Westfield Sydney: A Fancy Food Court

While the upgraded Westfield Sydney (in Pitt St mall, Sydney) opened a couple of months ago, the extension to the food court on Level 5 was unveiled only last week. There are now nearly 20 upmarket food outlets to sate your stomach (assuming that the upmarket shops downstairs haven't already satiated your wallet).

The Twitterverse was alight with word of the Becasse bakery and yet-to-open Quarter 21 restaurant. The pastries and cakes at the bakery look crisp and delicious, if a bit pricey.

Rows of fresh-baked baguettes and loaves at Becasse bakery.

A newcomer to the city is Pie by Mick's Bakehouse. You can get a range of normal or gourmet pies here, in petite or regular sizes ($5-$5.80). We tried a range of pies, and they were sublime, with lovely flaky pastry and lots of real meat inside.

Three mini pies ($10) from Pies by Mick's Bakehouse: Hungarian goulash, kangaroo with red wine, and Peking duck. The kangaroo was the best but they were all really good.

Also tried the Snag Stand.  You can get a sausage in a roll, or on its own with salad. The prices range from $7.90 to $10.90 for the hot dog-style rolls (with condiments). They have a Toulouse sausage that sounds great but it wasn't available ('sold out').

Snag from Snag Stand: Beef and Horseradish ($10.90) - Wagyu beef sausage with horseradish mayonnaise and beetroot relish on a white roll. Quite good, and although the sausage was quite salty, the mayo and beetroot cut through it. Had to eat this with a knife and fork as it's a bit sloppy to pick up with the hands.

And I couldn't leave the food court without a bowl of parmesan and truffle fries from Charlie and Co. At last count, this was our 10th bowl in as many weeks. The fries are usually fantastic - hot, crunchy and oily - just like fries should be. And with lots of parmesan crumbs and that wonderful truffle flavour (do they use truffle oil? Can't tell, not that it matters).

Fries I have tried - parmesan and truffle fries ($8.90) from Charlie and Co. The Aussie burger was small but mighty, with a rich Wagyu beef patty, cheese and beetroot. Almost couldn't finish the fries as a result.

There are plenty of other eating options in the new food area. Outlets that caught my eye included Sassy's Red (Malaysian offshoot of Chinta Ria, they have laksa and nasi lemak), Din Tai Fung (smaller but no less efficient dumpling offshoot of the main branch in World Square) and Ragu Pasta and Wine Bar (look for the empty b/w striped chairs).

Overall, this is a nice grown-up addition to the CBD food court scene, and such a great alternative to the school-kid- (and allegedly rat-) infested courts. Most of the food outlets at Westfield provide a beeper, indicating that they cook to order. Also, it's a bit more expensive here, but it does appear that you are paying for quality, as well as a location above the Gucci and Bottega Veneta stores.