Sydney’s culinary scene is expanding into the Macquarie Park suburb with two new dining concepts opening soon: Joe Kitsana's modern Thai restaurant Song Wat and Jay Lee's broth-focused Jin Guk. Opening this week, Jin Guk offers gomtang, a Korean beef broth served with rice from Cheorwon, Korea. Song Wat, aiming for a mid-2027 launch, will serve contemporary Chinese-Thai cuisine in the same area. Both restaurateurs see Macquarie Park's growing tech and university populations as an ideal market for their new ventures.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-11,
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Story summary
Joe’s Table, a beloved restaurant in Darlinghurst, Sydney, is set to open a new dining concept in Macquarie Park next year. Additionally, the former head chef from the recently closed CBD fine diner Soul Dining will launch Jin Guk, a broth-focused establishment, in Macquarie Park this week. Both moves are surprising given that Macquarie Park is an unexpected suburban location for such culinary ventures.
The shift towards Macquarie Park stems from its growing tech industry and presence of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), which creates a strong demand for dining options. Kenny Lee, chief operating officer at JS Hospitality, explains that the area’s proximity to the large Korean community in Eastwood also attracts food enthusiasts. Moreover, the recent opening of S-Mart, a significant Korean specialty store in Macquarie Park last month, underscores the appetite for Korean cuisine in the suburb.
The decision to open in this northside hub is seen as an opportunity to tap into a diverse and growing customer base, including residents from nearby areas like Ryde and Lane Cove. Joe Kitsana, owner of Joe’s Table, believes these locations will provide a new audience for his establishment.
Written for “New Dining Concepts Sydney” on 2026-10-11,
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Two of Sydney’s seasoned hospitality pros are turning their attention to an unexpected suburban pocket, with cult Darlinghurst restaurant Joe’s Table opening a new dining concept at Macquarie Park next year, and the former head chef at recently closed CBD fine diner Soul Dining launching the broth-focused Jin Guk in the suburb this week.
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chef → turn → suburb
“The Korean community in Eastwood is just a 10-minute drive away,” said Kenny Lee, chief operating officer at JS Hospitality, the group backing Jin Guk.
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Lee → say → Guk
The appetite for Korean food at Macquarie Park is evident in last month’s launch of the sprawling S-Mart, a Korean specialty food store.
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appetite → sprawl → Mart
Lee and Joe’s Table owner, Joe Kitsana, both rate Macquarie Park – with its tech industry and university – as already possessing a strong, captive dining market, and a location with potential as a wider-catchment food destination.
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Lee → rate → destination
“I see us building a whole new clientele there,” Kitsana said.
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Kitsana → see → clientele
Kitsana started as a one-man band chef, waiter and sommelier at the well-reviewed, no-frills Joe’s Table in Darlinghurst.
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Kitsana → start → Darlinghurst
Skills he picked up working at Sydney restaurants Longrain, Sailor’s Thai and Phamish helped make Joe’s Table a chef and foodie haunt.
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Table → pick → Longrain
But he’s teaming up at the new northside venue with restaurateur Darase Kraykaew, from Haymarket restaurant At Bangkok.
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he → team → Bangkok
“It’ll be called Song Wat,” Kitsana said, referring to the vibrant Song Wat neighbourhood in Bangkok, which mixes old shopfronts, spice houses and restaurants.
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which → call → shopfronts
“We’ll do modern Thai – the Chinese-Thai thing is hot in Thailand now,” Kitsana said.
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Kitsana → do → Thailand
Song Wat will be located on Mahogany Avenue near the new Macquarie Park Public School, which opens next year.
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which → locate → School
The restaurant is aiming for a mid-2027 launch.
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restaurant → aim → launch
Jin Guk takes its name from the Korean broth of pork, beef or seafood, and the restaurant’s specialty, gomtang, which is served with rice.
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which → take → rice
“Jin guk is similar to ramen, but we don’t use the bones, only meat,” chef Jay Lee explained.
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Lee → use → bones
Lee skips bones in his version with an eye to producing a clearer soup.
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Lee → skip → soup
Lee, the long-time head chef at Soul Dining, said he is enjoying the switch from an exacting chef’s hatted restaurant kitchen to the simpler yet still precise preparation of the soupy cornerstone of Korean cooking.
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he → say → cooking
“[Jin guk] is a deep, comforting broth, you can have it any time.
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you → have → it
For me, twice a week,” he said
He admits to early trial and error with the cooking time of the different cuts of meat in the broth, and the rice proved equally challenging.
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rice → say → broth
They trialled rice from around the world, but couldn’t match the high moisture content and “sweetness” of Korean rice.
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They → trialle → rice
So the broth at Jin Guk is served with rice from Cheorwon, a region near the demilitarised zone.
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broth → serve → zone
Lee said the amount of rice added to the broth in Korea is up to the individual taste, similar to the way some Australians love lots of Vegemite and some a light smattering.
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some → say → Vegemite
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