More than 160 restaurants across New South Wales have been recognised with at least one chef's hat at the 42nd annual Good Food Guide awards, held at Carriageworks on Monday, with five Sydney venues jumping from one hat to two and a first-of-its-kind achievement for Filipino cuisine among the night's major talking points.

The awards, covering the 2027 edition of the guide, followed six months of anonymous reviews by a team of critics who assessed more than 500 venues across food quality, setting, value and hospitality.

Five restaurants climb to two hats

The number of Sydney restaurants rising from one to two hats was four times higher than the previous year, with five venues making the jump. They include French bistro Porcine in Paddington, Crown's Woodcut in Barangaroo, and Gran Torino, Neil Perry's Italian restaurant that replaced his Chinese venue Songbird in mid-2025.

Each restaurant in the guide is scored out of 20: ten points for food, five for hospitality, three for setting and experience, and two for value. A score of 15 or above earns one hat, 16 or 17 earns two hats, and a score of 18 to 20 earns three hats.

A new approach to what deserves a hat

The Good Food Guide's co-editors said the shift in which venues are being recognised reflects a deliberate editorial evolution over the past three years. Rather than measuring restaurants against an assumed standard of fine dining, critics were asked to consider what each venue was actually trying to achieve.

"Is Olympic Meats in Marrickville trying to do silver service or tweezer food? Absolutely not, but its commitment to sourcing and DIY is almost unrivalled," one co-editor said, adding that the gyros restaurant was among the most compelling places to see Sydney's past and present collide.

Olympic Meats, the small three-walled venue overlooking Dulwich Hill station, earned a hat for the first time in this edition after expanding its wine service and deepening its focus on southern Greek (Peloponnese) cuisine under chef-owner Timothy Cassimatis. Despite peak wait times exceeding an hour and a QR-code queuing system in place of reservations, the restaurant's hospitality was credited as a key factor in the recognition.

"Calling Olympic Meats a 'gyros shop' is like saying Cold Chisel is 'just a pub band'," a co-editor said. "Timothy Cassimatis puts as much work into his souvlaki and chips as any fine-dining chef."

Newly hatted venues and a historic first

Olympic Meats was joined by several other first-time hat recipients, including Tida Persian Food in North Willoughby, Avia in Darlinghurst, Farmhouse Kings Cross in Rushcutters Bay, and Takam in Darlinghurst.

Takam's recognition was particularly notable: it became the first Filipino restaurant in Sydney to score 15 out of 20, the minimum required for a hat. Head chef Francis Dela Cruz was credited with guiding the menu through several evolutions to land at the right intersection of familiarity, innovation and flavour. The venue's skewers were singled out as among the best tasted all year.

"Many were awarded a hat for the first time because they understood that making guests feel welcome and nourished, no matter how much they're spending, is paramount," a co-editor said.

The guide also noted that several high-profile restaurants regained their hat status, though full details were not disclosed ahead of publication.

Why the scoring system is shifting

The guide's 20-point scoring system has been in place for more than 40 years, but the way critics are being asked to apply it has changed. The goal is to make the guide genuinely useful to contemporary Australian diners by capturing exceptional venues across a range of budgets, locations and cuisines, rather than defaulting to a narrow definition of excellence tied to expense and formality.

For a broader look at how similar awards have unfolded in other states, see our coverage of the Good Food Guide awards winners, hats and highlights.