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Gingergirl is a spin off of one of Melbourne’s fave eateries and it's coming to Sydney, in The Star’s final pop-up for 2016. At the helm is Teage Ezard, who’s bringing his Asian hawker-style street food to town, with a summer twist, because Sydney. Gingergirl will be sticking around until March 2017 and while the menu won’t look exactly the same as their Melbourne outpost, it’ll still be pretty similar.

The Long Goodbye is the latest cocktail bar to take up residency in the Sydney suburb of Darlinghurst. Rocking an effortlessly old school vibe, this 1940s inspired bar serves up the kind of classic cocktails, made complete with their house made liquor, that will have them known as one of the best cocktail bars in Sydney in no time. 

Lucy Folk is a jewelry and accessories brand that combines designer Lucy’s love for food, travel and design by transforming them into wearable pieces of art. Think super cute hats, pretty sunglasses, a curated collection of clothing, and dainty jewellery. It’s an Australian brand so we can’t help but be a little bit proud. PLAYA is located on the corner of Gould and Hall Streets in Bondi Beach so while you’re taking a stroll through the shops on your beach break, don’t miss this gem. You’ll definitely find a reason to treat yo’self at Lucy Folk.

Joining the ranks of Somedays store in Surry Hills, the Someplace team have opened a brand new outpost in Barangaroo. Basically, they’re trying to bring back the brick and mortar in a time where we are lazily ordering online without ever trying anything on. Stocking brands like Céline, Garrett Leight and Nikben, each piece has been selected to strike a balace between Scandinavian, European, American and local fashion and accessories. 

The latest restaurant to join the ranks on Enmore Road, ToriBar, is a yakitori and sake bar. Japanese grilled skewers reign supreme and after one taste you'll understand why. Inspired by a recent trip to Tokyo, ToriBar is reminiscent of bars in Japan’s capital and it doesn’t hurt that there’s a yakitori degustation. Expect classics like skewers of chicken heart, giblet and wings but for the less adventurous, there will also be prawn, pork belly, wagyu as well as vegetarian options like miso eggplant for vegetarians.

Lululemon is moving down to Bondi Beach, opening their brand new concept store right there next to the sand (or close to it, anyway). One of only five in the world, the store will stock a curated collection of clothing and swimwear. It’ll basically have all of your favourite Lululemon activewear pieces, plus a whole bunch of brand new pieces.

If you’ve ever drooled over the bright blue lattes on Insta (or raised an eyebrow, more like), then stay tuned. Melbourne’s vegan café, Matcha Mylkbar is moving into Sydney and they’re bringing their fluoro lattes, vegan eggs and coconut bacon with them.

One of NSW's ultimate romantic retreats, this haven amongst the usual Blue Mountains overnight stays is a must-do for any couple. Set high up on Bowen Mountain, every room (yep, even the lounge spaces and the beautiful bathtub) has a picturesque view, whether it's gazing across to Sydney off in the distance, or into a pristine native bushland from a luxurious ‘tent’ or newly built escarpment suite.

Get set to seat yourself at Hotel Bondi for the entire summer because this local watering hole has had a complete makeover and we’re telling you now that you’ll never want to leave.

Nestled in Rhodes, this part-cafe, part-art gallery is a creative, collaborative space that will no doubt inspire anyone who walks through its charcoal doors. What do we mean by that? Well, creator Ron Chen aims to connect people through artistic forms of interiors and food. So, the food is served on sculptor Denise McDonald’s crockery, and local artists’ wares are on display on the back wall of the café like a mini gallery. 

Merivale has continued their takeover of Sydney this week, with their newest venue, Queens Hotel opening its doors in Enmore. This one is a two-for one, with two distinct areas, Queen Chow and The Smelly Goat and between them; you and your belly will be well looked after.  

The Brotherhood Cafe in Potts Point has a mission and that mission is to create a space where “labels are in the past” and everyone is welcome.

Some of the world’s best baked cheese tarts have finally landed in Australia and it needs to go on your hit list for this weekend ASAP. Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tarts have been plating them up to hungry locals in Kuala Lumpur for years and thanks to the team over at Papa Rich, you’ll be able to nab one too. If you're already a fan of the tarts, then you might be in for a slight, barely-there amount of disappointment because the formula is being shaken up slightly, featuring Australian-only cheeses. We're more than okay with the change though, because us Australians definitely know our way around dairy, that's for damn sure.

