'The Public' has entered the Cammeray fray - Cammeray is arguably one of the most 'secretly…read moreaffluent' suburbs in Sydney, and also manages to breed a slightly fickle, but incredibly loyal bunch of customers. I'm not entirely sure where exactly 'The Public' sits. There's a surprising amount of turnover on the miller street strip, with restaurants changing hands far too often. As you first enter you find yourself deliberating - is it a pub? Is it a vegan joint? Maybe it's a bar for ladies? Turns out it's a Greek food inspired taverna/restaurant - still not sure what the honeycomb feature wall and vegetation growing out of odd places has to do with this theme, but luckily the whole thing is appealing to the eye - despite being a little discombobulating (I've finally found a use for that word!) The lightly polished timber and white walls gives it a really nice 'air' - it's a terrific space, and with the turquoise colour blended in, you find yourself in the mood for salad, or fresh juice, or avocado - something light. However the menu is heavy on the beers, meats, burgers, sausages and cheeses - of which I truly love, but wasn't expecting. Unfortunately the food was disappointing. The tastiest item was the grilled cheese - I guess that's saying something? We ordered a plethora of entrees and share plates, none of which were memorable unfortunately, except the grilled cheese! The burgers were the biggest cause of upset though. I ordered the pulled lamb burger with grilled haloumi and hommus - it sounded delicious, but really failed to deliver. The lamb was dull, the haloumi was borderline tasteless (not sure how they managed that) - the whole thing was just a bit of a miss. I'd suggest Turkish bread as well - the brioche buns are too heavy for this style of burger. I really wanted to like this place, but sadly with so many excellent options around I can't see myself coming back for more.

The Belgian Epoque is dead, long live the Public…read more Owned by James and Will Christopher, brothers who also own nearby Laneway Cafe and Ms Miller, the Public is a light, bright Bauhaus interpretation of a traditional pub. There's stool seats under high tables and self-serve areas at the front, "to encourage socialisation," James told me the other day. Seats and a small raised area suitable for small gatherings at the rear (Public takes corporate bookings). A strong Greek-fusion theme runs through the menu, which ensures the brothers won't cannibalise the Spanish-inspired Ms Miller a few doors down. Lamb meatballs, taramasalata and other Mediterranean delicacies adorn the menu. There's a capable selection of beers drawn from the same distributor who supplies Cotton Thief about 7 minutes away in Cremorne, but TBF Cammeray Craft 30 seconds north on foot on the other side of the street does small brews better. Hopefully the Public will open a few taps to boutique beer makers on rotation. A thing that made the old Belgian so great was you could retire to it when you missed your bus (the stop is right outside). Ever since it closed more than a year ago I've had to be on time to appointments - but not any more! "Oh, dash it, I missed the bus! Oh, well, nothing for it but to get a brew, pull up a stool at the window and watch the people shoot past for 15 minutes until the next bus." Weekends put a new spin on the term 'pub crawl' as hipsters and late-blooming gen xers prove that having young kids in tow is no excuse to crimp your social life. Just watch out for those three-wheeler baby joggers, they're killers on the ankles as you filter past with a tray of schooners.

Totally amazing now! Clean, all new furniture, same great hospo staff, and food. Great place to…read morehave an impromptu meeting in a quiet and clean setting. The daily food specials are amazing, and on Friday is the Chatty Platter at $30, normally $46 for members. It states it feeds two, eat easily would satisfy four! Best place in Chatswood for a business lunch for sure.

By Odin's beard, this is good food. Plus the whole hunter / gatherer concept taps into something in…read moremy primal lizard brain, like I foraged and hunted my meal myself clad only in a loincloth and spear and dragged it back to feed the tribe amid much fanfare and they probably made me chief or something. The concept is simple - you choose a meat (hunter) and a side (gatherer). There's around 5 meats to choose from and they're unreal, we're talking deconstructed shepherd's pie, slow roasted Berkshire pork, that kind of thing, each of which is almost a meal in itself and comes with garnishes and sides like sauerkraut and slaw and such. The sides are a bonus, I had crumbed haloumi salad wth mint and this thing was legit, I would have smashed this alone. Extra sides are just $4, can highly recommend going for broke here. There's a ton of good options. Win, win, win.

