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Aalia

Annual Restaurant Guide: New South Wales Top 25
Aalia restaurant Sydney CBD, signature dish waraq simsimJason Loucas
SYDNEY
Address
Shops 7.07-7.08/25 Martin Pl, Sydney NSW

Aalia’s menu brims with rare flavours and innovative takes on historic dishes. There’s that signature sea urchin draped over fermented aged rice, to be wrapped in a salted sesame leaf and eaten like a dolma. Masgouf-inspired Murray cod, meanwhile, is rich from a week of dry-ageing, smoky from the grill and spiced by a bed of butter-infused chilli paste. Add cocktails blended with ultrasonic waves, Levantine wines and a $350 beluga caviar course to the mix, and you might think the place would fall firmly in fine-diner territory. Yet, a fall-apart lamb neck shawarma and ras-el-hanout-spiced chips feel more like the fare of a next-gen Middle Eastern diner, whereas eggplant and tomato mes ‘a’ aha and rose-petal muhammara with baby okra are more dishes out of a refined home kitchen. Aalia is full of contrast – on the menu and off – but it’s never jarring. Instead, it feels bold and different, exactly how it tastes.

Aalia
Middle Eastern
Shops 7.07-7.08/25 Martin Pl, Sydney NSW
Price Guide
$$
Bookings
Recommended
Wheelchair Access
Yes
Opening Hours
Lunch Mon-Fri; Dinner Mon-Sat

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