Sydney’s Lotus restaurant has had a little baby restaurant brother–Papa Bo Min. The casual eatery and bar is a smaller, playful and generally more relaxed version of Lotus and Head Chef John Leong (formerly Billy Kwong) has created a menu with dishes such as the Papa’s prawn dumpling and half BBQ chicken with Papa’s pancake and sweet sour plum sauce. 

Holy Duck is the newest kid to join the ranks on Kensington Street and the diner slash burger joint is serving up traditional Chinese flavours with a modern takeout vibe. The fusion diner by Chef's Gallery has selection of rice bowls with combinations like smokin’ hot BBQ and roast cuts like crispy crackling roast pork belly with Pommery mustard sauce and crispy fried shantung chicken with sweet and sour sauce. 

Saporium is the gift that just keeps on giving. In addition to plying us with coffee, baked goods and healthy food that actually tastes good, they’ve gone and opened a bottle-o with wine and beer refilling stations. Let’s all just take a moment to let that sink in. 

If you want to die and go to dessert heaven, this is definitely our pick of the crop. Tella Balls Dessert Bar in Dulwich Hill are known for their doughnuts: soft, fluffy, and ridiculously good lookin’. The secret gem however is the brand new Nutella chocolate doner kebab, with a rotating white and milk chocolate rotisserie, shaved as it spins. The Golden Gaytime gelato has made most of our lists, so head down here now, it will definitely make yours too.

If you love a good coffee (who doesn’t) and simple, delicious food, don’t go past Crows Nest coffee haven, Monte Alto Roasters. If you’re sick of regular coffee Aussie coffee (you little coffee snob, you), these guys serve specialty coffee from around the world and that is not an exaggeration. Take the German sweet coffee made with honey and egg yolk for a spin—trust us.

Depresso is that feeling you get when you’ve run out of coffee, but you can easily fix that problem by heading to Sticky Fingers for their Golden Cobra roasted coffee beans. Hidden in the back streets of Surry Hills, Sticky Fingers Kitchen & Bar is a great new spot for breakfast or lunch and is perfect for groups with ample of communal seating available.

Bondi beach babes unite! The quintessential Australian activewear label, First Base, is popping up in Bondi for the entire duration of summer so you can nail the sports luxe look whenever you’re not busy tanning.

What do you get when you cross years of international experience as a chef and legit Italian heritage? The damn delicious Gigino Italian restaurant in Sydney’s Fairfield West. The authentic, homely vibe makes sense, the restaurant dishes up  hearty home-style meals, in a rustic yet refined dining space. 

Behind the façade of what looks like a plain ol’ garage in Leichhardt lies coffee haven and car buff’s dream, Kollector Cars and Coffee.

No matter whether you’re after a quick brekkie, relaxed coffee date or late night whisky, Shirt Bar in Barangaroo is sure to impress you. The café-come-bar doubles as a boutique retailer (yes, we’re serious) and is open for breakfast, lunch and tea (our fave).

Heralded as the best Laksa in Epping, Penang Cuisine is notorious for its fast slurping noodley, chilli goodness. This reasonably priced, extensive offering of Malaysian cuisine is well worth it’s location hunt, a definite hidden gem that’s 147% delicious.

Tucked away in Cronulla, Anna’s Shop Around the Corner is one of our fave spots in Sydney to cosy up to a good book and sip on velvety hot chocolate on a cold, rainy, winter’s day.

Manly’s favourite brewery 4 Pines has opened an all-day eatery, dishing up breakfast, lunch and dinner, with a side of beer, which means beer for breakfast is now totally a thing.

Located on the corner of George Street and Angus Lane, Meraki Merchants is the latest addition to Parramatta's ever-growing coffee scene.

Poke bowls are not going anywhere and Beach Bowls in Coogee serves up some of the best in town. Offering a whole range of this year's most grammable lunch, the team here are also known for their fresh to death buddha bowls, salad bowls, acai bowls, smoothie bowls and every other kind of bowl you could ever want.

Everyone knows that choosing somewhere to get your mane tamed is a big freakin’ deal. Luckily, the crew at Hair Cartel in Bondi will have no trouble tackling your personal weave needs.

The Frisco Hotel is back and we can guarantee it's where you'll want to spend your next sesh. With views overlooking Woolloomooloo wharf, this renovated Sydney pub is the perfect spot for you, your crew aaaaaand your pup! Yep, you read that right, the Frisco Hotel is officially dog friendly and we're all the happier for it.

