Restaurants in Australian Capital Territory
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A
Dickson Asian Noodle House
This perennially popular Laotian and Thai cafe is usually booked up towards the end of the week, though thankfully there's always takeaway. Within minutes of ordering, eat your fill of wok-fried, Hokkien-style or soup-laden noodles. Pick of the menu is the addictive combination laksa.
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B
Sammy's Kitchen
This place, now in new digs, has been serving up delicious, cheap and plentiful Chinese and Malay dishes for years. Don't miss out on the prawn sambal ($18) or the Mongolian lamb ($15).
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C
Tak Kee Roast Inn
This one-room traditional Chinese affair, locally lauded for its skill in cooking meats, is recognisable by the skewered flesh hanging in the front window. This has the same effect on committed vegetarians that garlic has on vampires. Their won tons are superb, as is their barbecued beef brisket.
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D
Alanya
This long-standing, award-winning Turkish restaurant has been feeding its fans authentic delights for over 20 years. The brief but tasty menu includes vegetarian options, plates to share and stand-alone mains such as the excellent hünkar beğendi (diced lamb on a bed of eggplant).
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E
My Café
This small licensed café serving bruschetta, bagels and burgers attracts a breakfast crowd keen to bring their office wherever they go. With sunny sidewalk tables it is also popular for lingering lunches and espresso junkies throughout the day.
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First Floor
Overlooking Green Sq is this fine-dining, minimalist décor establishment, where the seasonal Mod Oz menus run the gamut from fish and chips to stir-fries and pasta. The desserts are truly decadent and you can sip wines from around Australia.
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Santa Lucia
Canberra's first Italian restaurant is three decades old and still going strong. Generous pasta dishes with rich sauces are delivered to the patent red-and-white-checked tablecloths, and there are kid's meals for $10 to $12.
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Silo
This accomplished bakery-cafe can be standing room only during the breakfast and lunch rushes, when locals line up to buy the exquisite homemade tarts and breads.
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Green Herring Restaurant
This place offers rustic cosiness in a 120-year-old slab hut. Don't be put off by the name – it serves Mod Oz with creative flourishes, exceptional desserts, and has a separate vegetarian menu. To get here, turn right off the Barton Hwy towards Gold Creek Village, then left at the roundabout.
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Cipriani
The casual elegance, attentive service, smooth lines and warm Tuscan tones only hint at the dining delight that is Cipriani. Specialities include homemade sausages, such as the delicious chicken, rocket and ricotta salsicce, and the traditional Italian pork sausage served with a roasted capsicum relish or creamy mashed potato. There's also a mouth-watering range of pizzas and an extensive wine list with quality wines available by the glass.
reviewed
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K
Gus’ Café
Founded by Gus, a homesick Viennese, this cafe was one of the city’s first and is about as close to European bohemia as Canberra gets. The exhaustive menu offers all-day breakfast, sandwiches and an array of hot dinners, along with good vegetarian and gluten-free options. There are plenty of outdoor tables, and the kitchen never closes before 10pm.
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Courgette
This fine French-influenced establishment may be named after a vegetable, but meat gets top billing here, from pan-seared calf liver to wonderful prawn ravioli. Frequented by an older clientele, this restaurant is earnest but low key and offers a splendid assortment of mature wines by the glass or bottle.
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M
Legends
This lively Spanish restaurant is upstairs in the Capital Cinema Centre. House specialities include paella (a vegetarian version is available) and bacalao (dried salted cod), and there are lots of delicious tapas (from $12) to nibble. There’s also the odd bit of live flamenco guitar most nights.
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N
AAKushi
Great-value Kushi specialises in South Indian cuisine and has a comprehensive menu of vegetarian and meat dishes from Goan vindaloo and Keralan fish curries to lamb Madras. There's a popular lunch buffet on Sunday ($17).
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O
Ruchi
Ruchi specialises in South Indian cuisine and has a comprehensive menu of veg and non-veg dishes from Goan vindaloo and Keralan fish curries to lamb Madras. Bring a group of friends and take an inexpensive epicurean excursion of the other Deep South. There's a popular lunch buffet on Sunday.
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Ironbark
If you ever wondered what the Australian coat of arms tastes like, Ironbark’s kangaroo fillet wrapped in emu prosciutto should satisfy your curiosity. This place takes its bush food seriously, with native Australian ingredients featuring in every dish – even the wattle-seed ice cream.
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Belluci's
This slick, modern pub bistro offers casual dining (tapas, burgers, and fish and chips) at the bar and outside tables, as well as a slightly more sophisticated restaurant setting with menu to match (pasta, seafood and steaks). On Fridays and Saturdays there's live music and dancing.
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Q
Lemon Grass
This dependable Thai institution offers a long list of vegetarian, stir-fry, curry and seafood dishes. You can bring your own wine and beer, and if you're a fan of king prawns order the goong gratiam (garlic prawns) with pepper and steamed vegetables.
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Caffe della Piazza
With plenty of outdoor seating, a heady and sizeable wine list, and generous serves of traditional pasta this Italian institution attracts an appreciative crowd. It's been dishing up the goods for many years and has the dining-out formula down pat.
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S
Fekerte's Ethiopian Cuisine
This African gem weaves culinary magic with authentic Ethiopian cuisine along the lines of thick stews, spicy curries and moreish injera (Ethiopian flat bread). It's like comfort food, only far more interesting and from another continent.
reviewed
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T
Tosolini's
This cafe has a loungey feel inside and plenty of alfresco tables, with a varied menu of pastas and rich, meaty dishes. Lighter meals include sandwiches and salads, and there are a few vegetarian dishes available. The cakes are scrumptious.
Fast food is on the menu at the Canberra Centre's food hall, including sushi, kebabs, burgers, laksa, gourmet rolls and smoothies.
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Âu Lac
This simple Vietnamese vegetarian restaurant employs soya bean as a culinary chameleon, making it pretend to be a beef curry, fried fish or honey-roast chicken. The meals are tasty and the service is quick. A good-value lunch-box special is $7.
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Verve Café
This small licensed cafe serves up a global menu, from gourmet burgers and fish and chips to Thai noodles and Asian duck rolls. The brunch is impressive, offering bircher muesli, pancakes, and eggs served with chorizo and roast mushrooms.
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W
la pasa
This Singaporean beauty woks up superb Malaysian meals including a variety of fiery laksas, chilli prawns, and beef rendang (spicy coconut-milk curry). There are several vegetarian options and good-value boxed lunches for $7.
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Artespresso
This sun-filled bistro-style eatery has contemporary art on the walls, but the paintings get scant attention from diners elbow-deep in decadent eggy breakfasts or supping on delicious dinners.
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