Tasty Modern Oz fare served up by bearded hipsters. Something a little different, but most warmly…read morewelcomed in #NthSyd. I knew I had to go when I sighted kurobuta pork on the menu. We started with the charcuterie board, which featured said kurabuta ham and three types of salami with some pickles, onions, and some fantastic bread. The server suggested we go with two "hunted" and two "gathered" dishes, which are all served on small plates and meant to be shared. We settled on a beautiful lamb dish with caponata and eggplant fondue and the pork belly which came with a fantastic house stuffing and a fennel and rocket salad. Sides were chosen as some of the crispest Rosemary salted chips and the house salad with radishes and tomatoes. Sadly, with all that food, we didn't have any room to try the desserts. Between the two of us our bill came in at around $100 with four drinks - very reasonable for a date night. Hopefully Hunter Gatherer sticks around for a while. Be warned: the greenish lighting makes for poor photography.

Maybe you can see the bridge from upstairs, since this place is reasonably close to the Harbour…read moreBridge, but unfortunately, it was closed, so I'm not really able to confirm anything in that regards. However, as far as I'm concerned I really couldn't see any bridge from this pub. As a place to grab a beer, well, it was okay, but nothing really all that out of the ordinary. Also, being a bit of a hike from anywhere but the local area probably suggests that it is a place suited for the locals.

Ah the Bridgey! I once saw a guy put another guy's head through the front window here. Mind you,…read morethat was years ago when it had a bit of a rougher reputation. These days it's a perfectly serviceable old man-style pub with some good food specials and a daily happy hour. The food is gastro pub prices (think $20-$25 mains and $8 bowls of chips) but there's a special most nights, the chicken schnitty one is particularly good, you get a huge gourmet schnitterz with a range of flavours and slaw and chips and the entire plate is big as a man's face. This is a good place to watch the footy at over a quiet jar of something cold and bitter. Hunker down in one of the leather couches and ask for your game to be turned on the big screen, although it will depend on what's on and how many other punters are in for the other codes. AFL, pffft. Barely a sport.

I've seen many things at the North Sydney Oval, many things that I've not seen anywhere else…read more Growing up on the North side meant that this was the major oval of closest convenience and this is where we would go to watch sport as a family when we did. I've seen International Soccer games here; I watched the Northern Spirits, captained by Robbie Slater in the competition outdating the current A-League; I watched the North Sydney Bears play when they were still a team; I watched a national baseball competition, though given my lack of interest in the sport and how long ago the event took place I am unsure as to whether it was an acid flashback or not. I've even worked there. In 2010 I worked as a food and drinks attendant to the "Gold Class" customers who came in to enjoy a movie under the stars. This was under the guise of the 'Starlight Cinema'. It's a diverse oval, capable of holding many events. The sport is great when it is being played there, though none of the teams I know play there anymore and the events it holds are truly enjoyable, especially when they take place on the grass itself. The oval is surrounded by St Leonards park and is only a brisk walk away from North Sydney station. If you're on the north side it's an accessible oval that can cater to your sporting needs without having to make the trek out to Moore Park. (Provided your team plays there.) However, there's more than just sport at North Sydney Oval.

Pull on your fancy pants, this place is the members club you've been waiting for all your life…read more Straight outta the London members club stlyez, The Stables is around $1000/year for membership (from memory, you should double check that if you're keen) and gets you unlimited access to their unbelievably plush mega penthouse on top of the Randwick Racecourse Pavilion, a huge, custom-built millionaires playground pimped out with epic terraces, beautiful bars, expensive things in glass cabinets, leather booths, private rooms, an exclusive restaurant, chess sets, and the golden Moet & Chandon room overlooking the track. Some people use it for meetings, some to co-work with a like-minded community, some go for race day access, others are there to see and be seen or, y'know, just show off. Guess which category I fell into. You'll never guess. Okay you probably will guess it was to show off, there I said it, are you happy now?

