5 great dining spots in Sydney at late night

1 - Old Town Hong Kong Cuisine

Sweet, juicy, soy sauce chicken, barbecue pork bao and roast-duck congee go down well after midnight. Maybe even better than they do before midnight. Located on Dixon Street, this Haymarket staple stays open until 2am every night of the week. It's low-lit, buzzy and will excite you into ordering too much: but never fear, because XO noodles travel well. Just get the rest to take away – your morning-after self will thank you. 

2 - Dodee Paidang

This fiery Thai spot is open until midnight Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and 11am on other nights). Known for its 'lava' level tom yum noodles, it's the original hot spot from Somporn Phosri. Swing by if your late-night cravings are more spicy soup than kebab-related, and get a taste of Isaan cuisine in the heart of Haymarket's Thaitown. 

3 - Arisun

Open until 2am every night except for Sunday, this sprawling outdoor courtyard is a go-to after dark in Haymarket. Be plied with baskets of soy-flavoured fried chicken and Korean beers, as well as Arisun's signature black bean noodles and generously portioned hot pots. They'll cater to your most self-pitying, indulgent cravings – they haven't been going since 1942 without cause. 

4 - Hot Star Large Fried Chicken

Get this popular Taipei night market staple on Sydney's own Liverpool Street – queuing at this tiny shopfront feels as close to actual street food as this city's going to get. Hot Star fries up large (like, really large) chicken schnitzels to order, as well as chips and mushies. It's no-frills – and here, seating is considered a frill, so best to grab your chicken and go. It's open until 12.30am most nights, and 2.30am on Fridays and Saturdays. 

5 - Mr Crackles Carryout

The best roast pork sandwich in Sydney is a two-step up Oxford Street on the old New York Slice site

After throwing in the fine-dining towel a few years back, ex-Wharf chefs Carlos Justo and Sam Horowitz started hawking their delicious roast sandwiches at Rozelle Market. They’ve now settled in a little shopfront in Darlinghurst. You can smell the roasting pork all the way down Oxford Street.

There are hotdogs, cheesy fries and salted crackling on offer, but we go straight for those roast rolls. The shop’s absolutely packed with dudes, including four huge policemen. In fact, there’s a ‘manwich’ on the menu boasting ‘twice the meat, and half the salad.'

We order one, and struggle to finish it despite the tender, sweet fatty hunks of roast pork and shards of golden crackling on a chewy white roll with pickled carrot, cucumber and as much chilli as you can handle.

A special of a soft white roll filled with sweet pork and salad is definitely pick of the mix – it’s like chewing a massive savoury marshmallow. Going forward – and hell yes we’ll be going back – we’d order a regular-sized roast pork roll. You’re far less likely to go into a porky torpor that way.