MG Garage (Sydney, NSW; tel. 02/9383 9383): Causing a stir in Sydney with the fashionable crowd, MG Garage is set in a car showroom and serves up great Modern Australian cuisine.
Mezzaluna (Sydney, NSW; tel. 02/9357 1988): Come here for exquisite food, flawless service, and a great view across the city's western skyline. The main dining room opens onto an all-weather terrace kept warm in winter by giant, overhead fan heaters. Don't miss it.
Quay (Sydney, NSW; tel. 02/9251 5600): Sydney's best seafood restaurant offers perhaps the loveliest view in Sydney. Gaze through the large windows towards the Opera House, the city skyline, the North Shore suburbs, and the Harbour Bridge.
Tetsuya's (Sydney, NSW; tel. 02/9267 2900): Chef Tetsuya Wakuda is arguably Sydney's most famous chef, and his nouveau Japanese creations are imaginative enough to guarantee that this hip eatery is a constant number one in Australia.
Salt (Sydney, NSW; tel. 02/9332 2566): You'll need to dress up in your coolest outfit to fit into the scene happening at this modernist restaurant in the Kirketon Hotel in Darlinghurst. Inside it's all sleek and chrome, and the menu is innovative Modern Australian all the way.
e'cco bistro (Brisbane, QLD; tel. 07/3831 8344): Simple food, elegantly done, has won this small but elegant bistro a stack of awards, and you'll soon see why. Not least among its titles is Australia's top restaurant award, the Remy Martin Cognac/Gourmet Traveller Restaurant of the Year. Booking ahead is essential.
Fishlips Bar & Bistro (Cairns, QLD; tel. 07/4041 1700): Clever ways with fresh seafood and other Aussie ingredients -- think crocodile -- make this cheerful blue beach house on a Cairns highway a real winner, the pick of the bunch in Cairns.
Fraser's (Perth, WA; tel. 08/9481 7100): The city center and Swan River sparkling in the sunshine seem so close that you can almost reach out and touch them from the terrace of this parkland restaurant. Sensationally good Modern Australian food turned out with flare and flavor is what you come here for; seafood is a specialty.
Lamont's Winery, Restaurant & Gallery (in the Swan Valley near Perth, WA; tel. 08/9296 4485): Hearty, tasty, yet sophisticated fare is what this rustic restaurant in the vineyards is all about. It's worth the 20-minute drive from Perth, but if you can't make the trip, there's a second Lamont's in East Perth.
Newtown House (Vasse, near Margaret River, WA; tel. 08/9755 4485): Chef Stephen Reagan makes intelligent, flavorsome food that beautifully partners with premium Margaret River wines. Stay in his homestead B&B overnight and explore the wineries the next day.
Prairie Hotel (Flinders Ranges, SA; tel. 08/8648 4844): Chef Darren ("Bart") Brooks serves up some very high-class cuisine in the middle of nowhere. His "feral" foods, such as kangaroo tail soup and a mixed grill of emu sausages, camel steak, and kangaroo, is remarkable.
Flower Drum (Melbourne, VIC; tel. 03/9662 3655): Praise pours in for this upscale eatery serving Cantonese food. The food is exquisite and the service impeccable.
The Tryst (Canberra, ACT; tel. 02/6239 4422): Canberra has far grander and more expensive restaurants, but this place has found a spot in our hearts for its constantly delicious food. It's also relaxed, feeling almost communal on busy nights.
