Australia’s biggest Ramadan cultural celebration, Lakemba Nights, returns to Sydney next week, with the huge foodie festival preparing to welcome visitors from across the country.
Coinciding with the most sacred month in the Islamic calendar, the award-winning after-dusk event has become one of the largest multicultural gatherings in Australia.
Shining a light on Western Sydney’s rich community spirit, Lakemba Nights (formerly known as Ramadan Night Markets) brings together a vibrant melting pot of flavours in one bustling precinct, celebrating Iftar and the nightly breaking of the fast during Ramadan.
This year, the iconic event will feature around 60 businesses from Lakemba and beyond that will transform Haldon Street into a global bazaar, with a variety of food stalls and trucks dishing up exotic cuisines.
Expect camel dumplings, fragrant biryani, fiery charcoal meat skewers and spicy satay sticks, followed by sweet treats like rocket kulfi, pistachio ice cream and mango lassi, all washed down with fresh lemonade, sugar cane juice or bubble tea.
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What is Lakemba Nights?
Lakemba Nights is a gift for people of the Islamic faith. During Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. Iftar refers to the moment the sun starts to set and a fast-breaking feast begins, running into the night and bringing together friends and families who typically enjoy a massive, celebratory feast.
That tradition powers the annual Lakemba Nights, which attracted over a million visitors in 2025, with a record-breaking average of 51,000 people attending per day over the 20-night event on Haldon Street.
Unfortunately, the festival isn’t open every day. You’ll only find Lakemba Nights operating from Thursdays to Sundays, 6pm to 2am, between February 19 and March 15.
What to expect from Lakemba Nights 2026
Lakemba Nights is the best way to tug on the multicultural tapestry of the Canterbury-Bankstown area. You’ll find all types of cuisines and flavours from Lebanese and Indian to Syrian and Burmese, with everything from murtabak to jalebi and camel burgers on offer. It’s the best way to taste Western Sydney in one go.
It’s essential to note, however, that Lakemba Nights is an event curated by the Muslim community and primarily intended to support the Muslim community during the spiritual month of Ramadan. Previous years have seen the street festival become so popular that reasonable attempts have been made to accommodate all and make the event palatable to non-Muslims.
As a result, you may encounter a few things that seem overly touristy. Ignore those and go straight for the local stalls and vendors stretching, pulling and serving all types of festive favourites.
Due to the popularity, there are usually free shuttle buses running from 6:30pm from Campsie and Roselands. Attendees are encouraged to catch public transport as there’s limited street parking.
The following road closures occur during the festival from 4pm to 4:30am:
- Haldon St between Railway Pde and Gillies St
- Haldon St between 168 Haldon St and Grace Ave
- The Boulevarde between Croydon St and Quigg St (The Boulevarde will open at 4am)
- Gilles St between Quigg St and Haldon St
- Gillies Lane between Gillies St and Quigg St
- Oneata St between Croydon St and Haldon St
- Oneata Lane between The Boulevarde and Oneata St
Best things to eat at Lakemba Nights
The stalls and food trucks of Lakemba Nights change each year, but there are a few constants you should be aware of before you’ve got your game plan sorted for the night.
Murtabak, grilled-fried roti stuffed with spiced meat and egg, is one of the main things to eat at Lakemba Nights, and you’ll find dozens of stalls serving up this specialty. Sydney Travel Guide recommends getting your Murtabak from Burmese stalls as the spices are often more pronounced and favourable.
Biryani is another favourite at Lakemba Nights. The Indian mixed rice dish is usually served next to other options like simmering pots of haleem and crispy pakora. Try to track down the best biryani on Haldon Street, but we don’t recommend you finish the entire plate. Biryani can be very filling, and you’ll want to try as much as possible at Lakemba Nights.
Knafeh is the be-all and end-all of Middle Eastern desserts. The bright orange, buttery dessert has melted cheese oozing out between shredded layers of pastry. It’s divine. And it’s all over Lakemba Nights, hidden between stalls slinging average camel burgers and refreshing carrot juice. But you’ll want to skip the pop-ups and go for Lakemba local favourite Kanafeh Al Andalos, a bricks and mortar that also offers a nice little bit of calm to quell Lakemba Nights’ chaotic atmosphere.
How to get to Lakemba Nights
Lakemba Nights runs between Haldon Street and Railway Parade in the Western Sydney suburb of Lakemba. The T3 Bankstown Line was your best bet to bring you straight to Lakemba Station, but that line has temporarily been closed so Transport for NSW can continue work on an extension for the Sydney Metro.
The line being closed will once again cause issues for people heading out to Lakemba Nights this year, but considering we sent an Editor out from Bondi last year, it’s a disruption to the journey that’s very much manageable.
If you’re coming from Central, it’s a good idea to get off at Sydenham Station and catch the bus. Last year, our editor noted:
“We hopped onto the SW2 to take us to Lakemba Nights and the SW1 to return later in the evening. Both journeys took around 30 minutes, though their routes differ slightly. The SW1 and SW2 bus routes are fare-free and stop at Haldon St. There is also a dedicated free shuttle bus that runs between Lakemba, Campsie and Roselands each night.”
If you’re coming from Parramatta, then your best course of action is to get off at Strathfield and catch a railway bus from there to Lakemba.
Lakemba Nights
Where: Haldon Street and The Boulevarde, Lakemba.
When: Thursday 19 February to Sunday 15 March, 6pm-2am every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday night.
Price: Free entry.
For more information, click here.
