Sydney Opera House has curated its own Vivid Sydney food kitchen

Sydney Opera House has announced an open-air pop-up kitchen for the entire run of Vivid Sydney.
Forecourt Food Village will feature Korean and Cuban food, as well as a bar by Archie Rose.
It’s one of the ways Vivid Sydney’s food program is becoming more curated as organisers move to make it a central part of the Vivid experience.
READ MORE: The ultimate guide to Vivid Sydney

Vivid Sydney’s fourth pillar, “Food,” was only added as a central focus for the multi-factor festival in recent years. And there’s plenty of room to grow it as one of Vivid’s defining features alongside light, music and ideas. That’s why there’s been such a substantial boost in the number of food-focused events making up Vivid’s program this year, from the highly touted dinner with Nigella Lawson to the flame-kissed Vivid Fire Kitchen.

Culinary block parties in Surry Hills and one-off collaborative chef dinners are shaping this up as the most delicious Vivid to date. And as we’re now only a matter of days away from the famous Lighting of the Sails, the Sydney Opera House has sprung plans to curate its very own pop-up Forecourt Food Village at one end of the Vivid Light Walk.

Throughout Vivid, you’ll be able to show up to the Sydney Opera House’s iconic stairs to find a market-style set-up directed by some of Sydney’s finest chefs. Danielle Alvarez is one of them, setting up a stall of Cuban-inspired eats at her new pop-up concept La Cubanita, powered by fried fish sandwiches and Caribbean-style sweet potato fries. Also on the agenda: Jimmy Ryu’s sizzling Seoul food at K-town Bites and a bar curated by Archie Rose.

Opening nightly from 5pm to 10pm, Forecourt Food Village should be a necessary feature of the Vivid Light Walk. Not only because it’ll fly the flag high for Korean and Cuban food, but also help dissipate the crowds that pool around the base of Sydney Opera House during Vivid. And as anyone who has been to the light festival before can tell you, even the slightest bit of crowd control is welcome for one of the most popular events in the Southern Hemisphere.

Vivid’s use of open-air food markets to add a lot more life into the Vivid Light Walk has paid off brilliantly in the past. In early days, it was just a row of food stalls set up along Martin Place. Now you’ve got immersive worlds of food and drink set-up in various spots around town. These are three three to take note of.

1. Vivid Fire Kitchen

Beloved local chefs Paul Farag and Lennox Hastie, as well as a host of international talent, will be taking the charge at Vivid Fire Kitchen with 23 nights of flame-kissed food and drink at The Goods Line. The Vivid Fire Kitchen is back for another year, bringing a bit of Dark Mofo’s dreary, fire-hungry appetite over to Sydney with a series of cooking demonstrations, entertainment and food all completely dedicated to the art of cooking over an open flame.

Where: The Good Lines
When: Friday, May 23 to Saturday, June 14

2. Forecourt Food Village

Sydney Opera House’s temporary open-air food hub won’t feature dozens of options, but rather just two. You’ve got a big Korean kitchen, and an even bigger Cuban one. Then Archie Rose shows up with its very own pop-up bar, tying the experience together with specially made drinks.

Where: Sydney Opera House
When: Friday, May 23 to Saturday, June 14

3. Hollywood Dreaming

New for Vivid 2025, the glamorous section of Surry Hills known as Hollywood Quarter will be turned into a massive, free and delicious block party on Saturday, May 31 for Hollywood Dreaming. The history of this area, which includes local favourites The Rover, Pellegrino 2000, Nomad and Golden Age Bar, will be cleverly displayed and reimagined to align with Vivid Sydney’s spectacular visual edge. All of the area’s best restaurants and bars will be staging pop ups, with plates of food priced from $15 to $20 each and pop-up bars from The Rover, Tio’s and Golden Age Bar.

Where: Surry Hills / Hollywood Quarter
When: Saturday, May 31