Just Open: Ceru, Potts Point

Sydney's latest restaurant opening might prove to be the city's most border-hopping offering of 2016. The food sweeps the Middle East, the menu was road-tested in London, and the design hinges heavily on the ancient Chinese practice of feng shui. "The site [next to the Larmont hotel on Kings Cross Road] had such a chequered past I called in a feng shui master," says Tom Kime, the English chef and co-owner at Ceru, which opens January 21.

The result of that consultation saw a planned black floor become grey, the ceiling recreated into a flat surface and more non-alcoholic drinks introduced to the bar menu to "cool the fire". Kime pulled out the black and gold fittings of the sites last restaurant, replacing them with materials including copper and reclaimed fence panels.

His business partners also have global aspirations for Ceru, trialling Kime's dishes in recent months at Ceru in London. The most popular dish was slow-roast lamb shoulder with shawarma​ spices and pomegranate while the chermoula-roasted beetroot was also a fast mover. "The food is inspired by places like Syria and Lebanon. That [part of the world] is such a quagmire at the moment, it's devastating to me people aren't able to go there and try it all themselves."

Mon 7am-11pm; Tues-Fri 7am-midnight; Sat 8am-midnight; Sun 8am-10pm.

2 / 2-14 Kings Cross Road, Potts Point, cerurestaurants.com/sydney