Fratelli Fresh is headed over the bridge to Crows Nest; And if there’s one thing we’re sure of, it’s that Sydney can never be too spoilt for choice when it comes to great Italian joints. Fratelli Fresh has been feeding our hungry bellies for as long as we can remember, and now we’re getting a brand spanking new Fratelli Fresh to feast at.

The Green Lion is Sydney’s very first vegan pub. Here you can have a classic (and delicious) pub feed minus the meat. We’re talking tacos, pies, nachos, pizzas, burgers and even a hot dog. In fact, the entire menu here is so delicious that your meat loving friends won’t feel like they’re missing out on a thing.  

Once the downstairs bar of The Woollahra Hotel, the new Bar Moncur feels as thought it's stepped straight off the runway, and landed on Queen Street. The cocktail lounge has direct access to its big brother next door, Bistro Moncur, a staple of the Eastern dining scene. With curated cocktail menus from the 2015 AHA Bartender of the year Kurtis Bosley, and a bar menu overseen by chef Guillaume Brahimi, this new offering has your sleek Saturday night sorted. 

Amongst the many produce merchants in the revamped space on Danks Street lies Mezzanino bar, a 600 sqm, 100-seat restaurant. This is Sydney’s newest authentic Italian dining venue and you’ll access it via a glass lift, upping the luxe factor significantly. Explore the menu a little, before settling on a selection of Piattini (small plates) before diving into the menu of classic Italian main dishes. It’s been a while since we’ve had a decent tortellini and our guess is that Chef Ricardo Interdonato knows his way around good pasta.  

We’ve found Newtown’s answer to wine tasting in the Hunter Valley and you should be excited about it (we sure are).

Yellow Fever is all about the rolls and bowls. This new little café in Redfern boasts a menu jam-packed full of fresh, Vietnamese cuisine. Generous serving sizes are a huge plus for these guys and everything on offer tastes as good as it looks. Dine in and enjoy the sunny fit out, or grab a vermicelli salad to go and perhaps treat yourself to a Vietnamese iced coffee too. 

Tucked behind MediTrainean in Crows Nest, Blue Caboose is about to become one of your favourite summer bars in the North this year. The fit out is tropical and relaxed, making it the perfect kick off location before crossing the bridge, or an ideal spot for after work drinks. The cocktail list, created by Alex Clark (of Lobo Plantation, Eau de Vie and QT Sydney) keeps the holiday vibes going and our top picks are the sangria bianco and Moroccan pot punch.

Chachi’s is the Northside’s newest cocktail bar and while the food menu is a big fat yes from us (pizza and pasta), the cocktail selection is keeping us preetttyyy well hydrated as well. They’re open seven days per week, from noon ‘til late, so when the urge for a sneaky marherita pizza or truffle fries suddenly grabs you on a Tuesday night, you’ll know where to head.

With a focus on all things raw and simple, Youeni has opened up shop in Surry Hills and you can hear the locals cheering from here.

We’ve never met anyone who doesn’t like a good smashed avocado on toast, so Bondi’s new toast bar, Mr Topper’s should be on everyone’s list. You can dine-in with some classic 60s music and take in the New York vibe, or grab your brunch on the go and one of their refreshing iced coffees. Mr Topper’s has every possible toast topping under the sun on the menu for $11. To be more specific, there’s nine different topping combinations served on a thick slice of delicious toast. THE DAILY is a classic avocado smash with feta and chilli flakes and for any bacon and egg lovers out there we recommend that you go for the HOMESTYLE, which has crispy bacon, muddled egg, and sweet tomato chutney as the topping. 

Bondi’s iconic Hotel Ravesis has had a complete make over, transforming into a flamingo pink paradise just in time for summer.

A slice of Greek paradise has snuck its way into Sydney, thanks to 1821.

A trip to GS Cosmetic Doctors isn’t your average trip to the spa, with every facial procedure and treatment administered by doctors who really know their stuff. Their advantage is that they’re among the best in the cosmetics biz for non-surgical enhancement that can basically trick everyone (maybe even yourself), into thinking you just woke up like this. Not only that, but they also promise non-surgical facial augmentation–we’re talking about nose jobs, chin, temple and forehead fillers. Yes, really. 

Three of our all time favourite words are All Day Breakfast and we know it’s music to your ears too. Mr Mo has opened up on Campbell Street in the heart of Surry Hills and is serving up a delicious range of brekky options on the daily. There are meat options, sweet options and veggie delights too and we’ve got our eye on the pesto hash browns with poached egg, roast tomato and bacon, or the rustic bacon and egg roll (or wrap) with chilli jam, tomato or BBQ sauce.

