Whether you fancy a fine dining affair or a more low-key night out, you’ll find a menu to whet your appetite in the beautiful mountain-side town of Katoomba.

From grand hotel dining rooms to a restaurant set in a historic picture theatre and even an old church, Katoomba’s hospitality scene is varied and rich. It encompasses everything from casual ambience to consciously crafted menus, all showcasing the incredible produce of the Blue Mountains region and its exceptional culinary talent.

Here are the best Katoomba restaurants to book to keep you fuelled for all of the must-do activities.

The shortlist

Best Date Spot: Tempus
Great for Special Occasions: Darley’s Restaurant
Casual Eats: Bowery
Family-Friendly Spot: Boiler Haus Restaurant

1. Darley’s Restaurant

Take your velvet, buttercup-yellow seat at the lavish dining room of Darley’s Restaurant at Lilianfels Resort and Spa and give yourself a moment to absorb the ornate styling and sweeping views across English gardens and the Jamison Valley beyond.

Glinting crystal chandeliers, two fireplaces, and coloured stained-glass windows cast soft glows on the elaborate black-and-gold wallpaper and thoughtfully selected paintings. With starched-white tablecloths and such stately furnishings, you can’t mistake Darley’s for anything but special-occasion fare. The fine-dining menu is seasonal and local and may include the likes of duck breast with fermented cherries, Kinross lamb backstrap or Hokkaido scallops with samphire, all plated as if standalone works of art. Take your time; this is a place to relish the elegance of times past.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Refined

Location: 5/19 Lilianfels Ave, Katoomba

2. Echoes Restaurant and Bar

Meals unfold back-dropped by the large-format beauty of the vast Jamison Valley that seems to sprawl endlessly onwards. Plates of modern Australian flavours blended with Asian inspiration do well to compete for diners’ attention against the attention-seeking views. Set in the boutique hotel of the same name, Echoes Restaurant and Bar is open from breakfast through to dinner and serves classics such as Riverina lamb backstrap to more novel dishes of beluga lentil gnocchi, all alongside an astute local and international wine list. The perfect place for a pre-dinner drink, we suggest arriving in time to catch the nightly light show as the sun retreats beneath the mountains beyond. Keep in mind, there is a minimum of three courses for Saturday and Sunday dinner. On other nights, two courses are available.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Refined

Location: Echoes Boutique Hotel, 3 Lilianfels Avenue, Katoomba

3. Jamison Views Restaurant

This Katoomba classic is a lovely, casual spot for a breezy breakfast, long lunch or dinner out. Tuck into comforting classics and inventive plates executed elegantly with a menu that spans everything from ham hock and duck liver terrine to beef bourguignon and twice-cooked pork belly. When it’s cold out, there’s plenty of rib-sticking flavour and for the warmer months, fresh seafood brings a lighter touch. Set in the Mountain Heritage Hotel, you’ll dine overlooking fabulous mountain vistas.

Cuisine: Classic European

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Casual but elegant

Location: Cnr Apex and Lovel Streets, Katoomba

4. Tempus

Bringing a community-minded and sustainable ethos to everything they do, the team at Tempus champions eating locally and seasonally with beautifully crafted food that crowns the region’s produce with the halo it deserves. Pickling, dehydrating and preserving ingredients to ensure nothing is wasted, the menu is both inventive and thrilling, leaning toward Middle Eastern and Mediterranean flavours. Relish plates such as the wild rabbit and duck manti and lamb rump with hummus and green sauce, all paired with an all-Australian drinks list. Bright, stylish and accented with warm wood tones, this diner heralds in a new generation of Blue Mountains hospitality.

