When The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2025 is published on November 12, it will contain 121 restaurants marked as a critics’ pick. If we had more space, the print publication would have to triple the number of these excellent places, from fish and chip shops in Lennox Head to cafes in Bondi and pubs in the Snowy Mountains.

Unlike the Good Food Guide “chef’s hats” introduced in 1984, the critics’ pick is only in its second year. Marked by a tick symbol, it indicates a venue that we wholeheartedly recommend, regardless of score. They may not hit every metric in our traditional scoring system, but we can absolutely vouch for their delicious food and that each one is vital in its own way.

The 20 venues below, a selection of this year’s critics’ picks, are some of the most vital restaurants around, be they all-day spots in the regions listing taramasalata and wild-weed pie, ramen counters in the nation’s capital, chicken-rice specialists in Cabramatta, pizza joints by beaches or even a drop-in drop-out Neil Perry establishment.

In every case, these places add more texture and excitement to our dining scene.

Alfie’s

A melee of CBD types packs Alfie’s for its promise to have its single main course on the table within 15 minutes. The dish is precision-cut, crusted Riverine sirloin, cooked medium-rare, plated with a knoll of garlicky spinach, mustard and horseradish sauce. It’s complemented by a lively dining room and charcoal terrazzo bar, plus a carte of affordable sides, including essential hot chips with curry sauce. Piercingly cold martinis are a bonus.

2/4-6 Bligh Street, Sydney, liquidandlarder.com.au/venues/alfies

Bobbys Cronulla

Summer lovin’ doesn’t get much better than this. Perched on the edge of South Cronulla Beach, Bobbys screams “lunchtime, chilled beer and anchovies on toast”. Or a glass of rosé and a barra burger. Or a spritz and grapefruit-laced kingfish ceviche. However you play it, angle for a spot with a view of the boardwalk and watch the world go by.

Com Ga Ba Nga Hoi An

The kitchen at Com Ga Ba Nga Hoi An gives a strong clue as to what’s on every table here: Hoi An-style com ga, the combination of gently poached chicken with sunshine-yellow turmeric rice. Order the special, and it’s a whole-bird affair, complete with a saucy braise of liver, giblets and yolk, papaya salad cutting the richness. Also try springy rice noodle soup, cao lau, and crisp snail rolls.

2/82-84 John Street, Cabramatta

Gumshara

Mori Higashida moved Gumshara down the road in 2023, and the queue seems to have only grown larger. Join the line and experience the unadulterated ramen pleasure of his “number three” tonkotsu, featuring incredibly giving slices of pork and an optional seasoned egg that’s essential, really, for all its jammy deliciousness. The dried fish-enhanced tonkotsu manages to pack in even more umami, and don’t forget extras from the self-serve table.

9 Kimber Lane, Haymarket, gumshara.com

Gursha Ethiopian

Husband and wife Yibeltal Tsegaw and Rahel Woldearegay opened Gursha in 2017, and east African families regularly gather here for platters of injera covered in assorted wots which appear like splodges on a painter’s palette. Berbere, Ethiopia’s signature spice blend, stars in a thick, fiery red-lentil stew, plus the yedoro wot featuring boiled eggs and long-simmered chicken legs. Meanwhile, kitfo – finely chopped raw beef marinated in cardamom-infused butter – throbs with mitmita, an Ethiopian spice blend.

3/115 Main Street, Blacktown, gurshaethiopian.au

Joe’s Table

For Joe Kitsana, hospitality is personal. He takes your booking, does the shopping and cooking himself, brings your dishes to the table. He even welcomes BYO as an alternative to his good-value wine list. The food isn’t fancy and triggers nostalgia: crunchy spring rolls of chicken and black fungus, red curry of barbecue duck with apple eggplant, caramelised beef rib with pickled mustard greens and chilli. Then there’s the Greek walnut cake, a recipe from long-term friend, chef Janni Kyritsis. As we said, it’s personal.

1/185A Bourke Street, Darlinghurst, joestable.com.au