Australia's best intimate dining restaurants

Downsizing at a restaurant is rarely something to get excited about, that is unless it invites an elevated intimate dining experience.

Restaurateurs across the country are buying into a trend toward downsizing in order to offer a more intimate dining experience. It’s like stepping into someone’s home for dinner. Whether your idea of an intimate restaurant looks like a cosy table in a farmhouse or a Japanese-style omakase experience, we’ve rounded up the top dining spots for a truly memorable night out.

1. Allta

Allta Sydney interior — Allta embodies Korean culinary tradition and technique. (Image: Supplied)

Allta is a portmanteau of ‘all’, Korean for ‘right’, and ‘ta’, Aussie slang for ‘thanks’. Right. Ta. The two-hatted Korean fine diner in Sydney’s CBD offers just 12 ringside seats to watch Michelin-trained chef Jung-su Chang (ex-Jungsik, Seoul) ensuring everything is just so. Choose between a pairing of five Champagnes or premium blends of tea in the elegant space, which is all marble and handcrafted ripples of wood. One of many highlights of the 15-course degustation is guk bap, a beef shin soup served with oyster mushrooms and rice.

Address: 50 Pitt St, Sydney, NSW

2. Chae

Chef Jung Eun Chae developed quite the following when she opened her eponymous restaurant Chae in a one-bedder in Brunswick in 2019. The Good Food Guide’s 2025 Chef of the Year has many devoted followers who have covered the 60-kilometre distance from Melbourne to her new dining room in Cockatoo, in the Dandenong Ranges. There are only four sittings during the week, so you’ll want to be assured of a booking. Chae honed her skills at restaurants such as Cutler & Co and Lume and blends precision cooking with Korean flavours from her childhood.

Address: 33 Mountain Rd, Cockatoo, Vic

3. Omakase at Prefecture 48

The eight-seater omakase experience — This private fine dining experience is worth splurging on. (Image: Supplied)

The eight seats that line the counter at Omakase represent prime real estate at Prefecture 48. Enter through the noren divider to find master chefs Akira Horikawa (ex-Ginza Kyubey in Japan) and Tomoyuki Matsuya, a second-generation sushi chef working together to prepare each dish with an almost poetic precision. A dot of crayon-green wasabi here. A curl of sweet daikon pickles there. It’s an absolute showpiece of all that Prefecture 48 is about and is destined to be one of the best Japanese restaurants in the country.

Address: Level 2, 230 Sussex St, Sydney, NSW

4. Analiese Gregory’s farmhouse restaurant

Analiese Gregory new restaurant — The famed chef is bringing her culinary artistry to a much smaller audience. (Image: Adam Gibson)

There will be just 10 seats around the table at Analiese Gregory’s restaurant when it opens within the 110-year-old farmhouse she calls home in Huonville, Tassie, in 2025. For years, the NZ-born chef maintained a manic pace working at some of the world’s best kitchens (Le Meurice in Paris; Quay in Sydney) before leaving it all behind for a simple life in Tassie. Instead of the usual chef’s whites, Analiese looks like she’s stepped off the set of her TV series A Girl’s Guide to Hunting, Fishing and Wild Cooking. Follow Analiese on Instagram so you can secure a booking at the restaurant, set to be one of the hottest openings for 2025.

Address: Huonville, Tasmania

5. Emerald City

Expect a hush to settle as chef Joel Alderdice delivers each dish on the degustation menu at Emerald City . Check your assumptions at the unmarked door behind Cavanagh’s Whisky & Alehouse before being pulled in by invisible forces to the restaurant inspired by the chef’s favourite film, The Wizard of Oz. It’s an immersive sensory experience borne from an idea the chef (ex-Bar Liberty, Attica) has been percolating for years: to open a restaurant in his hometown of Healesville. Click your heels together: the intersection of theatre and the culinary arts at the intimate four-seater is magic.

Address: 207 Maroondah Highway, Healesville, Vic

6. Park Pantry

Grab a few of your besties and make a beeline to Park Pantry , one of the most intimate restaurants for dining out in Melbourne. The oh-so-petite South Yarra ⁠hang is the perfect spot for a pitstop for breakfast or lunch. It’s also a great place for travellers to get a taste of chef MarcAntoinie ThomasPierre Nicolaii’s jaunts around France and Italy. The European-style menu is complemented by a Euro-leaning wine list. Follow up your dinner with a walk in the park.

