Where To Eat & Drink In Brisbane In 2025

Brisbane’s food scene is only getting more exciting, writes Johanna Thornton

Brisbane has come into its own as a restaurant city, with everything from bold riverside eateries to innovative wine bars and ambitious new openings from heavyweight restaurant groups.

Those breezing through on the way to the coast should think again, because Brisbane is now a certified dining destination with a lot to love.

At the heart of it all is James St in Fortitude Valley, where standout names like Hellenika, Sushi Room, Bianca, The Green and Gerard’s sit side by side with luxury fashion stores, interconnected by vibrant laneways.

But the city’s food scene sprawls well beyond one street: West End brings Karangahape Rd energy, South Bank mixes culture with riverside green spaces, and Paddington charms with its hilly streets and historic pub. With the 2032 Olympics on the horizon, and a sub-tropical climate that makes dining outdoors a year-round pastime, Brisbane’s food scene is only getting more exciting. Here are just a few highlights, depending on your mood.

For an award-winning riverside spot

Supernormal

With one of the best views in Brisbane, overlooking the “brown snake” (as the river is affectionately known) and Story Bridge, Supernormal is the Queensland outpost of Andrew McConnell and Jo McGann’s acclaimed Melbourne restaurant. Set on the Queen St riverfront beside Customs House, the beautiful interior design by Acme embraces Brisbane’s subtropical climate with terrazzo floors, natural tones and soaring windows. On the pan-Asian menu, you’ll find Supernormal’s cult favourites, like lobster rolls and half crispy duck, alongside Queensland-driven dishes such as Moreton Bay bug toast, whole steamed coral trout with ginger and soy and Yamba prawns in shio koji. There’s a 400-strong wine list, but do try the tiki-inspired mai tai with Husk coconut rum, yuzu, green tea and macadamia. Upstairs, sister venue Bar Miette makes the most of an open-air terrace, perfect for Brisbane’s balmy evenings. 443 Queen St, city

For a seat at Brissie’s hottest new spot

Golden Avenue

Golden Avenue is the newest offering from restaurant group Anyday, whose roster includes some of Brisbane’s best-loved eateries Bianca, Same Same and award-winning Agnes. Their first restaurant in the CBD, Golden Avenue, centres on Middle Eastern flavours with a menu from chef Ben Williamson featuring wood-baked flounder with preserved lemon and za’atar, Machoui lamb shoulder with fermented daikon ajvar and Lebanese doughnuts. The minty green interior feels monumental, designed by Jar Office as an homage to Moroccan riads. There’s a lot to take in, with multi-level dining, lush palms and skylights flooding natural light into the granite-filled, courtyard-like space. If you’re just after a drink, Golden Avenue has a dedicated bar, GA, serving snacks and 130+ spirits until midnight. 67 Edward St, city

Also try: Gerard’s specialises in modern Middle Eastern cuisine with two superb set menus. In West End, Layla is another notable Middle Eastern spot, this one from famous Aussie chef Shane Delia. 14/15 James St, Fortitude Valley; Cnr Montague Rd & Raven St, West End

For Chinese-inspired plates and natural wines

Happy Boy

Not far from James St, Happy Boy is a happy, buzzy restaurant in a big industrial space complemented by an outside deck strung with fairy lights and perfectly shaded by huge Golden Penda trees. Ideal for groups or a casual, reasonably priced dinner, the menu specialises in the wok cooking of Southern China and Hong Kong, with a bit of Cantonese barbecue. If you sit outside, you can see and smell the chilli-infused smoke rising into the sky as you dine on pork and prawn wontons in chilli broth, flash-fried lamb in spicy oil, twice-cooked sticky beef rib and whole fish dunked in Sichuan broth. Happy Boy prides itself on its stellar list of small-producer Australian wines, and has a neat list of cocktails too. East St, Fortitude Valley

For a Thai-style breakfast and great coffee

So What Stereo

This really is a hidden gem, located at the dodgy end of Fortitude Valley off a busy main road and down Little Street, where it sits beside a Thai supermarket and Sam’s Thai Kitchen. A retro-style vinyl cafe, So What Stereo serves a short menu of Thai-style breakfasts, sandwiches and specialty coffee using Single O beans. Dine on scrambled eggs with housemade Thai sausage, congee, coal-grilled scotch fillet and Thai boat noodles. The drinks menu spans from filter coffee to iced pandan matcha, and the flat whites are perfectly poured. It’s hard to resist So What Stereo’s sweet combination of eclectic furniture, counter dining, mismatched crockery and ever-changing vinyl soundtrack. 4/15 Little St, Fortitude Valley

Also try: Single O in Newstead might be a Sydney import but the energy is all Brissie at this specialty coffee cafe with the best toasties in town. 16 Austin St, Newstead

For an independent wine bar in the inner city

Milquetoast

Located down a tiny laneway opposite the InterContinental Hotel on Elizabeth St and next to 80s rock bar Alice, Milquetoast is one of those wine bars where all the details are just right. Behind a roller door that once concealed a garage, co-owners and friends James Horsfall and George Curtis have created a venue that’s as cool as it is unpretentious. They wanted to offer something different to some of the “copy and paste” venues they’ve seen in Brisbane, with a drinks list and food menu that is both fluid and exciting. The 70-bottle wine list champions small producers and low-intervention drops, while the cocktail menu features amaro-forward mixes and top-shelf spirits. In the kitchen, chef Jack Burgess (previously at Essa, also on this list) reimagines British classics (George hails from the UK) like Cornish pasties, devilled eggs, mushrooms on toast and Cumberland sausage with a modern, playful touch. Take the “chip butty sandwich”, a pressed slab of crispy potato coated in curry-infused butter, served between soft white bread with housemade curry aioli. While the menu changes at the whim of the season or the availability of quality produce (the team had just received a batch of pigeon, on a recent visit), the vibes are consistently good. Laneway/199 Elizabeth St, city

