TOP OF THEIR GAME

Story: Necia Wilden and John Lethlean

Remember that old chestnut, "If you're not in Sydney, you're camping out"? When it comes to the edgy, creative and, yes, hot restaurants making their presence felt on the national stage, the momentum that began in the harbour city in 2014 has shown no sign of abating. Noma's Vikings may have come and gone but their sense of adventure and confidence has proved contagious. We're thinking of places like Hubert, Automata and The Dolphin, all radically different yet all taking dining excitement to the next level.

A quick look at this year's Hot stats tells the story. With 18 restaurants in the Hot 50 and another 18 in our second-tier list, NSW is way ahead. We could theorise on economic conditions, licensing laws, inbound tourism numbers; the fact is, there are more adventurous entrepreneurs, and more customers with more money, in NSW than in any other state. Unsurprisingly, Sydney also dominates our awards. For its energy, sense of style and unique food, we cannot go past Ross and Sunny Lusted's The Bridge Room for Hottest Restaurant. And in Automata's Clayton Wells (pictured), our Hottest Chef, we sense a clever, mature young chef already fulfilling his massive promise.

A reminder about our Hot 50: we are not into rankings. We want you to know about the places that are all about you, not them. The food; the service; the wine; the commitment; the frisson of energy and fun that distinguishes a brilliant restaurant experience from a serviceable one. In our fifth year, Hot 50 remains the essential appraisal of Australia's dining excellence.

What have we noticed on tables around Australia this past year? Well, we might just have passed peak tweezer. Increasingly, chefs and restaurants are returning to the classics: familiar food that makes customers happy rather than dishes with cerebral back stories and too many foraged/succulent/fermented bits (administered with tweezers). We're not unhappy about it: a whole chicken fricassee at Hubert; a proper steak tartare at The French Saloon; aged, roasted duck breast at Oakridge. Real food that corresponds with real hospitality. Eating out has never been better for you, either, as chefs embrace vegetables as well as grains, pulses, seaweeds; the entire superfoods repertoire.

As for wine: we've said it before, but markups of 300 per cent bring out the cynic in us. Ordering a bottle of wine should not be stressful. Why is this important? It seems many of us don't go out to dine with wines anymore; rather, we go out to drink, with food as an afterthought. Witness the rise and rise of wine bars and born-again pubs.

Finally, this year we've introduced a new award, Hottest New Restaurant. Guess what, the winner's in Sydney.

What's on trend

They called it "the Noma effect". During the reign of Noma Sydney as the world's most visible, and possibly most expensive, pop-up, it was a matter of whatever Rene Redzepi was doing, we should too. Redzepi, it is said, cornered the local market for fingerlime and magpie goose. Out in the real world, plenty of other things were hot this year, too ...

Caveman cuisine: Everyone wants (or sometimes pretends) to cook over some form of primal heat these days, be it charcoal or home-made coals, grilling or in pizza ovens. It's the special stuff we go out for.

The region legion: Restaurants outside our capitals have never been so adventurous or strong. Witness Igni in Geelong; Oakridge in Coldstream; Rick Shores in Burleigh Heads.

Hyper-local sourcing: Farms or plots operated by the restaurants with chefs growing speciality ingredients (Wasabi, Noosa; Attica, Melbourne; Orana, Adelaide; Quay, Sydney). If they aren't part-time farming, they have "kitchen gardens".

Chefs in sneakers: Whether it's fried chicken, hamburger or souvlaki, more often than not there's a famous chef behind the business.

The corporatisation of restaurants: Big groups are dominating the dining landscape as never before. Some are associated with individuals (Chris Lucas and Andrew McConnell in Melbourne); some with families (the Hemmes with Merivale in Sydney); others with private equity (Urban Purveyor Group nationally).
What every food identity needs - a pub: Matt Moran, Justin Hemmes, Maurice Terzini, Shannon Bennett ... Still hot: Charcuterie, fermenting/pickling and housemade sourdough.

Ingredients du jour

Seaweed is everywhere, from laver to nori, kelp to wakame. Succulents continue to have their day in the sun. Indigenous ingredients got a shot in the arm from Rene Redzepi's presence, slipping into the mainstream for the first time. Fig leaf left the Garden of Eden and came into the kitchen, most noticeably in ice creams but also savoury dishes. Brassicas went berserk with whole cauliflowers, Brussels sprouts, broccoli and newcomer kalette going uptown (special mention to Supernormal's roasted cauliflower with miso and furikake). Savoury desserts remain big. Throw in a Jerusalem artichoke - another popular vegetable right now - and you have on-trend Nirvana. Society garlic became a thing this year while cippolini - the sweeter onion - became part of the regular dining lexicon.

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