Catalina is an iconic harbourside restaurant, family owned and operated since 1994. It is a light airy modern space with wonderful views, floor to ceiling glass, and outdoor balcony seating. The menu is Mediterranean-inspired and features sustainable seafood from the best producers Australia-wide, and grass fed and free range meat and poultry. The wine list is one of the best wine lists in Australia, featuring over 800 wines, and receiving a 3 Goblet rating every year in the Wine List of the Year Awards. The service is welcoming, friendly, informal and yet, professional. An ideal venue for all occasions: from everyday dining, to business lunches, to celebrations, to wedding receptions and events. We look forward to seeing you soon!
There are a number of classic Catalina dishes that make an appearance on our menu every year, but as we update it on a daily basis you never know what we might have in store for you. As one of the best seafood restaurants in Sydney, it’s a safe bet you’ll always find oysters, snapper, scallops or barramundi on our menu, but which of these you’ll find on any given day will depend on the quality of the ingredients we find at the local markets. We only deal with the best suppliers and we only buy the finest quality seafood, meat and vegetables for our kitchen so if some ingredients are not up to our high standards, we’ll replace them with others that are. Our primary aim is to ensure that the dishes we serve at Catalina are always superb and our menu is altered day by day to help us achieve this aim.
Specialty
Our first-class kitchen team, led by Executive Chef Mark Axisa and Head Chef Alan O’Keeffe, have created a selection of dishes that represent the pinnacle of modern Australian cuisine whilst retaining the classic Mediterranean flavours for which we are known and loved. Whether you’re ordering fish, Wagyu steak or a roasted lamb rack, you can look forward to spectacular dishes made with the finest and freshest ingredients by some of Australia’s most talented chefs. You’ll also find a nod to the best of Asian cuisine on our menu, with our signature Glacier 51 toothfish laksa with handmade noodles, baby sweetcorn, chilli, coriander, shallot and Thai basil. Whether you are coming to Catalina to sample the superb seafood, the perfectly cooked Wagyu beef or the wonderfully succulent shellfish, you are guaranteed the meal of your life.
How We Got Started
Catalina has been the archetypal family business since its inception in 1994. The late Michael McMahon and his wife Judy were both fixtures in the Sydney dining scene since its modern birth at Berowra Waters Inn, and established a dedication to excellence in their restaurants that their children James and Kate also emulate.
Michael and Judy began their careers with the late Len Evans (OBE) working at the legendary Bulletin Place. In 1978, they made the move to Gay and Tony Bilson's Berowra Waters Inn, Michael as floor manager and Judy as their first female waitress.
In 1983 Judy and Michael purchased Barrenjoey House in Palm Beach and worked with a young Neil Perry, subsequently opening Perry's in Paddington, both of which attained Two Hat ratings in the Good Food Guide.
By 1988, Judy and Michael had sold both Perry's and Barrenjoey House, and Michael became the General Manager of Bilson's in Circular Quay. Judy followed as the Function Manager, and together they ran that glittering icon until they purchased Catalina in 1994, transforming a tired old space into the perfect harbourside restaurant that it is today. In 2011 Michael was awarded the Vittoria Legend award at the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Awards.
Favorite Part of the Business
For over 28 years, it has been our pleasure to serve diners in Sydney with the finest food and wine in a stunning waterfront location. If you have yet to visit our beautiful restaurant and sample our delicious menu, we sincerely hope that will change in the near future. Whether you are looking for somewhere to have a really special romantic dinner in Sydney or are planning a family celebration and would like to hold it in a restaurant where great food, fine wines and fantastic service are guaranteed, you will not find a better venue anywhere in Sydney than Catalina.
As recently mentioned in Vogue Living Australia’s definitive guide to the most romantic restaurants in Sydney, where the ambience rivals the food: “Perched on the waterfront in the stunning suburb of Rose Bay, Catalina is a fixture on Sydney’s romantic dining scene. The daily-changing menu keeps diners on their toes, although a celebration of the freshest seafood can always be expected. Whether it’s said dynamic menu, the impressive wine list, or the spacious dining room with stunning water views that keep diners flowing through the doors, we’ll not know, but dare we say, the Catalina team have struck gold with the combination of all three”.
Customer Can Expect
If you don’t have time for a full meal, you just want a snack, or you simply fancy a single dish with a glass of wine in the bar area, you won’t be disappointed with what we have to offer. Pan fried king prawns, steak tartare and the best fish and chips in Sydney are all regular features of the Catalina bar menu. Please note: you can’t book the bar area as it’s weather dependent. Bar seating is subject to availability.
