Entree: Woolloomooloo

Woolloomooloo Wharf is one of Sydney's newest wharves to be converted into a sleek dining precinct. Woolloomooloo was once a loading dock for wool exports, a staging point for troop deployment during the two world wars, and a disembarkation area for immigrants to Australia. Today, the complex has a five-star hotel, restaurants and upmarket residential apartments.

Manta Restaurant

6 Cowper Wharf Road (mantarestaurant.com.au)

Specialising in seafood, Manta's menu offers oysters direct from Australia's top oyster farms, lobsters and mud crabs live from the tanks, prawns from Queensland and South Australia, scallops from Tasmania, reef bugs from Queensland and a variety of fresh fish. The restaurant manager swears by their pan-fried prawns with pumpkin ravioli. The dish is beautifully presented. Three succulent prawns are arranged on pillows of sweetly caramelised pumpkin lifted by the flavours of fresh sage, pancetta and a lemon butter sauce. Expect to pay about A$90 (HK$653) for three courses.

China Doll

Shop 4, 6 Cowper Wharf Road (chinadoll.com.au)

Stylish and sleek, China Doll offers a balanced menu of generously portioned modern Asian dishes. Chef Frank Shek brings his contemporary flair to traditional oriental cuisine from Japan, Hong Kong, China and Southeast Asia. The cuisine is not Asian fusion as each dish stays true to its roots. Top quality locally grown produce features strongly on the menu. The tea-smoked free-range Thirlmere duck with plum and tamarind sauce is divine. The Asian-inspired cocktail list is based on five spices (cardamom, star anise, Sichuan, cinnamon, lemongrass). Expect to pay about A$80 for three courses.

Otto Ristorante

Area 8, Cowper Wharf Road (ottoristorante.com.au)

Chef James Kidman blends local ingredients with creative flair to capture the flavours of Italy. But this is no traditional Italian trattoria. Kidman describes his food as an expression of 'where and how we live: the flavours of our oceans, our paddocks, and our gardens'. Try the capesante con pancetta, patate e cavolfiore (grilled white scallops with crisp pancetta, potato, cauliflower and sherry vinaigrette) or carpaccio di manzo (Wagyu beef carpaccio with truffle dressing, baby capers, parmesan and baby rocket leaves). There is an extensive list of Italian and Australian wines, and the best fresh espresso coffee on the wharf. Expect to pay about A$90 for three courses.

Aki's Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge

Shop 1, 6 Cowper Wharf Road (akisindian.com.au)

This is definitely not your typical suburban Indian restaurant. The chic venue is more like a place to celebrate an occasion. Their signature entree is a southern delicacy of shelled blue swimmer crab tossed with black mustard seeds, fresh tomatoes and ginger, served with traditional Tamil brown rice, string hoppers and a coconut broth. Or try the Wagyu beef medallions, pan grilled and finished with dry roasted coconut, crushed coriander seeds, ginger, coconut oil and fresh curry leaves. Expect to pay about A$75 for three courses.

Kingsley's Steak & Crabhouse

Shop 10, 6 Cowper Wharf Road (kingsleys.com.au)

Kingsleys steaks are top-quality Wagyu from Stockyard in Queensland and Riverine Premium Beef from grain-fed cattle bred in the rich, clean, temperate climate of Southern Australia. Riverine Premium Beef is grown through advanced cattle nutrition programmes where the cattle are fed a mix of steam-flaked wheat and other supplements. Start off with the Wagyu carpaccio, Italian buffalo mozzarella salad, Louisiana crab cakes or ginger chilli prawns. Try one of the three crab varieties on offer: Singapore chilli mud crab, salt and pepper snow crab and chilled Alaskan king crab on ice with mayonnaise. Expect to pay about A$80 for three courses.