Restaurant radar: 8 unmissable new openings across Asia-Pacific

Discover the most exciting new and upcoming restaurant openings across the region, from New York-style hospitality to a dessert atelier

Joel Hart

15 Sep 2026

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Calamari at Côte Basque. Credit: Sharyn Cairns

We're always on the hunt for what's fresh in Asia-Pacific dining. Periodically, we round up the restaurants generating the most conversation across the region, from newly opened dining rooms to spaces still under wraps. Below you’ll find the hottest tables to book in the coming months, from tasting menus built around the biodiversity of Thailand and Sri Lanka, to wood-fired cooking and a dessert atelier.

Agnii, Melbourne

Set to open in October, meticulously researched regional Sri Lankan cooking arrives in Melbourne at Agnii, in a refined-but-raw space awash in terracotta and clay tones. Chef Gayan Pieris builds his menu around a traditional kussiya (kitchen), its dara lipa (open clay hearth) and poranuwa (enclosed hearth) turning out dishes based on ferments, pickles, smoke-dried fish (umbalakada) and jadi, Sri Lanka's answer to fish sauce, all served on hand-carved wooden plates. To match the fare, there’ll be Sri Lankan drinks like arrack (coconut-flower spirit), toddy, a custom Sri Lankan red rice lager and wines by the glass. Friday and Saturday nights shift into late-night "Lankan-style" supper mode, with DJs spinning Sri Lankan vinyl as kotthu roti flows until 1am.

Assaggi, Singapore

A dining room with warm, earthy tones centred around an open kitchen, the recently opened Assaggi is an Italian degustation concept from chef Denis Lucchi of Buona Terra. The Signature Journey tasting menu features dishes like vitello tonnato and quail egg, stone bass with parsley-yoghurt purée, and shared tableside paccheri amatriciana, all washed down with biodynamic and amphora (clay)-aged wines. You can also go full pasta, enjoying tubetti, linguine, and tagliatelle, with a signature ravioli ossobuco supplement. Finish with a digestivo at Bar Kakure.

Côte Basque, Melbourne

The Basque wave continues to transcend borders, with ember-cooked calamari à la brute, dry-aged wagyu and Galician Rubia Gallega hybrid cuts, and gâteau Basque with Armagnac-soaked prunes all appearing at this new Melbourne joint, where the wood-fire hearth takes centre stage. The Crossley Street space has heritage (dating back to 1954 as Pellegrini's, and later Becco) and has been impeccably redesigned by Acme, channelling 1950s Milan and New York flair through restored original green terrazzo flooring, cherrywood panelling, and a leather-lined bar.

Loulouca, Singapore

After leading pastry at three-Michelin-starred Odette, Louisa Lim has opened her first solo project as chef-owner. In July, Asia's Best Pastry Chef 2023 launched a dessert-only atelier that runs as a pâtisserie and café by day, before becoming a seated dessert restaurant by night in the Studio Rascal-designed dining room – an intimate space behind sliding doors, done in ivory and pastel pink with textured white walls. If gazing at artful plating sounds up your street, snag a seat at the counter.

Sato Sammosorn, Bangkok

Sato Sammosorn, which opened in June, is a temple to Thailand's newly flourishing artisanal sato production, where you can find over 40 Thai rice wines from around the country, paired with a menu co-created by dream double-act Chalee Kader and Gaggan Anand. From salads with pork jowl and pickled fruit or tamarind leaf, to nasi lemak wings and phud-phed hanger steak with bitter beans, expect a plethora of regional Thai dishes and playful snacks, with many components cooked on binchotan charcoal behind the glinting stainless steel counter. “Not an izakaya,” is their tagline, which really means “If Thailand did izakayas.”

Sra Bua by Num Weerawat, Bangkok

The Siam Kempinski hotel’s flagship restaurant was recently relaunched under the culinary direction of Isaan-born chef Num Weerawat Triyasenawat. After opening the excellent casual concept Soma with Chalee Khader, he now offers evolving tasting menus celebrating biodiversity – especially of Thai rice – alongside fermentation traditions and plant-based cooking. Chef Num’s ingredient-led dishes include bamboo shoots with white asparagus, and giant razor clam and coral trout in kang kua curry, finishing with toddy palm, toasted rice, green rice, black rice and coconut.

Sushi Ryujiro, Singapore

This Michelin-starred Tokyo omakase relaunched at a new home in The Capitol Kempinski Hotel in July, presenting the Edomae philosophy of chef Ryujiro Nakamura amid an original paper art installation by Wanda Barcelona, hand-finished tsuchikabe walls, and a Japanese hinoki counter seating just 10 guests. As in Tokyo, the fare is rooted in exclusive seasonal ingredients secured through long-standing relationships with Japanese fishermen and artisanal producers.

The Frog Club, Melbourne

New York-style hospitality has arrived in Melbourne at The Frog Club, with martinis slung to plush private booths from the high-energy central bar, alongside signature drinks like the Disco Margarita, with food served until midnight. Vibe-forward, the fare is no less thought-through, blending steakhouse and brasserie traditions. Snack on the signature caviar tart, Comté-stuffed gougères, or wagyu bresaola, or go full throttle with a 1kg Chauvel wagyu côte de boeuf, or lobster frites with sauce Américaine. The soundtrack is curated by resident music director Prequel, with DJs spinning jazz, soul, disco, funk and Brazilian grooves throughout the night.

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About the author

London-based writer and anthropologist, Joel Hart, travels the world in search of great food and great stories, with a particular focus on emerging trends and the evolution of...

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