Where to eat in Sydney on Christmas Day 2016

There's no need to bicker over who gets to carve the turkey - or who has to do the dishes. Just book in for one of many Sydney venues open on December 25.
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Bavarian Bier Café & Munich Brauhaus

You don't need to know how to say "Fröhliche Weihnachten" (yep, that's German for "Merry Christmas") to enjoy what's on at Munich Brauhaus in The Rocks or the Bavarian Bier Cafés in Manly and Bondi. For lunch, there's a four-course appetite-appeasing menu that includes "haus-baked pretzels", oysters in mignonette sauce, a holiday-appropriate turkey uber schnitzel with cranberry compote and orange fennel salad, plus Christmas plum pudding to help kick-start your food coma.

Price: From $79 per person.

Various locations, bavarianbiercafe.com, munichbrauhaus.com

Black Bar & Grill

Choc parfait with amaretto custard and gingerbread crumble is very much a festive-season-approved way to end a four-course meal. Teage Ezard's crew will also be offering a very Aussie-sounding turkey with macadamia nut stuffing as a main option (there's also herb-crusted striploin wagyu or wood-grilled toothfish if that's more your style). Canapes include remoulade and scallop sashimi - and the water views from your table aren't exactly a drawback, either.

Price: $165 per person; there's a $55 set menu for kids, too.

The Star, 80 Pyrmont Street, Pyrmont, 02 9657 9109, star.com.au

Biota

If you're going to make a getaway during Christmas, why not direct your car's GPS towards Biota in Bowral - and book in for the two-hatted restaurant's five-course lunch? There's going to be a dessert table (let's say that again, because it's the best phrase ever - there'll be a dessert table!) filled with candied gingerbread cookies, spiced pumpkin pie, traditional stollen, summer pavlova and more sweets. Preceding that, you'll be presented with foie gras and piglet terrine, a seafood medley that includes smoked kingfish, trout rillettes and southern calamari, plus there's turkey Ballantine and other menu treats. If you think you'll have trouble moving afterwards, you can book in a stay at Biota's in-house accommodation.

Price: $195 per person.

18 Kangaloon Road, Bowral, 02 4862 2005, biotadining.com

Flying Fish

Get a bonus harbour view with your Christmas lunch. Of course, there's summer-friendly seafood on the three-course menu (cured ocean trout with fennel crème, Cone Bay barramundi with cashew nut curry) as well as more traditional offerings (think hay-smoked turkey breast with foie gras, truffled butter and cranberry or roast suckling pig with honey parsnip, pear and watercress). Vegetarians are even taken care of, with dishes like a panisse with leek fondue, smoked almonds and ricotta. And you'll be protected from the sad fruit cakes that you've been bombarded with all festival season - here, the dessert list includes dark chocolate torte, nougat parfait and baba rum Christmas pudding.

Price: $220 per adult, $70 per child.

Lower Deck, Jones Bay Wharf, 19-21 Pirrama Road, Pyrmont, 02 9518 6677, flyingfish.com.au

Fratelli Fresh

Make it a Buon Natale and go for a festive Italian lunch at Fratelli Fresh in Alexandria, Potts Point or Walsh Bay. Of course, there'll be panettone with a good dollop of zabaione cream, but before that makes a much-appreciated appearance, there'll be fritto misto with black aioli as an entree and a variety of main options (a summery risotto of saffron and scallops, twirls of chilli and prawn spaghetti or the comfort-food appeal of a hefty lamb shoulder roast with sweet potatoes).

Price: $75 per person.

Various locations, fratellifresh.com.au

The Gantry

It's pretty much guaranteed that every year - no matter how well-intentioned the giver - you'll always score a few duds for presents. So why not pre-emptively ensure a good day from Santa by splashing out on a degustation at a hatted, harbourside restaurant? Executive chef Joel Bickford has designed a menu that currently is a little mysterious (all that's been promised so far is a "five-course journey ... of crab, duck, butterfish and lamb and ends on a sweet note of chocolate, coconut and cherry"), but there's a high probability that it'll be very very good. Handy note: all dietary needs can be catered for, so that makes it extra appealing for groups of diners.

Price: $250 per person for lunch, $150 per person for dinner.

11 Hickson Road, Sydney, 02 8298 9910, pieronesydneyharbour.com.au

GPO Dessert Bar

Yes, this dessert pop-up will be open on Christmas Day for your emergency confectionery needs, from 10am to 10pm. So stock up for the sugar rush you'll require to help you get through a day populated with opinionated relatives (or head there in the evening for the sweetness spike you'll need to recover from the actual holiday). There are promises of Nutella doughnuts, salted caramel popcorn, chocolate truffle baby cakes, sweet hot dogs and more. The surrounding Christmas decorations - from the giant tree to the Lego sleigh and special lighting - will undoubtedly spark the festive spirit.

Price: A la carte, so not set price.

1 Martin Place, Sydney, gpogrand.com

Primus Hotel Sydney

If you'd prefer to flee to a hotel than take on Christmas duties, then this event might sound good to you. Primus Hotel Sydney is staging a lunch in its grand lobby, with a range of live cooking stations for a DIY feast. Pick up slices of honey-glazed ham, turkey and lamb from the old-school carvery station; there's also a raw bar with shucked oysters and a cooked seafood station. Make a pit stop at the salad selection so you can justify a trip to the dessert bar - undoubtedly kids will drawn to the chocolate fountain and abundant supply of fairy floss. Extra enticements for the junior set: a dedicated play room and a scheduled appearance from Santa Claus.

Price: $199 per person (with free entrance for one child, additional children charged at $50). Each booking receives a take-home gift.

339 Pitt Street, Sydney, 02 8027 8000, primushotelsydney.com

The Smoking Goat

Don't let the name fool you, The Smoking Goat is all about seafood and Christmas classics for its lunch menu. Entree options include smoked salmon with salmon pearls and dill crème fraiche and a Japanese-style seared tuna served with wakame, yuzu and wasabi dressing. You might find your plate topped with pistachio-and-cranberry-stuffed turkey breast and lemony potatoes or lamb flavour-boosted with garlic, yoghurt and lemon during the main course. And if you still have room left for dessert, there's sticky plum pudding with brandy anglaise, cherry and honeycomb ice-cream and petits fours of Greek christmas butter cookies.

Price: $150 per adult, $70 per child (includes a gift from Santa).

613 Great North Road, Abbotsford, 02 9712 5503, smokinggoat.com.au

Sokyo

Instead of a heavy-hitting meat-and-carb fest, why not opt for a more summer-compatible Japanese extravaganza at Sokyo? Hatted chef Chase Kojima is offering a six-course degustation that includes oysters with plum wine granita and ponzu as well as lobster tempura refreshingly paired with green papaya, a salad of pomelo and a little firepower from sambal mayo. For dessert, get a caffeinated buzz out of the yamazaki caramel macchiato, served with whisky foam, cocoa nibs and coffee ice cream.

Price: $165 per person (including a glass of chilled sparkling wine).

The Star, 80 Pyrmont Street, Pyrmont, 02 9657 9161, star.com.au