Best Asian Food in Sydney: Korean, Japanese, Thai & Vietnamese
Most people don’t realize that Sydney’s Vietnamese food scene exploded in the 1970s not because of culinary ambition, but because of geopolitics—the fall of Saigon sent thousands of refugees to Australia, and they brought their cooking with them. Today, that diaspora has transformed entire neighborhoods into authentic food destinations that rival anything in Asia itself. If you’re hunting for genuine Korean, Japanese, Thai, and Vietnamese food in Sydney, you don’t need to wander far. The city’s neighborhoods have become living archives of these cuisines, each with its own character and specialties.
Marrickville and Newtown: Where Vietnamese Food Defines the Neighborhood
Marrickville is ground zero for Vietnamese dining in Sydney. Walk down Illawarra Road and you’ll find Vietnamese grocery stores, pho shops, and banh mi vendors operating at a density that feels almost overwhelming. Pho King is the obvious choice, but skip it—instead, head to Thanh Huong, where the pho broth has been simmering for over 30 years. The broth here contains star anise, cinnamon, and coriander seeds toasted fresh each morning, a detail most places skip. For something beyond pho, Ba Ba is where locals eat bun cha—grilled pork with herbs, rice noodles, and a dipping sauce that balances fish sauce’s funk with lime’s brightness. Newtown, just south, offers slightly more modern Vietnamese spots like Cô Ba, where they make their own sausages and serve them alongside traditional dishes. The difference between these neighborhoods and tourist-heavy areas is simple: here, the restaurants cook for Vietnamese families, not Instagram feeds.
Strathfield and Burwood: Sydney’s Korean Restaurant Capital
Korean food in Sydney concentrates around Strathfield and Burwood, where Korean supermarkets anchor entire shopping strips. This isn’t accidental—the Korean community established itself here decades ago, and the restaurants reflect that stability. Madang on Forest Road in Strathfield serves galbi jjim (braised short ribs) that falls apart without a knife, the meat cooked low and slow with soy, ginger, and pear until it’s almost unrecognizable from its raw state. For something more casual, Kang San does exceptional Korean fried chicken—the bird gets fried twice, creating a shatteringly crisp exterior while the meat stays impossibly juicy. The key technique here is the temperature differential: first fry at lower heat to cook through, second fry at higher heat for the crust. Burwood’s Korea Town strip offers similar quality, with restaurants like Gogi serving premium beef bulgogi where the beef quality matters as much as the marinade. The restaurants here source Korean ingredients directly, which means the gochujang, doenjang, and other fermented pastes taste markedly different from Western supermarket versions.
Chatswood and Neutral Bay: Japanese Precision and Thai Complexity
Chatswood has become Sydney’s Japanese suburb, with Japanese supermarkets, restaurants, and even Japanese schools creating a neighborhood that feels like a slice of Tokyo. Ramen Yokocho is the standout—this isn’t a single restaurant but a laneway of ramen stalls, each specializing in different regional styles. The tonkotsu (pork bone broth) here requires 18 hours of simmering pork bones and aromatics until the broth turns milky white and develops that distinctive rich mouthfeel. For sushi, Sushi Hotaru sources fish directly from Tsukiji, with a chef who trained for seven years before making his first nigiri. Neutral Bay, meanwhile, hosts some of Sydney’s best Thai restaurants. Longrain remains exceptional—their larb uses hand-chopped meat rather than ground, creating texture that ground versions simply can’t achieve. The dish balances lime juice’s acidity, fish sauce’s umami, and chili’s heat with such precision that each element remains distinct. Menam Thai on Military Road does similarly careful work with their green curry, where the curry paste is made fresh daily with green chilies, coriander root, and galangal.
The practical reality: skip the CBD restaurants and head to these neighborhoods. The food tastes better because these restaurants cook for their own communities first. Bring cash where possible—many places still operate this way—and go early. The best dishes disappear quickly, especially at lunch service.
Maya Chen is WokFeed's founding editor and lead food journalist. She has spent 8 years eating her way through 40+ Asian cities, from hawker centres in Singapore to izakayas in Osaka. Her work focuses on street food culture, culinary history, and making Asian food accessible to international readers.