Address: 119 Park Street, South Yarra, Melbourne, Vic

7. Yakimami

You will feel as if you’ve been spirited away to a back alley in Kyoto at the 12-seater restaurant Yakikami in South Yarra. The intimate dining experience happens in the Josper Room, which can accommodate a total of 12 people. The intimate restaurant is adjacent to the venue’s main dining area and tucked away from the hustle and bustle. Order from the set omakase menu in the atmospheric restaurant as it includes Yakikami’s signature A5 Kobe wagyu beef. The 12- to 14-course feast comes with sake and a wine pairing

Address: 50-152 Toorak Road, South Yarra, Melbourne, Vic

8. Sunny’s Kiosk

Group dining at Sunny’s Kiosk — Sunny’s Kiosk brings a refined dining mood to Merimbula. (Image: Supplied)

Sunny’s Kiosk , which is barnacled to a pier on the frayed edges of Top Lake in Merimbula, transforms into a wine bar at night in the warmer months. And it’s one of the best places to eat in Merimbula. It’s run by Tess Podger who brings a refined dining mood to Merimbula. Come here for a romantic date – either day or night – to enjoy the best of the South Coast on a plate. Think cured pork neck with radicchio, Eden tuna tartare and coal-roasted local squash and zucchini with stracciatella.

Address: 68 Lakewood Drive, Merimbula, NSW South Coast

9. Amuro

Think of restaurant Amuro as a stage, arranged so that diners are drawn into another world. The 20-seater eatery was inspired by the cult Netflix series Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories, designed to promote “simple yet profound connections with others over the shared love of a particular dish". This little gem is one of the most romantic restaurants in Sydney, a space that feels more like a homey ground-floor Tokyo terrace than a restaurant. Don’t miss the boutique saké (nihonshū) and kingfish sashimi. If it feels exclusive it’s because it is: walk-ins are welcome.

Address: 2/255 Crown Street, Sydney, NSW

10. Besuto Omakase

Besuto Omakase interiors — The intimate eatery seats just eight diners and is designed around natural materials. (Image: DG Media)

The interiors of Besuto Omakase are designed to match the quality of the food at this Tokyo-style omakase in Sydney’s Circular Quay. Both Bar Besuto and offshoot Besuto Omakase celebrate Japanese excellence. The intimate eatery seats just eight diners and is designed around natural materials – leather and wood – that add to the moody ambience. The omakase restaurant is tucked away behind a hidden door in an industrial-style basement. To enter the restaurant, you go via the bar, which offers everything from happy hour highballs to whisky masterclasses. The omakase experience includes 15 small plates of what’s seasonal on the day along with sake and wine-pairing options.

Address: 3 Underwood St, Circular Quay, Sydney, NSW

11. Le Salon Privé

Le Salon Prive table interior — The menus are a love letter to French gastronomy. (Image: Supplied)

Le Salon Privé is the sidecar to La Lune in Fremantle, providing an intimate dining experience for groups between eight to 24 guests around one table or up to 30 guests around three tables. The salon offers two elevated offerings for guests who are keen to book a private dining room. This is a fun, French affair led by head chef Oskar Pinter who has built his reputation around bold French bistro fare. Make time to stop and smell the rosé at the restaurant which has a wall of wine as its backdrop and an elegant European vibe Factor in a post-prandial prance around Freo after indulging in the butter-poached Southern rock lobster. Bien manger.

Address: 73 George St, East Fremantle, Perth, WA

12. Sean’s Panorama

You will feel like you’re at your boho mate’s place in North Bondi when you duck into Sean’s Panorama for a feed. The homely destination diner is bright and cheerful with pendant lighting and a flotsam and jetsam of shells as well as paintings and photographs lining the walls. Expect fresh flowers on your table and a daily-changing menu that responds to the seasons. Although the restaurant seats 45, there’s also an intimate private dining room that can seat up to 12. Standout dishes include roast chook (iconic) and the linguine with rocket and chilli. Follow @seanmoran64 to see what’s cooking.

