate to nip down to Cairo Takeaway for a couple of falafel rolls so you don’t lose your seat.
156 Enmore Road, Enmore, instagram.com/magpieenmore
Fried potato mochi at Ante
It’s a listening bar. It’s a restaurant. It’s a refuge for sake nerds. As Julia Roberts says in Pretty Woman, it’s anything you want it to be. At chef Jemma Whiteman and sommelier Matt Young’s 30-seat venue, you’ll be treated to a rotating menu of great tunes on vinyl, expertly made cocktails and dishes such as locally grown mushrooms doused in chicken fat, or fried potato mochi – starchy, stretchy Japanese-inspired mashed potato snacks.
146 King Street, Newtown, ante.bar
Malted chocolate mousse at Cafe Paci
Finnish chef Pasi Petanen has been delighting the top end of King Street with his clever cooking since 2019. There’s the famous potato and molasses rye bread slathered with butter, a down-in-one devilled egg dotted with trout roe, or savoury-sweet malted chocolate mousse with a scoop of passionfruit sorbet. Pure beauty on the plate.
131 King Street, Newtown, cafepaci.com.au
A rosetta roll filled with local meats and cheeses at Marani Deli
There’s something about a Florentine-style sandwich that’s so very romantic. Perhaps it’s the shape of the bread, like a blooming rose. The version at this newish Newtown deli is filled with mozzarella from Marrickville cheesemakers Vanella and silky slices of mortadella from LP’s Quality Meats, along with marinated vegies, chilli and a splash of olive oil.
Shop 7-8, 80 Wilson Street, Newtown, maranideli.com.au
A martini with more olives than sense at Bar Planet
Welcome to Sydney’s only dedicated martini bar, brought to you by the team behind Sydney’s smallest tequila bar, Cantina OK!. You’ll be asking for The Skyscraper. And it’ll come with at least seven olives. This is lucky, because they don’t really serve anything else to eat here outside of spiced popcorn. You can, however, order snacks from Enmore’s late night favourite Turkish takeaway, Saray. 16 Enmore Road, Newtown, barplanet.com.au.
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Myffy Rigby is the former editor of the Good Food Guide.