Cornersmith known for their pickles, preserves and general kindness to the environment, their customers and the community at large. Their menu is always changing, depending on not only the seasons, but also what is growing in abundance in the local’s backyards. For years they have been swapping produce goodies with Marrickville locals and now, it’s Annandale’s turn.

Set up as a non-for-profit community cafe, Heart & Soul is the wholefood haven that’ll leave you feeling warm and fuzzy from the inside out. Not only is the menu filled with nutritious vegan meals, but all profits go straight back into the Shire community, as the cafe is run entirely by volunteers (as if we needed another excuse to go for brunch).  

Darlinghurst is heaving with top-notch eateries, but hidden behind a red door just off Oxford Street is one of our favourite Italian restaurants, Casoni and trust us — it’s definitely worth a look in when you’re deciding where to head for dinner. 

For an ultimate Sydney experience with 5-star views on top of a 5-star hotel, the Intercontinental Hotel Rooftop is a must! Sipping on a martini poolside by day to lounging in a Mediterranean atmosphere by night, could a weekend be any better? Enjoy a stunning view of Double Bay as the sun sets to end a busy week.

The recently opened Bekya has been a warmly welcomed addition to the Tramsheds Harold Park. The Middle Eastern kitchen is a proud reflection of history mingled with a contemporary take on the cuisine.

For those lucky enough to call The Chippo their local, you probably know this slick Sydney pub has a brand spankin’ new name (obvi), fitout and mouth-watering menu For those not from the area, you're totally missing out.

The Owl House is an intimate contemporary restaurant and neighbourhood bar located on Victoria Street in Sydney’s Darlinghurst. 

Say bonjourno to Double Bay’s new kid on the block—abc Cucina. The c is for carbs, right?

One of Sydney’s last remaining country pubs, East Sydney Hotel is exactly where you should head if you’ve gone well beyond sick of the loud pokie sounds and huge screens with this week’s sport. Here, it’s all about good beer, banter and delicious food. Bucking the trend of the stodgy pub feed, Head Chef Sini Kiialainen, is introducing a vegan menu to sit side-by-side with the current pub fare. Expect dishes like deep fried mac ‘n’ cheese, nachos hotdogs and fish fingers with chip, because who said that all vegans have to eat leaves?

Sustainable Salon is built on one principle: to create a super relaxing, top-notch salon based purely on sustainability (and relaxation, obvs). You'll start your session in the Creative Serenity Room, where your hair stylist will get a feel for what you (and your hair) and apply your colour, before moving onto the Well-Being space for a treatment, and you'll end in Style and Finish Space. We have a feeling that you don't need us to tell you what happens in here. 

Jangling Jack's in Potts Point is an under-the-radar bar and official frontrunner for everyone's new fave local. The decor creates a moody (the good kind) feel to the venue with dimmed lighting, dark timbers and Victorian-style lampshades, as well as vintage posters covering the walls, and the menu is everything (and more) you could want from a local. From finger-licking good fried chicken to a solid selection of cured meats, cheese and pickles, you're in good hands.

Menai’s answer to tapas and wine (two of our faves)—Rocksalt Tapas & Wine Bar is aptly named and well-stocked with all of your favourite things. We recommend that you kick the night off with a cheeky vino and a visit to the aperitivo menu, which features bruschetta, a baked garlic and parmesan pita, and an antipasto board that is piled high with all of the usual suspects.

Kenny Takayama (ex-head chef of Bills) knows everything there is to know about breakfast, which is why you need to get yourself his latest outpost, Café Kentaro, STAT.

Bistro Moncur, is bringing a taste of France to Mosman, opening a second outpost within the newly reopened The Buena.

Having opened its doors in early 2017, Regiment (who is hiding in plain sight, in the heart of the CBD) is a dream for anyone who’s looking for a lunch-hour spot that’s a little bit fancy. Think marble walls, brassy furnishings and round tables that are perfect for that perfect Insta shot. Serving Five Senses specialty coffee alongside breakfast and lunch, the food and drink offerings are, of course, just as Insta-worthy (because, if it isn’t on Instagram, did it really happen?). 

Dig out your stretchy pants and head over to Yoga Bare because it’s time for some serious lunges and forward folds! Whether you’ve never attempted a downward dog or you’re a pro at your savasana (aka the corpse pose for you newbies), this Hawkesbury studio is definitely the best place to get your yogi vibes going.