Address: 270 Campbell Parade, Bondi Beach, Sydney, NSW

13. O. MY Beaconsfield

O. MY Beaconsfield interior — O. MY Beaconsfield serve fresh and sustainable culinary delights. (Image: Supplied)

Diners at the intimate O. MY restaurant feel they’ve been spirited away somewhere very special. That’s largely due to the Bertoncello brothers, who are a big deal in Beaconsfield thanks to their generous hospitality and clever cooking. Much of chef Blayne’s menu is designed around the fruit, vegetables, eggs and honey grown at the nearby family farm. Start with a drink recommended by Blayne’s brother Chayse, who is both wine waiter and maitre’d, before embarking on your culinary journey at this temple to farm-to-table gastronomy.

Address: 70 Princes Highway, Beaconsfield, Victoria

14. Luke’s Tour & Tastings at the Pylon Lookout

tour and tasting at Sydney Harbour Bridge — Soak up Sydney’s sun at Luke’s Table.

Sydney, on Eora Country, is a sprawling city, with hundreds of restaurants that represent its many diverse neighbourhoods. But it doesn’t get more iconic than dining with up to 20 guests at a time with chef Luke Mangan on the Lookout level of the southeast pylon at the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Luke Mangan turns out the most dazzling dishes during the 90-minute experience, dubbed Luke’s Tour & Tastings at the Pylon. Work up an appetite by ascending the 200 steps to enjoy three-course menus that revolve around different themes. Make a booking at the BridgeClimb website to enjoy a feast with panoramic views.

Address: 3 Cumberland St, The Rocks, Sydney, NSW

15. Ah Um

bar at Ah Uhm — This 25-seater restaurant is acoustically optimised.

The peeps behind Perth/Boorloo listening bar Astral Weeks have opened a new intimate 25-seater restaurant dubbed Ah Um . Expect earworms aplenty at the dinky eatery which shares similar dining soundtracks chosen from mixes uploaded to Aw Radio (an online streaming platform launched by Astral Weeks). The Northbridge nook also offers some unexpected flavour harmonies such as Sydney rock oysters with a rhubarb mignonette and tuna crudo with grapefruit and pimento oil. Order the market fish, which arrives in a bouillabaisse with fried pommes. Enter via Astral Weeks.

Address: Shop 12/60–66 Roe St, Northbridge, Melbourne, Vic

16. Pino’s Vino e Cucina

dining space at Vino's — Pino’s Vino e Cucina is snug and full of heart. (Image: Dan Allen)

Alexandria residents have been feeling smug about having Pino’s Vino e Cucina as their neighbourhood restaurant for almost a decade. The dimly lit restaurant in Sydney’s south is warm and atmospheric, designed as an ode to Matteo Margiotta’s family home in Rome, Italy. Margiotta (ex-Garfish, Cottage Point Inn) has been working with executive chef Cristiano Patacca since opening the venue in 2016 and the place operates like a well-oiled (pasta extrusion) machine. Start with tuna crudo and finish with strozzapreti pasta with white lamb ragu, anchovy and pecorino Romano.

Address: 199 Lawrence Street, Alexandria, Sydney, NSW

17. Restaurant Ka

dining table at Restaurant Ka — Guests are treated to an intimate and immersive dining experience. (Image: Supplied)

The chef’s table experience at Restaurant Ka in Darlinghurst is one that inspires an almost feverish loyalty from neighbourhood locals. The 10-seater private dining room is tucked away behind a hidden door in the backstreets of Oxford St junction. Outsource an intimate gathering by putting your trust in chef Zac Ng to curate a stellar eight-course degustation. Also worth celebrating in this culinary journey is the joy of learning about the inspiration behind each dish. The chef’s table-style restaurant has a set menu that changes frequently. Expect snacks such as pickled squid, bluefin tuna toro, spanner crab with silken tofu and coral trout with a shellfish emulsion and lotus root.

Address: 13b Burton Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney, NSW

18. Malin

dining table at Malin — Relish in a romantic dining experience at Malin.

