Sydney's Diverse Fine Dining Options

The broad scope of Sydney's restaurants, pubs and cafes is a mirror reflection of the city's status as a melting pot of cultural diversity. As one pundit put it, the choices are so wide and culturally varied that they read like an atlas. They range from local Australian cuisine to Italian, European, Asian, Japanese, Mediterranean and more.

Foreign visitors who want to sample traditional Australian fare should take a trip to Harry's Café de Wheels for the best meat pies in the city. The so-called bush-tucker, which features original aboriginal cuisine that includes kangaroo meat, is also available in select venues. Although the Australian government allowed restaurants to serve kangaroo meat starting only in 1993, bush-tucker meals have become a must-taste delight among many foreign visitors.

Since Sydney is a harbour city, seafood is a staple of most restaurants and is served exclusively by many of the leading dining places in town, including Fishface and Five Dock Seafoods Cafe. These places - and many others - always provide a fresh supply of barramundi, snapper, mussels, prawns, calamari and octopus, thanks to the nearby Sydney Fish Market. Of course, Sydney's king of seafoods is the popular Doyles Hotel, the oldest seafood restaurant in town. From its beachside location, Doyles also provides a breath-taking view of Watsons Bay.

The best Italian restaurants in Sydney are Gelbison and Mezzaluna, while some of the best pasta in the city can be found at Norton Street in the Leichhardt inner city, which is also known as Little Italy. There is a strong Italian influence on Sydney's fashionable café society as one can glean from the many cafes on Darlinghurst, Potts Point and Bondi Beach. The hippest spots in town also happen to serve the best coffee and these include Bills, Tropicana, Bar Coluzzi and La Buvette.

Aside from Italy, the Euro influence on cuisine is also evident in the very popular French restaurants Bistro Moncur and Sel et Poivre, while foreigners and locals alike regularly patronize such excellent fine dining venues such as the Greek restaurant Mykonos and the Spanish restaurant Capitan Torres. Meanwhile, the most sumptuous Eastern European cuisine can be sampled at Corner 75.

There are several excellent Asian restaurants that serve the best cuisine from the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, India, Cambodia and Iran. Among the outstanding Asian restaurants are The Malaya, Chinta Ria, Lebanon & Beyond and Blue Elephant.

If it's Japanese food that your heart desires, the most popular places for sushi, sashimi, noodles, tempura and teriyaki are Sushi Suma, Shimbashi, Dragonfly and Raw Bar.

If your plan is to go restaurant hopping in each district, here's a useful general guide that you can follow:

The suburbs in the West host several Cambodian and Turkish restaurants while the suburbs in the South host Greek and Lebanese restaurants. Suburbs in the north host Indian, African and Japanese restaurants while suburbs in the east host Indonesian and European restaurants.

If you want to enjoy a good view while dining, your best options are The Boathouse, Catalina and The Summit. The best vegetarian restaurants are Govinda's and Harvest. The trendiest culinary enclaves are Bayswater Brasserie Restaurant and Hugo's.

New Dining Options in Orlando

Orlando is a vacation paradise because it combines great attractions, multiple accommodations possibilities and wonderful dining options. On top of all this, each year something new is added. In the field of dining, there are a lot of new restaurants and new sections in the well established eateries. Below is a brief guide to some of the latest culinary developments awaiting this year's visitors to Orlando, Florida.

Bar Louie Tavern & Grill is now open on Sand Lake's "restaurant row." The bar specializes in oversized sandwiches and specially prepared cocktails. In addition it also features a wide selection of appetizers, pastas, entrees as well as a large assortment of beers and wines. This is an award winning restaurant with a warm décor decorated with photography, paneled walls and plasma televisions.

Belly Busters is a brand new comedy club and restaurant located in Winter Park. Comedy shows take place from Thursday to Sunday and the restaurant offers an affordable menu featuring meatloaf, chicken parmiagiana and baked Ziti. The restaurant is open dally from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

The Black Olive is a new restaurant in downtown Orlando (located in the Plaza building). It features a Mediterranean-inspired Italian cuisine. The dishes are simple but elegant and offer the health benefits of a Mediterranean diet rich in olive oils and locally- grown herbs. Cantina Laredo is another new addition to Sand Lake Road's "restaurant road." The gourmet restaurant serves authentic Mexican food featuring daily fish specials, grilled chicken and steaks complimented by special sauces, sauteéd artichoke hearts and roasted red bell peppers. Pizza Fusion is a restaurant chain that specializes in organic pizza.

Their first branch in Central Florida opened up on Orlando's Sand Lake Road. This large 100 seat eatery is the first certified organic restaurant in the Orlando area. Bento Cafe is still another new restaurant on Sand Lake Road. It is modeled after cafes in urban Japan and Taiwan and as its name suggests features bento box rice and noodle bowls along with boba teas. If you are looking for a quick and casual dinner, then try it out. Tommy Bahama Bar and Grill is an existing restaurant with a new feature.

It offers a Sunday "Reggae Brunch" every week from 11 a.m. to 3p.m. Diners get authentic Jamaican food and drinks and can listen to a three-piece reggae band. Ala carte meals average around $12. The Sancturary Diner is located in downtown Orlando's South Eola District. Formerly known as FiFi's Patisserie, the new diner features classic diner foods with low prices and classy surprises.

For example, you can get French toast with brie cheese and wash it down with a root beer float. FiFi's Patisserie in downtown Orlando's South Eola District was transformed into the Sanctuary Diner. The new restaurant serves classic diner comfort foods, with an eclectic twist, at low prices. Menu items include French toast with brie cheese, root beer floats and Kobe-style meatloaf. Sanctuary Diner will be open 11 a.m. - 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

As you can see there are a number of new dining options waiting for you in Orlando. If you have never been there before then take your pick of the restaurants that attract you most. If you are a regular visitor, then be sure to try some of the new restaurants.