Norton Street has had a revival in the form of a technicolour food market: Spicetown, a two-storey dining destination in the unused Leichhardt Hotel. The project is reinvigorating the old pub, and is from the team behind Burwood Chinatown.

“The site had been closed for eight long years,” Gina Liros, of the Blairgrove Group which owns the venue, tells Broadsheet. “We thought, ‘Why not give it a glow-up?’”

The glow of neon signage – with cheery slogans like “Good food, good mood” – livens up the inner-west laneway outside. A hawker-style area filled with tables and stools spills onto the street, where tables are cleaned quick smart: as one group of diners leaves, the next immediately slots in.

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Where Burwood Chinatown spotlights Chinese market stalls and street food, Spicetown Leichhardt takes a global approach. Elbow to elbow, you’ll find Turkish vendors dishing up oozy gozleme, Korean corn dog stalls, Chinese dumpling shops, Indonesian fried chicken spots, African barbeque trucks and Japanese skewer houses.

There are all the usual street-fair players, too: chip-on-a-stick, churros and corn, plus drink stalls pouring everything from sugarcane juice and Thai milk tea to acai and smoothies. There are so many options, it’s worth treating it like a buffet. Bring your first round back to the table to share before you go out and make the rounds again.

When Broadsheet visits, seafood stall Savoury Gal – and its trio of seared scallops – is a standout. Lightly grilled in front of you, the plump beauties are then torched till just charred, then placed on a bed of creamy, cheesy mash potato. Topping off the whole dish is fish roe and chilli kewpie. Some would say a perfect mouthful: salty, creamy, smoky.

Then there’s Skewer House’s grilled squid. You’ll notice it on other tables – it’s a crispy whole squid on a stick, the soft, chewy meat generously spiced. Ultimate Roll leans into Philly cheesesteak territory: cheesy, garlicky beef stuffed into bread, with Sudanese dakwa (a citrusy, peanut sauce) spicing it up. Flamin’ Hot Cheetos-inspired Korean cheese corn dogs are best shared.

A drink at upstairs cocktail bar Cosmos is on the cards, too. Enjoy cocktails and spritzes, considered alc-free options and wines from Australian and Europe. Still snacking? No worries, you can take your market haul with you. Adding to the arcade vibe, a photobooth snaps away in one corner.

With so many cuisines at Spicetown, customers aren’t the only ones benefitting from the diversity. “We’re all friendly here, we don’t use money,” laughs Michael Yu from Skewer House. “If I want an egg burger or some fried chicken, I give them some skewers.”

While Leichhardt was once all about pasta, this new food hall is here to spice things up.

Spicetown Leichhardt
95 Norton Street, Leichhardt

Hours:
Fri to Sun midday–10pm

spicetown.com.au
@spicetown.leichhardt

Additional reporting by Grace MacKenzie.