Why revolving restaurants are coming back into style
Once dismissed as kitschy dining rooms serving limp buffets, revolving restaurants are spinning back into relevance. With operators betting on better food, upgraded spaces and a fresh dose of nostalgia, the concept is quietly re-emerging in cities across the globe.
Last month, Sydney’s food press was invited to take a familiar ride 81 storeys up Sydney Tower for the launch of Infinity by Mark Best. Stepping off the lift and onto the gently rotating floor, guests were immediately reminded of the dining novelty that defined family outings in the 1980s – panoramic views mixed with a touch of vertigo.
Revolving venues are on the rise again. In New York, Danny Meyer has reopened The View at the Marriott Marquis overlooking Broadway, while San Francisco’s Hyatt Regency has revived Equinox on its 17th floor. Sri Lanka joined the trend in 2023 with Blue Orbit in Colombo, and Atlanta’s Polaris resumed operations a year earlier.
The format itself is hardly new. Roman emperor Nero reportedly commissioned a rotating banquet hall at Domus Aurea. But modern popularity peaked in the 1960s–1980s, when revolving dining rooms were marketed as futuristic icons. Their downfall was just as swift, thanks to a reputation for “wedding food at best, limp buffets at worst.” As the saying went: “The higher the restaurant, the worse the food.”
Best, whose Surry Hills restaurant Marque earned a string of awards over 17 years, wants to prove that rule wrong. “I guess I’ll rely on my reputation as an awesome cook to combat the common tropes,” he told the AFR. Dishes like scallops with parmesan gnocchi in a neon-red hot and sour sauce and lamb neck with creamed wakame aim to reposition Sydney Tower’s offering well above tourist fare.
Still, part of the charm remains the quirks. Bags left on the window ledge drift into other diners’ space, while guests often misplace their table after a bathroom trip. Perth’s Ben Green, director of West Coast Turntables, has witnessed it all while maintaining C Restaurant and installing revolving platforms worldwide. He recalls one proposal gone wrong: a dropped engagement ring slid into the gap between the rotating platform and stationary floor. “We had to get onto one of those mechanic’s skateboards – like in the movie Grease – and retrieve it,” he said to the AFR.
Even staff are thrown by the slow spin. “Finding the kitchen is also a task,” Best admits. “Finding it again and again has given me some LOLs.”
Australia may not be rushing to build new revolving restaurants, but the retro novelty is gaining a second life. For younger diners, the chance to unplug from phones and soak up 360-degree views might be reason enough to book a table. As Green notes, his team now applies turntable technology to luxury garages – so perhaps Lamborghinis will keep spinning, even if restaurants do not.
For now, Sydney’s Infinity and Perth’s C Restaurant offer a reminder that dining can still be about the spectacle as much as the plate.
Jonathan Jackson, 15th September 2025
