Stanley Cantonese is a new high-end Cantonese restaurant in Manly Wharf, Sydney, run by the hospitality company behind Felons Brewery and Felons Seafood. Chef Louis Tikaram, formerly of Bentley Restaurant and Bar, leads the kitchen, offering luxurious dishes like scallop siu mai and fried cumin lamb ribs. The venue is described as grand Hong Kong-style with a bustling atmosphere, seating 210 guests. Sommelier Christian Blair provides expert wine pairings to complement the menu's range from dim sum to Peking duck prepared over five days for optimal crispness.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-12,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Artemus, a Brisbane-based real estate and hospitality company, has opened its third Sydney venue at Manly Wharf, joining existing spots like Felons Brewery and Felons Seafood. The new establishment, called Stanley, features cuisine by chef Louis Tikaram, formerly of Bentley Restaurant and Bar in Brisbane and West Hollywood's EP & LP. The decor evokes grand Hong Kong with a mix of plush late-1970s styling and Chinese elements. Dishes like sweet-and-sour pork ($42), dim sum platter ($44), Peking duck pancakes ($66), and snow crab with ginger and shallot ($280) are standout menu items, alongside cocktails, Felons beers, and an extensive wine list. A meal for two is estimated at around $240 excluding drinks. The venue has been drawing crowds since its September opening, making it a bustling destination on weekends.
Written for “Hong Kong Cuisine In Manly” on 2026-10-12,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
If you’re wondering where everyone is on a Friday afternoon, they’re here.
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Or at least, it seems that way at the newest offering from Artemus – the gang behind other Manly Wharf venues Felons Brewery and Felons Seafood.
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This is the third Sydney venue for the Brisbane real estate and hospitality company, and it’s definitely its strongest.
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The chef spent the past seven years running the original Stanley in Brisbane before moving his family to Sydney to take a second bite of the cherry in early September.
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The look is grand Hong Kong, mixing plush late-’70s styling and chinoiserie with the approachability of Manly.
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Sit outside on the deck and watch the ferries come in while splitting a dim sum platter (make sure to try the luxurious scallop siu mai with gossamer-thin skins) and a cold beer (Felons lager is on tap here, naturally).
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Inside, it’s absolutely packed – I don’t see an empty seat, or glass, in the house.
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The room is filled with energy and the sounds of people here for a good time, where chat mingles with the clatter of food being served.
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The persistent smell of toasted spices floats through the air, largely thanks to the fried cumin lamb ribs that hit a neighbouring table.
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I immediately regret not ordering them.
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An opportunity to spend big in a relaxed, open-ended way that might start with a lychee martini (so fun, so daggy, so delicious) and a round of Moreton Bay bug spring rolls (is this the snack of 2026?) before settling in with something from the live tanks.
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Service across the board is friendly and attentive but the wine service, led by sommelier Christian Blair, is a cut above.
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I ask for something that can take me from a duck pancake to a steamed crab leg.
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Without missing a beat, Blair suggests a textural mix of chardonnay, marsanne and roussanne from central Victorian producer, Changing Winds.
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Wildly, it works.
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If you decide to order Peking duck for the table, know that it takes a minimum of five days of work for it to arrive there.
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It’s so special, the duck is prepared in its very own kitchen.
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It requires 24 hours of brining and a massage session, then a few days of drying out in the coolroom, getting fanned while hanging on custom racks.
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It’s this process that makes for the extra-crisp skin when it’s roasted.
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It’s high maintenance, but worth the effort for the right type of person.
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Juicy meat is covered in crisp, burnished and beautifully roasted skin, ready to be enveloped in a soft pancake with perfectly uniform spindles of green onion and cucumber, and a little hoisin.
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Order a whole duck two ways (pancakes and sang choy bao) or try the pancakes alone, if you’re hitting the tanks.
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Choose your weapon when it comes to how you like your live seafood cooked: wok-tossed, deep-fried or steamed.
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A West Australian snow crab, steamed and dressed in soy and ginger, lands at the table with its claws crossed, like it’s waiting patiently to be eaten.
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The meat is so incredibly delicate and flaky, so light on the tongue, it seems a crime to order anything else that might interrupt the experience.
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But look, there’s also sweet-and-sour pork and pineapple (as bombastic and sticky as the crab is light, gentle and elegant) and eggy fried rice.
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There are plenty of reasons to be charmed here, but a bottle of soy sauce is what ultimately steals my heart.
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Turns out it’s an ode to Louis Tikaram’s Fijian-Chinese grandmother, who would only use that soy sauce in her kitchen.
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“She taught me how to cook from an early age,” he told me, “so I guess that one’s for her.”
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The low-down
Atmosphere: A bustling, supercharged dining room filled with a bustling, supercharged crowd
Go-to dishes: Sweet-and-sour pork ($42); dim sum platter ($44); Peking duck pancakes ($66); snow crab with ginger and shallot ($280); lime sago pudding ($40)
Drinks: A fun mix of easy-drinking cocktails, Felons beers and a wine list to get seriously lost in
Cost: About $240 for two, excluding drinks (and live seafood)
Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently.
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A restaurant can’t pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide.
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The Aporia
