The hottest restaurants you may have never heard of
Adored by chefs, hospitality workers, restaurant critics or just serious foodies, these are the venues that attract long queues and advanced bookings, but somehow stay under the radar to many.
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From an eight-seat restaurant tucked away behind a hard-to-find black door, to a fine diner on wheels that moves locations, we’ve found the hottest restaurants you may have never heard of.
Adored by chefs, hospitality workers, restaurant critics or just serious foodies, these are the venues that attract long queues and advanced bookings, but somehow stay under the radar to many.
Hanwoori BBQ
Mantra on Mary, 1/70 Mary St, Brisbane City
Hidden upstairs in a skyscraper along Mary St, this Korean barbecue buffet eatery has recently undergone a contemporary makeover, making it even more popular with its throng of adoring fans. You’ll need to make a booking, especially on weekends, for this fun, flame-powered venue, where patrons can eat as much meat, fried chicken, corn cheese, dumplings, bulgogi and banchan as they like for $50 Monday to Thursday or $53 Friday to Sunday (kids are cheaper).
Eddy and Wolff
44 Commerce Dr, Robina
Hidden at the back of a shopping centre in the former home of a laundromat, this Asian eatery is a favourite among serious foodies. Part bar, part fine diner, it is all parts fun with its neon lights, uber dark fit-out, and waitstaff and chefs who join in on the conversation and become part of the culinary experience. There are banquet menus to choose from or go a la carte with share-style dishes like crunchy eggplant, prawn toast, mapo tofu and Hainanese chicken. There’s also a matching wine pairing available, plus cocktails and sake.
Katsu Ya
Fortitude Valley
This tiny, six-seat, Japanese omakase restaurant is so hard to score a table at, you have to have a personal reference to get you in the door. Located in the home of owners Denise Yang and chef-husband Katsu Huang, the multi-course eatery doesn’t take reservation from just anyone, they prioritise those they know first, and then friends of friends to ensure the intimate experience is always a pleasurable one. If you manage to score a booking though – all tables for 2023 booked out in March – you can expect a series of tiny plates using the best produce around from top-notch wagyu to the finest seafood.
Samgasat Thai Cuisine
1/271 Pease St, Edge Hill
While the Cairns suburb of Edge Hill is know for its trendy and up-market eateries (Guérilla and Osmosis) there’s one place that locals have a well worn path to – Samgasat. Considered the best Thai bar none, just don’t expect a basic Thai green curry here. These guys offer cuisine from Chang Mai. Best dish: kow soy curry of chicken.
Black Door by wagyu-Ya
Shop 1B/42 Thomas Dr, Surfers Paradise
Harder to find than treasure with a pirate’s map, this custom-built eight-seat omakase experience is tucked down an alleyway and around a corner, and entered through the eponymous “black door”. Awaiting customers is a premium degustation with a multitude of mouthfuls including sushi, tempura and wagyu. Despite its obscured location, it has become a huge hit with keen foodies, who regularly make the trek down the M1 for the gourmet feast.
Biang Biang Noodles
Shop 6C, 421 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley
It might not look like much from the outside, but this unassuming eatery in Fortitude Valley has Brisbane’s foodie community talking. A regular for critics and culinary Instagrammers, its no-frills aesthetics has seen it largely go under the radar, but its huge bowls of slippery, hand-pulled, Chinese noodles means you’ll have to pick your timing to score a table. Try the signature bang bang noodles with pork mince, potato and eggs; or spice up your life with the Sichuan dan dan noodles with lashings of chilli and pepper oils, but definitely order the Beijing-style cumin lamb noodles.
Ca Phe Nam
Shop 4, 60 Vulture Street, West End
A favourite of local chefs and foodies, Ca Phe Nam is loved for its top-notch pho – of which there are eight for $14 or $16 – and bargain banh mi, with most $7 and all under $8.50.
