Babylon's hanging gardens, coming soon to a Sydney rooftop

With rooftops and Middle Eastern food both hotter in Sydney than mid-century furniture, the 216-seat Babylon restaurant opening next month in the CBD has timed its run perfectly.

Good Food has had a peek at Mantle Group's massive play on the rooftop at Westfield Sydney, where it is also building Duck & Rice, a 400-seat Chinese restaurant that will open in April.

With Babylon taking its design cues from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, trying to recreate just a taste of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World has made it one of the most ambitious hospitality builds in Sydney.

Babylon has also snared its opening team, with Arman Uz (ex Efendy and Jaaks Dining) signing on as head chef and Restaurant Hubert alum David Nutting its bar manager. Clearly Babylon will have plenty of Old World wines to go with the new.

With the opening of Duck & Rice riding close on Babylon's coat tails, it has also secured its chef.

Former Fei Jai and China Doll chef Kenny Kong will pump out wok-fried razor clams and garlic prawns with shallot oil in a space splashed in marble and fashioned after 1930s Hong Kong and Shanghai.