Chefs Hat

After watching Matt Moran (Aria) and Justin North (Becasse) acting as mentors to the lucky kids on Junior MasterChef, I was interested in their famous restaurants and decided to look up the full list of venues that had won critical acclaim in being awarded a Chefs Hat. Unfortunately I haven't tried any of these places yet but have heard a lot of great things about most of them. My new goal is to try out as many of these top restaurants as I can, but seeing as how they are mostly quite fancy - and pricey - I think it will take me a lifetime of special occasions to accomplish!

This year the unthinkable happened with Tetsuya's dropping from 3 hats to 2. Previously the restaurant, famous for its 11 course degustation menu and long waiting list, peaked at 5th on the world's best restaurant list before dropping to just 38th this year. I guess I better jump on the list before it slips any further in the rankings! Here's the full list of 2011 Chef's Hat restaurants in Sydney:

Marque, est., Quay

Aria, Assiette, Becasse, Bentley Restaurant & Bar, Berowra Waters Inn, Bilson's, Bistro Ortolan, Buon Ricordo, Claude's, Four in Hand Dining Room, Guillaume at Bennelong, Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, Lucio's, Pilu at Freshwater, Rockpool, Rockpool Bar & Grill, Sepia, Tetsuya's, Universal

Ad Lib Bistro, Altitude, Arras, Astral, Billy Kwong, Bird Cow Fish, Bistro Moncur, Bistrode, The Boathouse on Blackwattle Bay, Bodega, buzo trattoria, Cafe Sopra, Catalina, Etch, Fish Face, Flying Fish, Golden Century, Jonah's Whale Beach, Koi, Longrain, Mad Cow, Manly Pavilion, Omerta, Ormeggio at the Spit, Oscillate Wildly, Otto Ristorante, Pendolino, Pier, Restaurant Balzac, Sailors Thai Restaurant, Sake Restaurant & Bar, Sean's Panaroma, Spice Temple, Yoshii