Eat your way through the best restaurants in Byron Bay
There ain’t nothin’ like a roadtrip, especially when the destinations are this delicious. We’re buckling up and heading south – join us on a journey through Byron Bay’s best restaurants for your eating and drinking pleasure.
Raes Dining Room
Nestled within luxury boutique hotel Raes on Wategos, this elegant dining spot serves up superb Mediterranean-influenced fare from a coveted ocean-front setting just footsteps from the famed Wategos Beach. Helmed by acclaimed chef Jason Saxby, the seaside restaurant offers a refined three-course a la carte menu – with optional starters and sides – or a full tasting experience that showcases Raes’ greatest hits. Down on beach level, the Cellar Bar serves more casual bites like buttery lobster-tail brioche rolls to the walk-in crowd.
Bar Heather
It’s all about natural vino and wine-friendly snacks at Bar Heather, which is brought to you by hospitality veterans and sommeliers-turned-wine-importers-turned-co-owners, Tom Sheer and James Audas. They are also the masterminds behind ethically minded wine distribution company Lo-Fi Wines and bottle shop Luna Wine Store, just nearby on Jonson Street – so you can rest assured your wine journey is in very good hands when you dine at Bar Heather. As for the food, the menu by chef Ollie Wong-Hee (ex Ester, Sixpenny and Franklin) rotates with plates like the crowd-favourite fried bread with spring onion, braised pork belly and quail-blood curry puffs, pippies with taro stem and octopus nahm prik, and a ramen-meets-carbonara noodle dish with egg and pork jus. You’ll find Bar Heather in the Jonson Lane precinct next to Light Years.
The Hut
A scenic 18-km drive into the Byron Bay hinterland leads you to The Hut, located in the charming former O’Possum Creek Public School. Here, long lunches reign supreme, with a share-style menu inspired by the sun-drenched flavours of Southern Italy and Greece. The menu is thoughtfully crafted around the day’s freshest market produce and local trawler catches, celebrating the vibrant bounty of the Northern Rivers. Open for lunch Thursday to Sunday, The Hut is the kind of place where time slows down, diners linger and conversations stretch. The top-notch wine list certainly helps keep the afternoons rolling.
Beach Byron Bay
Perched atop the sand dunes of the iconic Clarkes Beach, Beach Byron Bay delivers an elevated dining experience where ocean views and sensational seafood dishes jostle for your attention. Beach is co-owned by Ben and Belinda Kirkwood together with the renowned Fink Group, which is behind venues like Bennelong, Firedoor, OTTO Brisbane and Sydney, Gildas and Quay. Here, the rhythm of the waves provides the perfect backdrop for standout dishes like Kinkawooka black mussels with ‘nduja, fennel, curry leaves and lime, and barbecued Fremantle octopus served with panisse, bagna cauda and pickled chilli. Don’t skip dessert – the mille-feuille with plum curd, vanilla-yoghurt mousse and blood-plum sorbet is well worth saving room for.
Light Years
From humble beginnings as a banh mi bar nestled at the back of Lawson Arcade, Light Years – which is now located in the sleek new Jonson Lane precinct – has evolved into bustling group of restaurants, with venues in Burleigh Heads, Noosa, Canberra and more recently Perth. At Light Years’ Byron Bay location, diners can pull up a seat at the terrazzo bar for snacks like king prawn rolls, kingfish ceviche and pork-belly bao buns, or settle in for a feast of mee-goreng-spiced fried chicken, ‘hot and tingly’ lamb ribs, and turmeric and coconut fish curry. Be sure to order the pickled papaya salad for the side.
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Moonlight Hibachi & Wine Bar
From the owners of Light Years, Pixie and Smoking Camel, this monochromatic Japanese restaurant and bar showcases a modern take on traditional hibachi-style dining. At Moonlight, skewers of miso-glazed salmon, Hokkaido scallops and barbecue pork are served straight off the hibachi grill, alongside larger plates like white-cut chicken with sesame, chilli crunch, pickled cucumber and wakame salad, and a wagyu steak with yakiniku jus, cafe de Nippon butter and onion rings. The wine list is stacked with biodynamic wines – picked according to the lunar cycle – as well as hot and cold sake and Japanese whiskies. You’ll find Moonlight Hibachi & Wine Bar tucked into Bay Lane behind an illuminated crescent moon.
Bang Bang
When you’re craving a hit of Southeast Asian flavours, Bang Bang delivers. Go all in with the Bang-quet or Big Bang set menu, where you’ll be treated to eats like kingfish sashimi, butter-poached Moreton Bay bug buns dressed with XO mayo, sticky braised beef ribs, barbecue cauliflower and smashed sesame cucumber. Bang Bang is armed with an extensive drinks menu and quite the cellar list, sure to suit every sipper.
Hutong Harry’s
The sibling to Asian dining spot Bang Bang, Hutong Harry’s – located in the former St Elmo space on Fletcher Street – serves up elevated share-style Cantonese fare. Think dishes like roasted-duck-breast pancakes, lo mein noodles, sweet-and-sour chicken and crab fried rice, which you can pair with an ice-cold Tsing Tao. On weekends, Hutong Harry’s opens for yum cha lunch with delights like barbecue pork buns and prawn har gow.
