A favourite among many of the chef fraternity, Lumi is one of our most groundbreaking restaurants. Chef Federico Zanellato’s musings come with a heavy Japanese accent. Often added within the building blocks of a dish, or to add an exclamation to the final plating – his Italian-Japanese is a stunning display of how cuisine, when in the hands of a genius, is truly global.  

The glass box on Pyrmont’s Wharf 10 is dotted with emerald booths, black and tan bucket chairs and pendant lights, while outside boats bob on ripples of deep blue. It’s serene, a little bit special and if the views don’t lure you in, the jewels coming out of the open kitchen certainly will.

On the tasting menu there are no clues as to what each dish entails other than it’s main feature, such as snapper, chawanmushi, agnolotti, lamb and salted geranium. Start with Italian gunkan – a spin on sushi – where sea urchin sits atop stracciatella (instead of rice) and brioche. Silky, toothsome agnolotti is filled with porcini mushrooms. Blue swimmer crab, yuzu and prosciutto combine for an interpretation of chawanmushi, while Morton Bay bug tart is topped with cured pork cheek and mayo. Zanellato’s Italian/Japanese ideal is far from franken-food, it’s an evolved gastronomic experience.

Must eat dish: Italian gunkan