The recap: the best new Brisbane restaurants, bars and cafes this month
How about that lousy March weather? It was a moist month for Brisbane, with cyclones and endless rain putting a dampener on what is usually one of the last warmer months before the winter chill. Despite the drizzle, the city celebrated some fantastic new openings. We welcomed an ultra chic Euro-style bistro and supper club, a Middle Eastern restaurant from one of Australia’s best chefs, a rambunctious wine bar, an inner-city eatery where classic Italian cuisine shines, and a killer cafe nestled inside a heritage gem. We reckon that’s a pretty good haul, all things considered. Here are the five openings we loved in March …
Penelope, Fortitude Valley: If we were ranking Brisbane’s best looking restaurants, Penelope would sit right near the pointy end. With its Art Deco-inspired checkerboard tiles, rendered walls, fluted glass, gold-hued velvet upholstery, heavy curtains and quartzite stone tabletops Coats Group’s European-inspired bistro, bar and supper club scores top marks in terms of aesthetics. But does the food and drink stack up? Yes, we can confirm it does. Taking a page out of the classic bistro cookbook, Penelope offers a menu that, while slightly retro, is fun and full of flavour. Some early standouts of executive chef Evan White’s offering include duck parfait with pickled sour cherry, crispy chicken tenders with buttermilk ranch and hot honey, pasta alla vodka with smoked mozzarella, and chicken thigh cotoletta with wild garlic. But it’s the late-night menu that many will be drawn to – three-cheese jaffles, club sandwiches with smoked bacon and steak frites available until 1:00 am? We’re in heaven. Throw in a killer drinks program featuring classic cocktails and a globe-spanning wine list, and it’s no wonder why Penelope has made so many friends.
Layla, West End: One ongoing storyline of Brisbane’s hospitality industry is the influx of interstate talent looking to plant a flag in the local food scene. Shane Delia, the chef and restaurateur behind Melbourne’s beloved Middle Eastern restaurant Maha, introduced himself to local foodies with Layla, his first Brisbane restaurant. Nestled in the heritage-listed bowels of the Thomas Dixon Centre, Layla sees Shane and his team presenting Middle Eastern cuisine in a new light, incorporating influences from the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. These influences are found in dishes like Layla’s Hervey Bay half-shell scallops with carrot hummus, Persian lime and toasted-coconut sambal, Moorish brisket borek buns with sticky turmeric and chilli jam, and salmon kibbeh neya with burghul, mint and sweet onion and aleppo sambal. Juxtaposed against the restaurant’s character-filled bones (softened by blue velvet upholstery, walnut timber and terrazzo floors), Layla bridges luxury and informality with panache – a manoeuvre that only a maestro like Shane Delia could pull off.
Wild Legs Wine Room, Newstead: The team behind Adela Wine Bar hadn’t planned on opening a new haunt so soon after its first. But Wild Legs Wine Room is proof that when opportunity knocks, it’s best to answer. This Newstead bar caused a stir when it opened, with oenophiles hot-footing it to the Wyandra Street joint, lured in by the promise of natural wine and European-inspired small plates. The majority of the Wild Legs list is organic, biodynamic, sustainable and vegan, with Australian winemakers expected to be an ongoing area of focus. It’s not just wine that Wild Legs offers, though – cocktails like the Granny Smith (freshly juiced Granny Smith apples with Chartruese) are the perfect tipple for when you need a break from the vino. While the drinks offering is undoubtedly impressive, the culinary talent helming the kitchen is as experienced as they come. Husband-and-wife team Jean-Antoine Jeffrey and Priscila Hoerau (who have cooked for the likes of HRH Prince Michael of Kent, Bill Gates and Boris Johnson) are whipping up a spread featuring the likes of mortadella brioche buns, tartare with blackberry gel and Tête de Moine and cheese souffle with onion jam. Sound like your idea of a good time? Be sure to get in early to snag a seat.
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Osso Bar Italia, Brisbane City: When Vaquero closed its Albion location at the tail end of 2024, Malt Hospitality’s Nick Pinn immediately looked for a landing spot for the restaurant’s crack kitchen team. That spot turned out to be Osso Bar Italia – a chic contemporary nosh spot that celebrates and honours the bones of Italian cooking. Alkot Studio has delivered another beaut interior design scheme, with a crisp and clean palette of green and timber juxtaposed against some statement stone fixtures. Osso’s menu hits a bunch of crowd-pleasing beats, with head chef Angelic Lokeni utilising a charcoal oven to deliver smashing plates of pollo alla diavola, local fish with black-lipped mussels and fregola, and petite Black Onyx beef tender with rocket and blueberry jus – all available alongside antipasti, pizza and pasta dishes. An easy-to-navigate beverage offering is anchored by spritz-style cocktails and a tight selection of vino, helping make Osso a nifty go-to for the inner-city set.
Tom’s Kitchen, West End: Layla wasn’t the only new eatery to open at the Thomas Dixon Centre this month. Tom’s Kitchen swung open its doors at the other end of the hub, giving West End locals a new spot to enjoy inventive brunch in classic heritage-listed surroundings. Operated by the centre’s hospitality partner VenuesLive, Tom’s Kitchen is specialising in healthy eats with a major focus on utilising only the best locally sourced ingredients available. Executive chef Jorge Palacios is turning Queensland’s bounty of produce into dishes like brulee brioche toast with Chantilly cream, dulce de leche and torched bananas, brekkie muffins with a longganisa pork patty, cheese, egg, hash brown and banana ketchup, and guacamole on croissant toast with scrambled egg, pecorino and toasted sesame. Caffeine geeks will be amped to know that coffee from ST. ALi is on deck, while loaf lovers can rest easy knowing bread is sourced from Sprout Artisan Bakery. It all adds up to an impressive all-day eatery – but there’s more to come (including a late-afternoon service), so stay tuned.
Many more restaurants, cafes and bars opened this month. You can have a browse through the latest foodie happenings by clicking here.