Pixie
On the hunt for great Italian in Byron Bay? Book a spot at Pixie. Brought to you by the team behind Lightyears, this sip-and-snack spot combines Byron’s laid-back beach vibe with the sophistication of city dining. The menu offers a modern, coastal take on classic Italian, with bites like tuna crudo with pickled fennel, orange aioli and capers, king prawn mafaldine with cherry tomato, chilli pangrattato and bisque, and dry-aged bistecca with a porcini spice rub and salsa verde. The wine list is studded with both Italian and Australian drops, while the cocktail menu flows from low-wattage spritzes to bold negronis.
No Bones
No Bones Byron Bay is a plant-based eatery with an ethos that dining out can be equal parts indulgent, innovative and environmentally responsible. Offering fresh coastal fare in a laid-back setting in the centre of town, No Bones’ menu utilises as much local, organic and spray-free produce as possible. The vibrant menu kicks off with zucchini blossom with dill and cashew ricotta, romesco and pickled squash, and watermelon tartare with ginger-soy dressing, yuzu cream, kombu caviar and wonton crisps. Bigger bites include the No Lamb Gyros filled with marinated local organic oyster mushrooms, tzatziki, tomato, lettuce, sumac onions and a side of French fries, as well as jackfruit bao buns and ‘duk’ pancakes. No Bones’ wine menu is stacked with fun drops, highlighting biodynamic and minimal-intervention producers.
The Smoking Camel
Located in the original Light Years space, this fun and colourful Middle Eastern oasis puts a modern spin on traditional Levantine cuisine, leaning on flavours from Lebanon, Turkey, Israel and beyond. From the team behind Light Years, Moonlight and Pixie, The Smoking Camel serves up a playful menu that kicks off with snacks like smoked baba ganoush with parsley oil, pine nuts and curry leaf, best served with Yariv’s grilled pita bread. For the main affair, you’ll find barbecued plates of baharat-spiced beef with a sumac, parsley and onion salad, marinated lamb rump with dill zhoug and lemon, and market fish with tahini yoghurt and fennel slaw. To sip? Go for the Fig & Pickle Martini made with Summerland camel-milk vodka.
Kouzina
In true Byron style, this list effortlessly flips from high-end fine diners to a hidden gem in the industrial estate. Authentic Greek eatery Kouzina, tucked away on Acacia Street, is a local favourite for home-style Greek feasts. The menu changes from service to service, so expect something different each time you dine. Think mezedes like dolmades, fava dip and kolokithokeftedes, and mains like village pie, papoutsakia, keftedakia, chicken souvlaki and lamb stifado. Save room for a strong coffee and rizogalo!
Tokyo Doll
Located in the Mercato on Byron precinct on Jonson Street, neon-lit beauty Tokyo Doll puts a contemporary and light-hearted spin on authentic Japanese cuisine. Spotlighting the best local produce and seafood, Tokyo Doll is a hit with sushi and sashimi lovers, sporting a range of raw plates, maki rolls and sushi tacos. Sip on sake, shochu and umeshu, select from a series of fun wines, or go straight to heavy hitters like the Tokyo Martini. Make a night of it and kick-on in one of Tokyo Doll’s private karaoke rooms.
The Mez Club
If, like us, you are wishing you were hopping around the various Greek Islands, The Mez Club is the next best thing. It’s suitably bright, white and welcoming with a menu that takes you on a journey around the Mediterranean Sea, from the souks of Morocco to the stunning south of France, peppered with the fresh produce of Italy and the seafood of Spain. Expect bites like halomi with smoked honey, larger plates like chicken tajine with preserved lemon and olives, and fattoush salads for the side. Oh, and there’s baklava ice-cream to finish.
Three Blue Ducks at The Farm
No trip to Byron is complete without stopping by The Farm. Set amid a sprawling 80-acre working farm, visitors have plenty of room to roam amongst the macadamia orchard and lush fields, which are planted with produce that makes its way onto each and every plate that comes out of the Three Blue Ducks kitchen. Roll out a rug and enjoy a picnic hamper or pull up a seat in the restaurant, which shines a light on the best local growers and producers. To cap off the week like a local, book in the for the famous Sunday Roast Dinner.
Ember
Jonson Street steakhouse Ember spotlights flame-licked fare, while celebrating choice produce from the Northern Rivers region. Top-tier cuts are sizzled to perfection on the Josper grill, served simply with condiments like chimichurri, mustards, butter and jus, and sides like truffle-shallot potato gratin, seasonal greens and skin-on chips. The wagyu cheeseburger, seared medium-rare, is a popular sidestep from Ember’s steak offering.
Want more? If you prefer a little bit of (literal) elevation, find the staircases to Balcony Bar & Oyster Co. and Loft Byron Bay. For arguably the best karaage and temaki outside of Japan, head to Japonaise Kitchen. If it’s Mexican you crave, don’t look past Chihuahua Taqueria or the Gold Coast-born Costa Taco. Popular daytime hang Roadhouse also opens for ‘Roady Nights’, slinging wood-fired pizzas, snacks and very good tiramisu from Thursday to Sunday.