Manly’s waterfront dining precinct has gained a new superstar: meet Stanley, the new Cantonese restaurant by award-winning chef Louis Tikaram.
In recent years, Manly Wharf has transformed into the Northern Beaches hospitality hub. From the ice-cold lagers at Felons Brewing Co. to the fresh fish at Felons Seafood and iconic Italian dishes at Hugo’s, visitors to the waterfront precinct are spoilt for choice.
Artemis Group, the team behind the ongoing revitalisation of the wharf, have marked another major milestone, with the introduction of their brand-new restaurant, Stanley.
Stanley, headed by award-winning chef Louis Tikaram, takes its name from Hong Kong’s seaside resort town of Stanley Bay. But we’re equally fond of the playful coincidence of having a Stanley in Manly.
Serving up a variety of dishes, from Dim Sum to BBQ Peking duck and salt and pepper squid, the menu celebrates Australian seafood, premium meat and seasonal produce through the traditions and techniques of Cantonese cooking.
They’re not being low-key about it, either. The restaurant boasts three live seafood tanks and a custom-built duck oven dedicated to Peking duck, served either with pancakes or ‘imperial style’, where half the duck is carved tableside before the remainder returns as san choy bao.
“The seafood tanks and duck oven are a huge part of the Stanley experience,” says Tikaram. “They give us the freedom to work with what’s best on the day, but they also bring theatre into the dining room. You can see the produce, see what’s happening and feel part of it.”
Naturally, we had to try it out for ourselves, so we hopped on the ferry to the sun-soaked Manly Wharf to try out Stanley’s most-talked-about dishes. Here’s our verdict.
Menu highlights
We kicked off our Stanley experience with a couple of Merimbula oysters, topped with finger lime, ginger and rice wine vinegar. Plump and briny, they got a bright, zesty lift from the finger lime, making for a refreshing start to the meal.
Next was white-cut kingfish dripping in soy and green chilli, the signature dim sum platter (featuring soft dumplings filled with prawn and mushroom), as well as the Moreton Bay bug spring roll served with an indulgent chilli mayo sauce. The share-style plates mean you can have as little or as much as you like, but with so many tempting dishes on the table, everyone was filling their plates.
The star of the show had to be the steamed rock lobster, pulled from one of Stanley’s live seafood tanks. Buttery and silky, with fresh coriander and shredded spring onion on top of the bright red lobster shell, it was as much a treat for the camera as it was for the taste buds.
The rich wagyu was paired with an asparagus stir-fry, while the Fujian fried rice was fragrant with sweet crab and scallop. The beef dish was reminiscent of that familiar Chinese beef in black bean sauce, but elevated considerably by the incredibly tender, melt-in-the-mouth wagyu. Load up your plate with the steamed Asian greens with oyster sauce, and you’ve got yourself a winner.
A Cantonese dining room with harbour views
The restaurant’s interior is beautiful in its own right, but if you can snag a window seat overlooking the water, it becomes something truly special.
Modelled off a traditional Cantonese dining room, it’s all dark timber, woven rattan ceilings and deep green and crimson tones.
If you’re looking to book for a special occasion, Stanley has its own private dining room, which seats 36 guests (or 80 standing) and is characterised by floor-to-ceiling crimson drapes and velvet seating. You’ll forgo the harbour views, but in return, you get an intimate and wonderfully atmospheric space all to yourself.
Tikaram says the space feels like “looking into your living room”. And you can see what he means: yes, there are the elegant furnishings (just look at the handcrafted wall lights and ceiling fixtures wrapped in golden silk), but it also manages to feel homely and intimate.
The best way to experience Stanley? Pick a (preferably sunny) day, hop on the Manly ferry and settle in for a long lunch of fresh seafood, perfectly cooked Peking duck and fragrant fried rice, all with the harbour as your backdrop. By the time you’re back on the ferry, you’ll be full, happy and wondering when you can do it all again.
