Bennelong serves to celebrate the Sydney Opera House and its extraordinary architecture by offering a culturally significant and inspiring menu showcasing a most magnificent production of Australian food and wine.
Executive Chef Peter Gilmore explains the philosophy that drives Bennelong:
“Bennelong is all about the provenance of the food we are serving. The menu is very much crafted in partnership with the farmers, fishermen, breeders and providores from across the land with whom our chefs work together with every day. It’s a two way process: we’re responding to what’s in season and the best of what producers are bringing us, but on another level, we are planning menus a season or two ahead, working hand-in-glove with our producers to develop ingredients tailored to Bennelong’s menus.
We’ve made sure the dining experience at Bennelong is accessible and flexible. Our cooking is not overly technical and tricky – it’s robust and direct – allowing the pure flavours of the ingredients to sing. We’ve enjoyed developing a whimsical dessert menu based on traditional Australian sweets, and the wine list, similarly – is a reflection of the best of Australia – without taking itself too seriously.”
Sometime over 200 years ago, Bennelong Point was a tidal rock island in the heart of the Gadigal lands. It has been said this was a location for Aboriginal women to congregate on the rising tide, eat shellfish by the fire and tell stories.
Bennelong Point is recorded as the largest midden found in Australia. Sometime after British settlement, these midden shells were burned and crushed to manufacture lime required to build Government House.
Government House soon became a center for communication between First Nations and colonists, mostly due to a man called Bennelong who befriended Governor Phillip and was the first First Nation person to live voluntarily in the settlement.
Bennelong came from the Wangal clan on the southern side of the Parramatta River, and was married to a woman by the name of Barangaroo. Bennelong, who was a great dancer and mimic, became a figurehead for relations between First Nations and the colonists, and lived in a house built on this harbour-point.
Bennelong Restaurant is built on a site enriched with history of communal eating and telling stories. We invite you to create your own story in one of the most recognisable buildings in the world.
Australian produce and wine take center stage at Bennelong.
With one of Australia’s most celebrated chefs, Peter Gilmore, at the helm, Bennelong showcases the flavour, diversity and quality of Australian produce within the shell of one of Australia’s most iconic buildings. The Bennelong menu has been inspired by conversations with the most passionate and dedicated farmers, fishermen, breeders and providores nationwide.
Our concept takes advantage of Bennelong’s multi-level layout by presenting different dining options including; À la carte, Cured & Cultured and Bennelong Bar. You will find Chef Gilmore’s unique take on Australian cuisine with the à la carte menu on the lower restaurant level, and a more casual Cured and Cultured menu served on the middle and upper tiers. Bennelong Bar, located on the upper level, offers an ideal place for guests to meet before or after a show whether it’s over a drink, a quick bite or supper.
Peter is the Executive Chef of Bennelong and its sister restaurant Quay, both situated at the edge of Sydney Harbour. Peter, along with the Fink Group, reopened Bennelong restaurant in the Sydney Opera House in July 2015 to critical acclaim taking out the title for ‘Best New Restaurant’ at all three major Australian Restaurant Awards.
Across both restaurants, Peter describes his cuisine as food inspired by nature and as a passionate gardener himself, he was one of the first chefs in Australia to embrace heirloom varieties of vegetables and continues to work in partnership with small and artesian producers who cultivate bespoke produce exclusively for both Quay and Bennelong.
Peter’s creative and original cuisine has seen both restaurants receive an unprecedented number of Australian and international awards. He has released three cookbooks, Quay: Food Inspired by Nature published in 2010, Organum: nature, texture, intensity, purity in 2014, and From The Earth published in 2018.
Peter continues to be a leading figure in Australia’s vibrant food scene.
Whilst retaining its theatrical name, The Circle dining room has been redesigned as a spacious platform offering a view over the entire restaurant. Situated on the top tier of the venue, The Circle dining room features panoramic views across the water to the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
With views over Circular Quay and the Royal Botanic Gardens, the main restaurant space offers Sydney’s most spectacular dining room for larger events.
An exclusive space reserved for our high-profile guests and guests of The House, The Table provides discretion and privacy without being removed from the fabric of the restaurant.
