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.

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!

Really nice venue right on the water with great balcony and stunning views. Function room setup was…read morevery nice

One of Sydney's most exclusive private clubs, perched bang smack on Sydney Harbour... visited by a…read moresocial who's who of members. Endless posh club facilities - which you can't enjoy unless you get signed in by a member. Get past the gate, and it feels kinda French Riviera outside on the deck... lounging around on plush white couches... next to the water festooned with gleaming luxury vessels. Down a little too much Veuve, stroll along the pier and make like a millionaire as you consider you're next floating investment. Just try and narrow it down to one. Then return to the bar and drink a little more Veuve... cool off in the harbourside pool and grab a leisurely lunch in the uber chic restaurant. A relatively recent restaurant fit out by Mike McCann of Concrete Blonde fame feels timeless, elegant and a little bit Colorado cabin on the water come winter with timber panelled walls and open fireplaces. Of course, the panoramic views of Sydney Harbour is a constant reminder that you are not in fact in Colorado... but the contrast works well nevertheless. Summer Sundays seafood buffets are a must. How many prawns can one consume in a single sitting? Only one way to find out. There once were jet skis on offer for endless Harbour fun, until Bob Carr put a lid on them. Cheers Bob. Well, back to the bar then I guess...

'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.

Kookaburras making love!…read more Is what I saw both times I attended a wedding at this virgin pure venue. Tucked down in a pocket of secluded bush between Bradley's Head and Taronga Zoo, this is a find indeed, a vintage gem of a place where the wedding is held out on a gently sloping grass lawn flanked by paternal gumtrees and the Harbour Bridge lit up by the sunset across the water in the background. Athol Hall used to be a dance hall. Back in the '50s sensible partygoers (they were the only kind that existed back then) would jump in a boat and be ferried across to the Hall, where the women would expose their ankles and the men would swoon and they'd all do a sock hop or a jive or something until the wee hours and then the boat would take them away again. I imagine it wouldn't come cheap, but can you really put a price on taking your vows while benevolent kookaburras make glorious coitus in the boughs above?

All-round outstanding venue!…read more I visited Athol Hall as a guest of a friend's wedding. The great food and service coupled with the unbelievable views of Sydney Harbour made for a fantastic wedding. It was a truly memorable night.

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?

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.