Also try: Bar Francine, or Frannie, is a relaxed, lively wine bar in a heritage cottage in West End, specialising in Euro share plates and Aussie wines. 29 Vulture St, West End

For a memorable dinner inside a church

August

Opened in November 2024, August has transformed a 137-year-old heritage-listed church into a beautiful dining room, with polished timber floors, soaring rafters, Australian art and colourful leadlight windows. Chef Brad Cooper has been hailed one of Brisbane’s best young talents, and with his partner and front of house star Matilda Riek has created something special here. August’s European menu delivers classic dishes in surprising ways. You might eat Scallop St Jacques infused with truffle, or an Arnold Bennett omelette folded with Hervey Bay mud crab instead of haddock. And for dessert, surely nothing tops a Guinness sticky date pudding with goat’s milk gelato? With warm service and a concise, well-priced wine list, August is elegant, approachable and unlike anywhere else in Brisbane. 19 Dornoch Terrace, West End

Also try: South City Wine Bar in Wollongabba has old-world charm with its intimate, art-lined setting, great selection of natural wines, Champagne and French cocktails, and menu of European bistro classics. Shop 5/148 Logan Rd, Woolloongabba

For provenance-forward fine dining

Essa

It’s easy to walk right past this diminutive restaurant just off James St. Its narrow dining room doesn’t make much of a splash from the street, and inside it’s pared-back and moody, an intentional backdrop for food that’s bold without being showy. Essa was named Queensland’s best restaurant in Gourmet Traveller’s 2025 restaurant awards for good reason. Head chef and co-owner Phil Marchant takes a confident, ingredient-first approach to dining. The idea is to celebrate “farmers, hunters and providores” with each dish. Snacks might be as straightforward as oysters with native citrus or as layered as a venison tartare with smoked yolk and crisp potato. Larger plates are cooked with smoke and fire – dry-aged duck, wood-roasted fish, vegetables charred just enough to bring out their sweetness, and a big bone-in Stockyard Angus striploin that’ll set you back more than $300 and takes an hour to prepare. There’s a sense of restraint here: flavours are allowed to stand on their own, anchored by a thoughtful, ever-evolving wine list. 181 Robertson St, Fortitude Valley

Also try: Agnes is an award-winning restaurant in an atmospheric brick warehouse, specialising in produce cooked over fire. 22 Agnes St, Fortitude Valley

For a late-night bite or an icy martini

Penelope

If a martini menu is up your alley, then Penelope is the place. Alongside dirty and dry styles, Penelope offers twists on the classics like a “Bread and Butter” martini, with brioche-infused vodka, chardonnay verjuice and pickled fig, or the “Salt and Vinegar” with a touch of pickle brine and carrot tincture. Served on a metal tray atop a napkin scrawled with “Call Me“, it’s all theatre at this late-night hangout, which is part bar, part lounge, part restaurant and is open past midnight. At 9.30pm Penelope’s ”Room Service" menu comes into play, inspired by the world’s best hotel menus with bites like a fish finger sandwich, cheeseburger (of course) and smoked Sicilian olives. From 12pm Thursday to Sunday, diners can make the most of its bistro menu with everything from pasta alla vodka to steak frites and a soft serve machine churning out yuzu, olive oil and makrut lime and salted caramel and biscoff flavours. 15 James St, Fortitude Valley

Also try: Dark Red is a sultry laneway bar in Fortitude Valley offering unique cocktails and a resident dog to keep you company. 694 Ann St, Fortitude Valley

For a seafood-loving brasserie and Aussie wines

Clarence

On South Bank’s Fish Lane on a primo corner spot, packed with restaurants, bars, street art and neon lights, sits Clarence. It recently relocated from Woolloongabba to this larger, purpose-designed spot, allowing room for 60 diners and bringing its ingredient-led ethos to one of Brisbane’s liveliest dining strips. Chefs Ben McShane and Matt Kuhnemann celebrate Queensland’s finest produce, from Neighbourhood Farm vegetables to Tommerup’s Dairy butter, with a brasserie-style menu that balances comfort with creativity. Dine on raw seafood plates, coral trout meuniere and the beloved Clarence cheeseburger, all designed for sharing. With a 100% Australian wine list curated by Zoe Mahoney and a lovely fit-out, you won’t find a better spot for a thoughtful plate and an interesting drop to match. 4/51 Fish Ln, South Brisbane

Also try: Find a taste of New Zealand at The Lodge Bar’s Brisbane outpost, housed in a heritage Queenslander with one of the best balconies in town. 49 James St, Fortitude Valley

For an English-style neighbourhood pub

Hope & Anchor

No food and drinks roundup is complete without a great pub. A heritage cottage with a past life as an 1800s bakery, The Hope & Anchor is a quirky English-style pub. Its poky proportions, dark timber and low ceilings just add to its charm. The Hope & Anchor is the pride of Paddington, a scenic neighbourhood a bit further out from the city but worth a visit for a stroll of its hilly streets followed by a tap beer at the bar (there’s a strong line-up of local crafties). Bar snacks include beer-braised chicken wings, brisket club sandwiches and chorizo and kimchi hotdogs. Settle in at the eclectic booth-style seating inside and upstairs, or the covered outdoor courtyard with picnic tables and wine barrels to perch at. 267 Given Terrace, Paddington

Also try: Barry Parade Public House’s passionate team presides over a strong menu of Aussie-meets-Creole dishes and expertly made cocktails. Don’t miss the covered courtyard out the back. 122 Barry Parade, Fortitude Valley

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