Sam Murden, Property Journalist
First published 16 Apr 2023, 5:00am
The humble kebab was also revealed to be the most popular food item for Aussies to order on the menu. Pic Jenny Evans
Western Sydney has emerged as a more affordable food and beverage hub – with all the top rated restaurants and takeaway business to match.
A recent review by Menulog showed many of the suburbs with the top rated restaurants on the app were located in western areas.
Western suburbs also had some of the largest concentrations of food and beverage outlets, with Parramatta emerging as the area with the biggest choice of eateries.
Parramatta has the most restaurants in its area with a total of 102 eateries. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Damian Shaw
Situated 55 kilometres from Sydney’s CBD, Penrith ranked number one in NSW with the most five star rated and reviewed restaurants/cafes on Menulog.
Featuring 102 eateries, customers in Parramatta enjoyed food from cafes, burger restaurants and Indian cuisines. Chinese and Indian food were considered the best – specifically naming the LINC Chinese Restaurant and the Colours of India.
Indian cuisines were rated as one of the most popular in Western Sydney suburbs like Parramatta and Penrith.
McGrath Parramatta Principal Kon Stathopoulos has worked in the area over the past two decades, and had noticed significant changes in the culture and landscape of the property market.
Mr Stathopoulos told The Daily Telegraph that Western Sydney could become a major working and lifestyle hub over the next decade.
“The pandemic, among other things, accelerated the rate of growth in suburbs like Parramatta and Penrith. Working from home changes proved that it doesn’t really matter where people work, as long as they are close to family and amenities.
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McGrath Parramatta Principal Kon Stathopoulos believed Western Sydney could overtake the Inner West as the next night-life and food destination. The agency sold this three bedroom home at 113 Lansdowne St for $1.145m in March this year …
… Whereas a similar sized home in Newtown sold for $1.902m during the same month. Mr Stathopoulos said the affordability difference had driven a wedge for buyers choosing Western Sydney over the Inner West.
“A lot of buyers who come to this area are looking for more affordable housing than that seen in Sydney. This also had a domino effect on restaurants, where a large Indian community has resulted in the growth of Indian cuisines in the area.
“Parramatta and Western Sydney could overtake the Inner West as the next night-life and food destination for buyers to move to in the next ten years. Why leave Penrith if it’s such a great lifestyle hub that’s going to be serviced by a new airport?”
Similarly, Penrith enjoyed a top spot in Western Sydney for having the highest number of five star and highly rated eateries – with a total of 77.
Penrith had the highest volume of five star restaurants in NSW. The Happy Inn Chinese Restaurant at 401 High St was in the top three local favourite eateries.
Cuisines like Pizza, Indian, and Chinese were the most popular in the suburb – with Chinese restaurants Happy Inn at 401 High St and Stafford Chinese at 112 Stafford St both ranking highly.
For buyers looking to live near these highly rated restaurants, there are a number of properties available on the market.
The cheapest property on High St is the two bedroom and two bathroom unit at 56/144 High St priced at $529,950, while a three bedroom and one bathroom home sold in December 2020 for $1.655m.
The Western Sydney International Airport, due to be completed in 2026, is also expected to boost property prices and bring workers to the area. Picture: Supplied.
The most recent PropTrack data also suggests Penrith is a fairly affordable suburb to move into compared to the recent of the suburbs on the top ten list, with a median house price of $851,000.
Interestingly, both the cheapest median suburb of Penrith and the most expensive median suburb of Surry Hills enjoy Indian and Asian cuisines – despite there being a $869,000 price difference between them.
Buyers looking to live in the suburb with the highest proportion of five star restaurants could pay $529,950 for a two-bedroom unit. Pictured is 56/144 High St, Penrith.
Menulog Commercial Director Rory Murphy told The Daily Telegraph that food delivery – including groceries and convenience food – has expanded to fill a broader range of customer needs.
“Everything from a top up of milk and bread, to weekend party supplies, or now even beauty products can be delivered for the convenience and ease of the customer … it’s a ‘new normal’.
Bankstown ranked sixth among the suburbs with the most eateries, with 70 restaurants in the area.
‘Aussies across the nation share a love of Asian food – with Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese cuisines ranking as top preferences in the country’s most restaurant dense areas. Both Sydney-siders and Melburnians share a love of Indian food, while pizza reigns supreme in Brisbane and Adelaide. And of course, the humble kebab continues to be a fan favourite for Aussies in every state.”
Mohamad El Tahch’s pizzeria at Suhhtan Pizza Bakery Bankstown was the highest rated restaurant for pizzas across the 70 eateries in the suburb.
Suhhtan Pizza Bakery in Bankstown was rated the best pizzeria in the suburb. *
Mr El Tahch has owned the pizzeria over the past seven years and said some of the most popular items, such as the Peri Peri Chicken Pizza and the Oregano and Veg wrap had helped build a loyal customer base.
“I’m not surprised to hear that we are considered one of the best in the suburb, it’s something that we’ve worked towards since starting the business.
“Usually we attract the younger crowd as we are open until 1am most nights, with the exception being Ramadan.”
Looking at the national data, Melbourne had more restaurants and cafes than any other major city in Australia, with Adelaide earning the silver medal and Sydney getting the bronze.
While the city of Sydney had 96 eateries, Melbourne had 204, Brisbane City had 51, and Adelaide had 164.
Melbourne has cemented itself as the cafe capital of Australia, having 204 eateries. It beat out Sydney with 96 and Adelaide with 164.
This indicates that while Melbourne has more restaurants than Sydney, its median price of $975,000 is still significantly lower than Sydney’s at $1.413m.
Brisbane was saddled with both the lowest number of five star restaurants and the lowest median price of the major cities at $760,000.
Cafe cuisines were the most popular in six of Sydney’s high density restaurant suburbs, while Indian proved popular in Victoria.
CBD areas in Victoria and South Australia offered the most cafes and restaurants compared to their rural counterparts.
“In Victoria and South Australia, CBD areas continue to offer the most cafes and restaurants. Areas beyond the inner city, such as suburbs like Blacktown in Sydney, Werribee in Melbourne, North Lakes in Brisbane, and Morphett Vale in Adelaide, being home to some of the most popular foodie hubs in their cities.”
SYDNEY SUBURBS WITH MOST 5+ STAR RATED RESTAURANTS/CAFES
1) Penrith
2) Campbelltown
3) Blacktown
4) Newtown
5) Parramatta
6) Sydney
7) Liverpool
8) Bankstown
9) Surry Hills
10) Mascot
SUBURBS ACROSS AUSTRALIA WITH THE MOST FIVE+ STAR RATED CAFES
1) Melbourne, VIC
2) Adelaide, SA
3) Parramatta, NSW
4) Sydney, NSW
5) Preston, VIC
6) Richmond, VIC
7) Campbelltown, NSW
8) Dandenong, VIC
9) Frankston, VIC
10) Blacktown, NSW
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