Malin is a cosy double-storey site that is evocative of a Euro-centric wine bar. The kitchen at the 26-seat restaurant in Carlton North in Melbourne/Narrm, is led by chef Clement Pilatre, whose CV includes stints at Michelin-starred restaurants. Housed in a historic building not far from the city’s centre, the light-filled space wraps around an open kitchen where diners can watch Clement whipping up modern takes on French classics. Staples include mashed potato with vanilla, coconut and rum or the beef and oyster tartare smothered in Champagne sabayon and topped with caviar. Expect a cosy crowd of Carlton North creatives.

Address: 687 Rathdowne Street, Carlton North, Melbourne, Vic

19. Ouzo

downstairs interior at Ouzo restaurant — The downstairs space at Ouzo is a walk-in-only area. (Image: Supplied)

Ouzo is split across two levels in the heart of Darlinghurst just steps away from Oxford St. While there’s a 100-seater restaurant upstairs, the downstairs space is a walk-in-only area with booth and bar seating that is perfect for casual drop-ins or pre-dinner drinks. The Mediterranean bar and restaurant was inspired by the recent travels of restaurateurs David Cooper and Brett Ayton (Tommy’s Mexican). The menu includes elevated bar bites such as paprika and garlic-marinated king prawns or lamb gyros or anchovy toast. If you’re after something more hefty, opt for the duck breast with plum sauce and burnt grape.

Address: 259 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney, NSW

20. The Paddock at Beechmont Estate

Dish from The Paddock at Beechmont Estate — Experience a couple’s creative approach to dining at The Paddock. (Image: Supplied)

Eating at The Paddock feels a bit like time-travelling to the past to visit your country cousins who lived on a farm in Queensland. The dining room appears appears cloned from the paddock-to-plate experience of our dreams. The charming hatted restaurant seats just 40 and is 45 minutes from the Gold Coast. Here, in the folds of the hinterland, seasonal ingredients get the special treatment they deserve from husband-and-wife team Chris and Alex Norman. Enjoy comforting country classics such as Brisbane Valley quail and mud crab tortellini.

Address: 422 Binna Burra Road, Beechmont, Qld

21. Etta

dining space at Etta — Etta’s food and vibes are both top-notch. (Image: Annika Kafcaloudis)

This warm and inviting eatery in Brunswick East may as well be in a dispatch about the best places to take your Valentine’s Day date to dinner. Etta has cornered the market on cosy. Etta has its devotees for the fact it has the feel of a family dining room and, depending on the crowd, it can either be all whispered conversations or filled with cheer and chatter. The overall feel is friendly and welcoming. The food is great, lo-fi wines lovely, service sharp and overall experience an absolute corker.

Address: 60 Lygon St, Brunswick East, Melbourne, Vic

Aussies might think they know what Port Stephens is all about – but it’s time to take another look.

You might’ve driven through this NSW coast town. Maybe even stopped for fish and chips or a quick dip. But spend a long weekend in the new Port Stephens , and you’ll seriously regret not doing it sooner. We’re talking treks across beaches, reef dives and up-close time with rescued koalas.

All in all? It only takes a day before you see Port Stephens in a whole new light, and not much longer until it’s locked in as your favourite family destination.

1. Stockton Sand Dunes

Port Stephens incredible Stockton Sand Dunes are the largest moving sand mass in the Southern Hemisphere. They shift like an endless magic trick across the Worimi Conservation Lands , a 4200-hectare coastal co-managed by the Traditional Owners.

Tear over them in a 4WD. Rev through valleys soft as melting ice cream on a quad. Carve down 30-metre slopes on a sandboard. However you choose to cross them, you’re guaranteed a seriously wild ride.

Four rugged 4WDs kick up trails of golden dust as they charge across the sweeping desert landscape. — Chase thrills across shifting sands. (Image: Destination NSW)

2. Scale Tomaree Head Summit Walk

A short climb through bushland opens up to the coastal drama of Tomaree Head . Spot Zenith, Wreck and Box Beaches. See the Fingal Island lighthouse and offshore rookeries where Australia’s rarest seabird, the Gould’s petrel, nests.

History buffs can’t miss the WWII gun emplacements. And if you’re hiking between May and November, bring binoculars. Travelling whales might just be breaching below.

