Bored With Brunch?

If there's one meal Sydney knows how to nail, it's brunch. Spoilt for choice barely covers it - it would probably take a super computer, a room full of NASA boffins and the Large Hadron Collider to calculate the insane number of eggs that get poached, fried, scrambled and chowed-down every weekend by hungry Sydneysiders. There are very few suburbs where a top-notch brunch isn't available, and don't get us wrong, we'd never dream of dissing this most hallowed of meals. But sometimes the familiar staples - smashed avo on toast; huevos ranchero; eggs benedict - as mouth-watering as they are, can get a little repetitive.

If you're looking to mix it up this weekend, you need look no further than these five delicious alternatives to the traditional brunch menu.

Sokyo

Japan doesn't immediately spring to mind when you think breakfast, but don't knock it till you've tried it. Traditionally, the first meal of the Japanese day consists of okayu (a sweet, sticky rice porridge), miso soup, natto (pungent, strongly flavoured, fermented soybeans - think of it as the vegemite of Japan), tsukemono pickles and, as you might expect from the land of sushi, fresh fish. You can experience all these delights, alongside some more familiar continental favourites, at Sokyo's brunch buffet.

Where: 80 Pyrmont St, Pyrmont

Rising Sun Workshop

Not only is this achingly cool Newtown outfit also a communal motorbike garage, it was also founded off the back of a crowd-funding campaign, so you know it's a place where thinking outside the box comes naturally. Chinese-Japanese-Australian fusion is the inspiration behind its eclectic menu, which features brunch innovations like the ingenious Breakfast Ramen - buttered toast broth, bacon, tea-stained egg and tomato - or the Deep-fried egg, pork belly and green chilli greens served on a rice cake.

Where: 1C Whatley St, Newtown

Shenkin

With a menu built around the traditional shakshuka style of mezze, this is a hands-on meal. Your familiar eggs share the plate with hummus, flatbread and other traditional spiced dips. Also on offer are Ziva: delicious filo parcels stuffed with Middle Eastern and Mediterranean flavours. These come served with a hardboiled egg and a bright, zesty sauce of coriander, olive and tomato.

Where: 53A Erskineville Road, Erskineville

Boon Cafe

Asian-fusion is always good in our book, and at Boon, an east-west mash-up, mingling Thai cooking with Western breakfast favourites, doesn't disappoint. The Boon Big Breakfast features congee, skewered pork loin, baked eggs, exotic mushrooms and "Yum avocado" - think guacamole, Asian-style. Even Boon's coffee has a twist: the Goldilocks Latte pairs cold-pressed turmeric infused milk with Valentines honey for a sweet, spiced, fragrant pick-me-up.

Where: 425 Pitt Street Haymarket

Devon

For those in search of a truly refined brunch experience, you can't go wrong at Devon. Founding chefs Jacqui Ektoros and Zacharay Tan both trained under the great gourmand Guillaume Brahimi, so as you might expect, their food has Michelin-star quality. They also have a nose to tail approach to their choice of ingredients, so why not try the beef cheek and tripe with sweetcorn fregola? For the less adventurous, the Serrano ham, egg, truffle and gruyere gougere is a food-gasmic switch-up of the classic BLT.

Where: 2 Danks Street, Waterloo