Chippendale is a tiny, hyper-modern pocket wedged between Broadway and the universities on the southern edge of the CBD. For most of its history it was a working-class quarter of narrow terraces and breweries; over the past fifteen years it has been transformed into one of inner Sydney's most concentrated patches of contemporary art and design, anchored by the towering vertical gardens of the Central Park development.
The neighbourhood punches well above its size. The White Rabbit Gallery holds one of the world's most significant collections of contemporary Chinese art and is free to visit. Kensington Street, a restored heritage laneway, has become a dense little dining precinct, and the hidden hawker-style courtyard of Spice Alley draws a steady crowd from the surrounding campuses. Scattered between them are small commercial galleries, cocktail bars, and roasters.
It is best explored on foot in an afternoon, looping from the green wall of One Central Park down through the laneways. The university crowd keeps it busy and reasonably priced, and Central station is a short walk away.