When I approached this restaurant connected to other businesses with limited signage, I must say, I…read morewas a bit concerned. Sure, I did not select the restaurant but quickly found out that the meeting setter had not patronised the restaurant - yup, a pure blind visit. I have to say, I was happy with the food and service, the fillet was cooled properly for all and the wine list was pure Aussie but decent. I will definitely visit again in the future. Too bad I was stuffed and did not try the desserts - maybe next time.

Such a grand old dame. You can almost imagine Jane Austen types in their corsets taking tea on the…read morebalcony and giggling behind lace gloves. I don't know if that's what people did back then, but that's what they do in my head. High tea here is as luvverly as you'd expect, there's egg salad sandwiches and marinated chicken sandwiches and little gorgeous desserts and small scones served with lashing of jam and cream, and more tea types than you'll be prepared to choose from - you were warned. Dress up and make it faaaancy, it's the only way to fly. Oh, and explore the house and grounds, they're rool noice mister.

Absolutely beautiful spot for high tea in a grand old mansion…read more The decor is beautiful here - bright open rooms with tasteful furnishings and crisp white linen on the table. We ordered the traditional high tea (one of which was vegetarian) and it was delicious. An excellent range of sandwiches, mini quiches, and of course dessert (doesn't it look great?). The service was lovely and attentive and prices reasonable for high tea. Highly recommend - nice change from the well known spots!

I've seen many a great band advertised here but as is my wont, the thing that finally got me here…read morewas the lure of a spankin new comedy night. And it doesn't hurt that this deep wild-wild-inner-western venue is on the freakin bondi junction train line! #ftw Hump Night (Wednesdays, in a camel themed bar, capiche?) Comedy's opening night was brilliant, with a stellar lineup & full house. The decor description is best quoted to the night's MC- David Smeidt- who described it ss if a gay pirate was having a garage sale. Camels, camel themes, and some classic posters- the gay pirates responsible for decorating Camelot have definitely never heard the expression, "less is more"... I ordered a garlic pizza cos it was like $8. It was alright & for $8 I ain't gonna complain the crust was a bit hard tho. Some pretty amazing looking mezze plates were doing the rounds and making me regret my decision. Now that I know how easy it is to get to and groovy a venue it is I'm looking forward to joining the camel cult.

Random nights are the best nights, aren't they?…read more My friend Isobel sent me a message last week, with a Facebook link saying, wanna check this out next week in good old Marrickville? I was like, yeeerrrppppp, let's go. Why not, right? So tonight, I look at the Facebook page to figure out where it is and its like all trendy and ambiguous "in the back streets of Marrickville".... well, where the FUCK is that, eh??? Bloody thing. Well, I figured it out and I can't tell you how AWESOME it was! Dimly lit, trendy, hipster kitch. Think Shady Pines, but not so much Americana. Yes, cowboys. But also gypsies, persian carpets, camels and eastern flair. The owner, came over and introduced himself to us and was like, how did you hear about us? Well, we have the very uncool story that Isobel's mum told her about it. Yeah, I'm serious. LOL. We think it's funny as hell too, especially since the place was so great, so unknown. Her mum saw some live music here a few weeks ago. I should probably make up a cooler story about how I know about the place that makes me sound really awesome with my finger right on the pulse of avant guarde Sydney or something, so when I bring people here I can be like... yeah... I'm cool... man?!! We had wines which were delicious. I had an SA Pinot Noir. Hey, look! I'm trying to learn my wines! Be impressed. I'm a wine doofus. Downstairs is "Django Bar" which is I guess, not a music venue. Camelot is technically on the top floor, and is a music venue with some food... the garlic pizza is amazing. Perfectly garlicky and cheesy melty goodness. Sean Taylor was playing, he was described as a Chris Isaak acoustic guitar type.... well, wow, I could have easily stayed out til past midnight if it wasn't a school night. He was amazing. Everything was 5 star. I'm really glad to be able to write this review for such a great NEW establishment, but it's even better that it's in my home suburb of dear old MARRICKVILLE!!! Marrickville is seriously Sydney's Brooklyn. Seriously. Its coming up in the world. Watch out.