Friends enjoying a scenic walk along the Tomaree Head Summit Walk in Tomaree National Park, Port Stephens. — Climb Tomaree Head for jaw-dropping coastal views. (Image: Destination NSW)

3. Watch out for whales

You’ve seen the spouts of migrating humpbacks and southern right whales from shore. Set sail from Nelson Bay to see them up close. Cruise straight into the action, with tail-slaps, barrel rolls and all.

And they’ve got competition from the local show-offs. Port Stephens bottlenose dolphins leap and play. Some tours even spot pudgy fur seals, spending lazy days soaking up the sun on Cabbage Tree Island.

A whale’s tail on the sea’s surface. — Watch for ocean tails. (Image: Destination NSW)

4. Port Stephens Koala Sanctuary

Pop into the Port Stephens Koala Sanctuary to learn about the rescued koalas who climb, nap, snack and heal in this natural patch of bushland. Wander the immersive Sanctuary Story Walk to discover more about their habits, then head to the SKYwalk – a treetop platform constructed for spotting these eucalyptus-loving locals. Peek into the hospital’s viewing window, where sick or injured koalas may be resting in their recovery enclosures.

Not enough time around these adorable marsupials? Stay overnight in silk-lined glamping tents.

Koala sleeping in a tree at Port Stephens Koala Sanctuary, One Mile — See koalas in their natural habitat. (Image: Destination NSW)

5. Diving Port Stephens

Port Stephens has some of NSW’s best dive spots. At Fly Point, float through sponge gardens and coral castles thick with nudibranchs (AKA sea slugs). Halifax Park has blue gropers and crimson-banded wrasse, while Shoal Bay’s seagrass meadows hide pipefish, cuttlefish and octopus.

Accessible only by boat, Broughton Island is home to a vast array of marine (and bird) life. Snorkel with blue devilfish and stingrays at sites like The Looking Glass and North Rock. More experienced divers can head out with one of the many PADI-certified operators.

At nearby Cabbage Tree Island, expect to see shaggy-faced wobbegongs cruising along.

A couple suited up and ready to dive into adventure. — Suit up and dive into Port Stephens’ vibrant marine life. (Image: Destination NSW)

6. Irukandji Shark and Ray Encounters

Not quite ready to dive in? Irukandji Shark and Ray Encounters is the perfect way to spot local marine life without getting too deep. But there’s no obnoxious glass tank tapping here. Instead, this interactive aquarium allows guests to wade into natural-style lagoons that mimic the real thing.

Gently pat Port Jackson and bamboo sharks, hand-feed rays, and feel their sandpapery skin with your fingertips. It is all under expert guidance. If you want to go deeper, pop on a wetsuit and swim alongside tawny nurse sharks, white-tipped reef sharks and zebra sharks in the lagoon.

Family enjoying an animal feeding experience at Irukandji Shark and Ray Encounters, Anna Bay. — Meet the ocean’s friendliest faces at Irukandji. (Image: Destination NSW)

7. Fish the estuaries

Fishing fanatics will fall for Port Stephens hook, line and sinker. Here, one of the largest estuary systems in the whole state sees tidal rivers and mangrove ecosystems. Waterfronts are thick with oysters, and residential fish that might include anything from bream, whiting and flathead, to blue swimmer crabs, kingfish and longtail tuna.

If you prefer to choose your own adventure and fish offshore, you can hire a boat from one of the marinas and set your own course.

three men fishing on a boat in port stephens — Join a tour or chart your own fishing trip. (Image: Destination NSW)

8. Taste new Port Stephens flavours

With plenty of activity to fill your days, refuelling on delectable cuisine becomes equally important. And Port Stephens answers the call.

Pop into Holbert’s Oyster Farm for fresh-farmed Port Stephens rock oysters and Pacific oysters, Australian king and tiger prawns, as well as a variety of tasty sauces to try them with.

Take a group to Atmos for an authentic Greek experience over large shared dishes and Greek-inspired cocktails. Or feast on sea-to-plate, modern Australian dishes at the pet-friendly Restaurant 2317.

A plate of fresh oysters. — Slurp your way through the region’s best oysters. (Image: Destination NSW)

Start planning your Port Stephens getaway at portstephens.org.au .

Intimate dining restaurants are on the rise – here are 21 of the best