Chanoyu Japanese infused cafe
NOTE: In July 2023, Chanoyu moved to a new location in 56 Nerang St., Nerang. It’s the Matcha chocolate ganache tart that gives it away – a pretty little pie case filled with two shades of green chocolate filling… “Oh my! There’s real talent here,” we think. “I wonder who’s in the kitchen?” There’s something […]
Stones Throw
You can always tell when there’s an owner/chef in the kitchen. There’s an assurance to the menu, a passion that is evidenced in almost every aspect. Stones Throw at Currumbin is a good example. Owned by brother and sister duo Cameron Chartres and Melanie Windsor, Cameron had worked his way around the world in kitchens […]
Caffe Republic, Bundall
For the first time in several years, the crunch is on for eateries with almost as many restaurants closing as opening. In 2018, cafés and restaurants are facing stiff competition for the food dollar. Prepared foods from grocery and convenience stores and meal delivery services continue to attract busy consumers who seek convenience over experience. […]
Black Sheep Bistro
If there’s an unsung hero of the northern dining scene, it’s the Black Sheep Bistro. Located not far from the Oxenford turnoff, the Black Sheep is a local favourite, especially for its weekend breakfasts and lunches. To Australians, ‘black sheep’ carries the connotation of a stray, or disreputable family member. However, my New Zealand childhood […]
Black Lime Café
While ‘Location, location, location’ is the big catch cry to success, there are some local favourites that have achieved modest success by going against the norm, choosing venues in hidden pockets of suburbia. There, they provide service to locals who previously had no food outlets nearby. That’s how it is with Black Lime Café. Tucked […]
La Barrita
“How come we’ve never been here before?” We shake our heads as we walk away from La Barrita, impressed. Nestled in between Fins and Bombay Cricketers Club in Salt Village, La Barrita opened in December 2017, slipping quietly onto the tail end of the ‘Mexican wave’ of coastal openings. While the opening of some restaurants […]
Home Plate Kitchen
NOTE: Home Plate Kitchen now has new owners. …. Tucked around a corner off Mattocks Road, it’s unlikely that you’d stumble across Home Plate Kitchen unless you’d previously heard about it. But there are lots of reasons why you should seek it out. Firstly, it’s a real ‘local scene’ café. Owners Jess Kaimoana and Shayne […]
Mockingbird Cafe
Every so often you meet someone whose enthusiasm is the driving force of an establishment. So strong, in fact, that it’s like a magnetic field, drawing you into its energy. At Mockingbird Café, Kingscliff, that force is Jo Jackson. We’d first met Jo at her very successful restaurant, Signature Dish in Varsity, where she not […]
Hot Shott
Gold Coast café culture has done well from the downward shift in fine dining culture. Hot Shott is no exception. An example is owners and business partners, Chef Kellie Rolfe and Barista Jenna Finch, who took the opportunity to move from their jobs at Palazzo Versace to open their own business in Main Beach in […]
Greendays
It doesn’t seem that long ago that Evergreen was all the rage for a family breakfast or brunch for ‘ladies who lunch’. A verdant wild jungle in the middle of busy suburbia, replete with overflowing water fountains and voluminous plants, owner/chef Robert Powell and his wife Lynne employed a bevy of young wait staff to […]