Ten Sydney businesses you can help from home

Open for brekky, lunch and dinner, Rising Sun Workshop – half motorcycle workshop and half café – has rehired many of its casual staff to become two-wheeled delivery drivers. They are offering steaming hot bowls of their classics, such as the breakfast ramen – a beautiful big bowl of rich, fatty broth made from an infusion of buttered toast, topped with stretchy, firm noodles, a just-set onsen egg, shards of crisp bacon and a charred tomato. Or go the "the ultimate two-minute noodle experience" – a cold ramen pack you can activate with a bit of heat at home. Order from Rising Sun's menu online or over the phone, and if you're within the delivery radius expect a comforting meal at your doorstep. To further show your love for the Newtown ramen slingers, why not grab a gift voucher for the future or some of their merch? Your moolah could mean one of their staff gets to pay their rent.

The split-level Glebe Point Road and Dulwich Hill bookseller may have closed their physical doors for now, but you can still order from their vast selection online. The family-run Gleebooks have been in the book business for more than 40 years, and if you've ever had the pleasure of roaming through their catagorised and heaving shelves you know their variety is vast and their passion for reading is deep. Part of the pleasure of going to a good book store is finding something you didn't know you wanted to read, and Gleebooks will be manning the phones to continue to give you personalised recommendations (we asked some of their staff for their favourite books about Sydney and they delivered the goods). They're doing free home delivery to City of Sydney council areas too!

Saint Peter chef-owner Josh Niland is no stranger to thinking outside the box. Remember, this is a man who made a name for himself by making chips from albacore eyeballs and turning livers, stomachs and guts into things far more delicious and interesting than the everyday fillet. Niland and co are scaling down (get it) the Fish Butchery's output with a series of dinners that you only need one-or-so steps to complete at home. Soothe your isolated taste buds with some fresh oysters from Tathra with native pepperberry mignonette, followed by a Skull Island tiger prawn and ocean trout jambalaya. The 'Mr Niland at Home' menu changes regularly and ordering closes at midday on the day of collection. 

Missing your morning espresso and artisinal toast? Well, Sydney's roaster with the most is delivering the good. You'll be familiar with Mecca beans as they're served at some of the best cafés in town, and if you try hard enough, you'll probably be able to make as good a coffee with them yourself at home. The website is more than a little aesthetically pleasing, with gorgeous photography and poetic profiles of the producers and provenances that bring this brand to life. Monthly subscriptions are also available, as well as basic equipment to get you started. And if you don't really want the DIY experience hit them up on UberEats for loaded avo toast, a seriously good bacon roll, and of course, iced and hot cups of delicious coffee. 

If you're looking to spruce up your wardrobe but cannot bear the monotony of ASOS and the too-fast fashion of the Iconic then try this local clothing store's online pivot. The Social Outfit provides employment and training in the fashion industry to people from refugee and new migrant communities. They have a clothing and accessories store on King Street, with a sewing and manufacturing workroom upstairs, so you can shop for a new silk T-shirt or linen jumpsuit and know that the person who made it is directly benefiting from your purchase. The not-for-profit has closed the doors of its physical shop but they're selling lots of beaut wares online and using the isolation period to write more about their causes on their blog, The Social Journal.

We've all reached that part of self-isolation where we imagine our house is a multi-level wine bar with a disco room, right? Well now you can give your "home bar" that little something extra with legit party palace Prince of York's special delivery packages. To continue to support their casual staff while in lockdown this CBD watering hole has completely pivoted to an online store full of meals, boxes of wine and deliverable party mixes from their in-house DJs. Try one of their cook-at-home packs, like the Steak Diane dinner for two, which includes a garlic focaccia loaf, two 250g steak fillets, broccolini, a house-made chocolate bar and bottle of wine all for $100 and delivered to your door. They're also supplying one-litre cocktail mixes, so you can fire up your Zoom party and have a virtual Margarita night with mates, knowing you're also chucking some coin to a bar in need.

The unassuming modern gifts and homewares store on Regent Street is a go-to for affordable treats for the home. Owner Karin Huchatz named her store ‘DEA’, meaning ‘pleasing the delicate eye area’, and she sure knows how to pick out a well-made Italian cooking pot or envy-inducing willow tea tray from Japan. The store stocks gifts that’d brighten up any kitchen, bathroom or working space and you could find yourself browsing its virtual shelves for hours. For now, the physical store is opening (with a customer limit) on Mondays, but you can support them by purchasing online any day of the week. Mother's Day is right around the corner, just sayin'.

The independent record store has been in business for over 15 years, much of that time haunting covetable King Street real estate. And for good reason. Repressed Records is one of Sydney's only outlets for the releases of DIY, punk, techno and independent rock from Australia's underground labels and self-recorders. They're known for their knowledgable passion for the weird as much as they are for well-stocked bargain bin vinyl any old music lover can access. Hit up the online store to continue to support the store that unconditionally supports our city's live music scenes. You'll also be met with virtual shelves stocked with fab merch and hard-to-find zines and prints. 

Hitting up this tiny jewel box of a chocolate shop in Paddington and grabbing yourself a chocolate bear was a shopping-in-Sydney delight. Like most of the boutiques on William Street, Just William is tiny inside, so browsing started on the sidewalk – pressing your beak to the window like a Dickensian urchin and making your picks from the display cases before heading in. Now you can press your (masked) beak to your computer screen and choose from hundreds of handmade chocolates, pralines, ganaches and marzipan creations. Once the Easter dust has settled, nab some home delivery treats with elaborate packaging to take the edge off your isolation. In the meantime, scrolling through Just William's Instagram is a particularly evocative adventure.

You've seen the tinned cocktails on Instagram and now you can get them chucked into your home like delicious booze grenades with Continental Deli's home delivery or pick-up service. They've taken the casual grazing and drinking options of their Newtown diner online and all you need is your own glassware (or drink out of the tin, no one is watching). You can even pick up a few packs of Ortiz anchovies, razor clams, French sardines or Spanish mackerel (all sealed up tight in tins) to elevate your own pantry staples. There's also fresh loaves of sourdough up for grabs, posh canned soups and bottled sauces to try. Be the envy of your Google hangout with a cheese plate or natty wine in hand, while showering this Sydney business with well-deserved affection (and money).