Cuisine: Australian with Mediterranean and Middle Eastern sensibilities

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Refined but casual

Location: 66 Katoomba Street, Katoomba

5. The Bootlegger Bar

Settle in for an evening of smoky flavours and punchy drinks at this bar and smokehouse where low and slow wins the race. Taking cues from the Southern US barbecue culture and Cajun cuisine, here you’ll tuck into saucy, tender cuts licked by delicious curls of smoke, from pork ribs and brisket to tomahawk steaks and smoked mac-and-cheese. It all goes well with a cocktail or a fresh, chilled beer and is exactly what you need to replenish calories following a long hike in the mountains. If you’re eager to lean into the theme, you can select a whisky flight, where you can choose from a tasting of bourbon, Japanese, Australian, rye or Islay whiskies.

Cuisine: Steakhouse

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Casual

Location: 92 Bathurst Road, Katoomba

6. Bowery

Find your holy side with a visit to a 1914 Federation Romanesque church. Despite setting up shop in the former St Andrews Church, Bowery, perhaps sacrilegiously, only pays mind to the deity of a more bacchanalian nature. All about simple, beautifully prepared food enjoyed with good people, Bowery is a relaxed, light-filled dining hall where you can allocate many hours to sampling small plates and sipping well-mixed drinks. From brunch to lunch, dinner and drinks, it’s an all-day eatery ready to welcome with dishes that amble across cuisines, such as plant-based tacos, prawn koliwada and duck spring rolls.

Cuisine: A bit of everything

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Casual

Location: 56-64 Waratah Street, Katoomba

7. Boiler Haus Restaurant

Located in the grand Hydro Majestic Hotel, Boiler Haus is a laid-back alternative to the hotel’s white-clothed Wintergarden Restaurant. Serving comforting, universally adored classics of pizza, pasta and a few classics alongside some truly dazzling scenery and great wines, this casual eatery is all polished concrete and industrial style, as opposed to the opulent stylings of Wintergarden. There’s even a dedicated kids’ menu to make life just a little bit easier.

Cuisine: Italo-Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Casual and family-friendly

Location: 52–88 Great Western Hwy, Medlow Bath

8. Wintergarden Restaurant

If you’re going to partake in high tea in the Blue Mountains, this is absolutely the place to do so. Winged velvet chairs, crisp linens and captivating Megalong Valley views set the scene for an elegant soirée at Hydro Majestic’s refined restaurant. While it’s best known for its high tea service, Wintergarden also offers a daily dinner service, where guests can enjoy a two- or three-course dinner. However, this is the spot for early birds, as dinner is done and dusted by 9pm.

Cuisine: Contemporary

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Refined

Location: 52–88 Great Western Hwy, Medlow Bath

9. Avalon Restaurant

This main street Katoomba restaurant is secreted behind an unassuming entrance, but once inside, you’ll discover you’re dining in the old dress circle of the historic, 1930s-era Savoy Picture Theatre. Filled with the ambience of bygone glamour, Avalon Restaurant and Bar is a little bit quirky and a lot of fun. A bit like dining in an antiques store, you’ll be served robust classics, such as slow-roasted lamb, pulled beef croquettes and duck breast, amid mannequins dressed as flappers and vintage curios. The drinks list favours local breweries and Australian spirits and wines, which you can sip as you tap toes to local musicians at the Friday night Supper Club.

Cuisine: A bit of everything

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Casual

Location: 18 Katoomba Street, Katoomba

10. Miss Lilian

Another of the well-curated restaurants that form the dining options at Lilianfels Resort, Miss Lilian is set in a sweet cottage with high ceilings, from which hang delicate birdcage lanterns. The scene here is set for a rollcall of Asian flavours, from Vietnamese to Thai and Cantonese dim sum. From crowd-pleasers of spring rolls and Wagyu beef gyoza to the larger Thai beef salad and ‘heo nuong’ pork chop, the menu is a tour of full-flavoured hits. You can dine a la carte, but if you’re with a group, you may be better to go for one of the set menu options. Don’t skip one of the fruity and fun cocktails or a sweet and peppy Vietnamese coffee.

Cuisine: Asian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Casual

Location: 5-19 Lilianfels Ave, Katoomba