Bennelong
Sydney
Anmeldelser
We visited Bennelong on 12/07/26. Absolutely stunning location inside the iconic Sydney Opera House. The service was attentive and impeccable, we felt very well looked-after. The restaurant location, grandesque atmosphere, and high-class service presents as Bennelong’s highlights. Whilst the food was very intentionally-presented, it did not invite particularly exciting flavours. I feel that as a diner, you are really paying for the dining experience as a whole. Some good advice I read elsewhere, which I would echo, is to perhaps book a seat at the bar to enjoy some drinks and appetisers instead, whilst relishing the view! Bennelong offers a three-course menu for $235 per person. More on thoughts of the food below. This is what we ordered: Entrées - Salad of persimmon, golden beetroot, goats’ feta, hazelnuts, caramelised Chardonnay vinegar - Marron, finger lime, cultured cream, ume, buckwheat pikelets - Quail schnitzel, bronze corn polenta, sauce Périgueux ✨ - Mud Crab dumpling, brown butter emulsion, white flowering kale - Heritage whole wheat sourdough, CopperTree Farms cultured butter Mains - Aquna Murray Cod, garden greens, lemon and fennel puree - Roasted Wollemi duck, preserved cherries, rosehip, radicchio tardivo - Raviolo of chestnut and ricotta, black garlic, Jerusalem artichoke - Pure bred Black Angus, parsley, kombu, horseradish, Maitake mushrooms Sides - Red velvet lettuce, fine herbs - Southern Highlands potatoes, cultured cream emulsion Desserts - Crème caramel, pineapple, lime, vanilla ✨ - Bennelong pavlova ✨ - Pistachio choux, greengage plum sherbet ✨ - Sour cherry, dark chocolate, almond ✨ = Would recommend Seeing the sails and high ceilings while dining, knowing you are inside the Sydney Opera House is quite a feeling! Service of our mains was slow, but they did not rush us during the dining experience. It was clear that our server, Emily, was paying close attention, and staff were overall extremely observant and kind, wishing our guest a happy birthday on multiple occasions. It is a little difficult to precisely judge the dishes served as they were delivered as a three-course structure as opposed to a sharing menu (by nature of the dining format). However, we all were happy to share and thus I was able to taste all the dishes despite having my own main dish. Starting with the entrées, the quail schnitzel was an immediate highlight. The permission salad was a good mix of sour, sweet and savoury, but it didn’t taste entirely different from something one could make at home. I wasn’t a huge fan of the crab dumpling - I wish it had been a little firmer with the skin as it tasted too moist. With the mains, all were well-cooked, however, I didn’t feel any were particularly interesting or inventive. I personally had the duck, which was crispy and done well, but perhaps just didn’t feel entirely different from what one might be served at an upscale casual dining restaurant. As seems to be the sentiment with a large proportion of other reviewers, the desserts were the highlight. Personal favourites were the crème caramel, iconic Bennelong pavlova, and the pistachio choux. Nothing was too overpoweringly sweet. I personally would have loved some extra cold or icy component to the crème caramel to add some texture. The bennelong pavlova was soft and delicious but felt a little too creamy by the end. On the whole, Bennelong is a stunning fine-dining experience, with excellent attentive service. If you are someone who cares only about the food taste and not about the experience or atmosphere, this will be unlikely to impress you. To really enjoy it to the fullest, I recommend going into your dinner with an appreciation for the overall atmosphere and experience! 💰= $258.50pp (incl Sunday surcharge)
I celebrated my birthday at Bennelong and it was honestly one of the most memorable dining experiences I’ve had in Sydney. The setting inside the Sydney Opera House is absolutely stunning, and enjoying dinner with a beautiful view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge made the evening even more special. We chose the three-course menu, and every dish exceeded our expectations. The Coral Trout with braised leek and bergamot emulsion was outstanding. The skin was perfectly crispy, while the fish itself was incredibly fresh, flaky, and cooked to perfection. The Heritage whole wheat sourdough served with CopperTree Farms cultured butter deserves a special mention it was easily some of the best bread and butter I’ve ever had. For our mains, we enjoyed the Raviolo of chestnut and ricotta with black garlic and Jerusalem artichoke, along with the Pure Bred Black Angus served with parsley, kombu, horseradish, and maitake mushrooms. Both dishes were beautifully presented, full of flavour, and perfectly balanced. To finish, the Sour Cherry, Dark Chocolate, and Almond dessert was the perfect ending to an unforgettable meal. The service was warm, attentive, and professional throughout the evening. Everything from the food and atmosphere to the incredible location made this birthday dinner truly unforgettable. I left thoroughly impressed and can’t wait to return for another special occasion.
We had an amazing dinner at Bennelong Restaurant in the Sydney Opera House for our birthday celebration with a table of five. Everything about the evening was fantastic! The food was absolutely delicious, especially the fish was cooked to perfection, fresh, tender, and full of flavour. Everyone at our table loved their meals. The setting is simply beautiful, and dining inside the Opera House made the night feel extra special. The atmosphere was elegant but relaxed, making it the perfect place to celebrate. The service was excellent throughout the night. The staff were friendly, attentive, and made us feel very welcome. They even surprised us with cute birthday cakes. Highly recommend Bennelong for a special occasion or just a great meal. We had a wonderful night and look forward to returning.
Sadly, Bennelong was an overpriced disappointment. The venue is absolutely stunning but the food simply doesn’t justify the price. The tuna and the dumpling were genuinely delicious, and I was excited for what was to come. That excitement didn’t survive the mains. The lamb was so chewy my partner couldn’t finish it, and even with half a plate left untouched, none of the staff asked how our meal was. The sides were perhaps the biggest letdown of all. Lettuce with balsamic and potatoes. At $225 per head, that is shocking. There was nothing creative, nothing innovative, nothing that felt worthy of the occasion. Dessert was pleasant, but given Peter Gilmore’s reputation, my expectations were high, and they weren’t met. A fine meal should finish on a high, and sadly, this one did not. I wanted to show my partner that fine dining could be a truly incredible experience. Bennelong didn’t deliver. Save yourself the money, put it toward a flight somewhere nice, or spend the evening at the bar upstairs.
Excellent experience celebrating a birthday. The restaurant still iconic and spectacular inside the Opera House making the ambience reciend and decadent. The host and staff were friendly and welcoming, and the food was divine, better than what I remember from years ago. The spanner crab dumpling - absolutely smooth, silky, melts in your mouth tickling with flavors (am still dreaming about it), the persimmon salad was also delicious and fresh, and my Angus steak was cooked to perfection - delicious, although swirling in too many flavors and condiments unnecessarily in my humble opinion. The cod was simply gorgeous. And desert, pavlova with its meringue opera sails was just the icing on the cake of a splendid dining experience. Staff were great, warm, friendly, and were attentive. We were not in the best seats, in the corner next to service station, but still had a nice view, Vivid lights reflecting over the sky. I had been to Bennelong years ago, but did not think much of the food then. This time, however, I was delighted. Five star deliciousness.
