By far one of my best memories of Sydney was sitting on the outdoor patio at Doyle's eating a fantastic lunch in the fall sun and looking across Circular Quay at the Opera House. It didn't get any better!

When I walked by the place coming from the The Rocks Market, I knew I had to eat there. However, I was unaware that the place did not take American Express until after I was seated. I had left my VISA card back at the hotel and only had A$30 cash on me. This was a problem because Doyle's was expensive. You were paying for the view, which was totally worth it. However, I found the perfect lunch on the menu, Pasta and Prawns. Lightly grilled prawns over pasta with herbs. It was exactly what I wanted and only A$23 on the menu. It even came with two slices of garlic bread. Add some ice tea (which is hard to find in Sydney) and it was the perfect lunch under $30.

I spent over an hour savoring the lunch and the view, still amazed that I that I was even in Australia. When I look back on my trip, my afternoon at Doyle's will always be a fond memory.

The food is awlays fantastic at any Doyle's (also at Watson's Bay and in the seafood market), but the views are incredible. (There I go again, running out of adjectives to describe the experience of looking at Sydney Harbour!) Doyle's on the Quay has the queen of views with the Bridge to one side and the Sydney Opera House across the water. This restaurant is also not far from the Hyatt Hotel. By day and by night a supurb situation. Inside and outside tables. They use overhead heaters to keep you comfortable on chilly days. Even though our night was breezy and a touch cold in late May, we sat at an outside table. I couldn't bear to give up the view. We began our dinner just as the sun set and watched in awe as the Opera House first began to disappear in the increasing darkness and then reappear as its own lights came on. This has to be the very best view in the world.

A word about tipping. Tipping is not traditional in Australia, however we did tip in situations where the food and service were really good. As there is a place for a tip on credit card slips, I would say that tipping is, at the very least, encouraged. In general, prices compared to what you would pay in a city, say Dallas, for food. However, wine was usually less expensive than Dallas and always good to great as my husband tasted his way through the Australian wine lists.

Hours for this Doyles are: lunch noon to 3:30pm, dinner 6 to 9:30pm. Let them know when you make your reservation if you have a ticket at the Opera House. You can leave Doyle's by water taxi for a zippy trip across the Harbour to the Man of War steps at the Opera House or you can make the walk around the Quay in about 20 minutes.