Restaurateurs eye open spaces, with Esteban opening in Temperance Lane

With a posse of restaurant openings and reopenings about to ride into town and outdoor diner numbers showing signs of being relaxed, Sydney is starting to feel a lot more like Sydney again.

Nomad, which swings open its doors on Foster Street at the end of the month, may have found an ingenious way to boost numbers over summer.

Owner Al Yazbek says he's had some encouraging dealings with authorities: "We don't have any outdoor seating, so we're trying to hijack some of the loading areas around us for summer."

In the CBD, the timing of the announcements on easing of outdoor numbers couldn't have come at a better time for Esteban, which opens on Temperance Lane next week.

Co-owner Michael Fegent​ is hopeful of being able to serve an extra 30 customers than he thought he could a few weeks ago.

The restaurant gets its name from Stephen Paul (aka Esteban). "He's a gringo flamenco guitar player; we're a little the same with food," Fegent says.

The restaurateur behind Paddington's Tequila Mockingbird dished up a first look at the restaurant, where he's hit on a luxe fitout.

It takes its design cues from Mexico City art deco. There's even a floor-to-ceiling mural by Sydney-born artist Nanami Cowdroy inspired by Mexican painter Diego Rivera.

"We're still waiting on a few things to arrive from Mexico, including bottles an indigenous tribe [painted] while they [were] on hallucinogens," Fegent says.

The onetime printing shop includes a 65-seat subterranean taqueria, tequila and mezcal bar. The restaurant menu will pitch a little higher than Tequila Mockingbird. They've been playing around with duck breast rubbed with wattleseed and served with aji amarillo, and tres camotes – a dessert comprised of sweet potato tart, sweet potato ice-cream and sweet potato meringue.

Open Tue-Sat 11.30-1am.

1 Temperance Lane, Sydney, estebanrestaurant.com.au