Ren Yakiniku
Shop 45/342 McCullough Street, Sunnybank
Easily identified by the hordes of patrons that queue outside its doors of an evening, this buzzing Japanese yakiniku restaurant along the perimeter of Sunny Park Shopping Centre is adored for its affordable, all-you-can-eat barbecue offering. While a la carte is also available, the crowds come to see how much meat, seafood, agedashi tofu, karaage, noodles, spring rolls and tempura they can devour in the 90-minute time limit. Packages range from $42.90-$69.90 for adults and $21.50-$34.90 for kids 6-11. Hot tip, to avoid the crazy crowds, dine at lunch, when you’ll also get a 10 per cent discount.
Rice Paper Vietnamese Cuisine
Warrigal Square Shopping Centre, 261 Warrigal Rd, Eight Mile Plains
Diners swarm at the door of this no-frills Vietnamese eatery, patiently waiting for a table. Once inside, the vibe is like that of a Vietnamese street food market, with the jovial crowd wedged in shoulder to shoulder, connecting over food and flavour. The pho – of which there are five to choose from and the option of three different varieties of noodles – is undoubtedly the most popular here, with almost a bowl on every table. But the venue’s namesake – the rice paper rolls – are also a must-try, as is the supremely comforting and nourishing French style beef brisket soup with rice noodles that begs a return visit.
Jeon’s Kitchen
Bakery Lane, 680 Ann St, Fortitude Valley
Tucked down Bakery Lane off busy Ann St, this clandestine eatery has attracted a cult following for its fried chicken. Seven years in the making, the recipe has been tweaked by chef-owner Yongun Jeon to ensure the poultry is as juicy as a freshly picked orange on the inside and crisper than a Stanthorpe winter’s morning on the outside. Just be prepared to queue for a taste.
Daega Korean BBQ Cuisine
Shop 7&8, 2922-2926 Logan Rd, Underwood
Along a commercial strip of Logan Rd in Underwood, surrounded by pet shops and golfing stores, this sprawling Korean restaurant heaves with diners. And with good reason. Despite its odd location, this is an eatery that prides itself on serving keenly priced, high end fare, such as top notch wagyu sourced from southwest Queensland, and some of the best banchan (Korean side dishes) around, like dumplings, kimchi and pasta salad. Sip on a Korean Cass beer and order up big – not forgetting the bibimbap.
Homage
Spicers Retreat Hidden Vale, 617 Grandchester Mount Mort Rd, Grandchester
With sweeping views of the countryside, this glamorous, farm house-style restaurant is tucked inside Spicers Retreat. A hit with both hotel guests and public in the know, the European-inspired eatery is adored for its use of local ingredients and those grown directly outside in the property’s garden. Lunch time is best to visit for a two or three-course set menu, which may feature anything from smoked Rocky Point cobia with preserved cumquat to Queensland wagyu flank with jerasulem artichoke.
Ming’s House
143 Duckworth St, Garbutt
Far away from the Azur seas and palm tree-lined Strand, this suburban Townsville eatery located in Domain Central is the true definition of a hidden gem. Its unlikely position only makes the food that much more exciting, with the restaurant specialising in Chinese-Malaysian cuisine. There are favourites like honey chicken and Mongolian beef, but the pick of the dishes is the beef rendang.
Sole Marcoola
10 Seaward Ln, Marcoola
While it doesn’t get the kudos that Noosa’s or Mooloolaba’s star restaurants do, Sole in Marcoola deserves every bit as much hype.
The seafood restaurant attracts a full house on weekends with locals pouring in for wholesome eats from the simple menu that incompasses the likes of local shellfish carbonara and Mooloolaba king prawn miang, as well as chargrilled jerk chicken and their signature sole meunière, all at great value prices.
Myrtille
1 Thallon St, Crows Nest
In the quiet country town of Crows Nest, about 20 minutes drive outside of Toowoomba, this European bistro draws crowds from all over the state. The work of chef and local tourism ambassador Amanda Hinds and her family, the deep purple restaurant delivers the best of nearby produce with a slight French flair. Think slow-cooked lamb from Warwick, Ravensbourne blueberries topping duck breast, and Laidley cauliflower nuggets.
Humble on Duke
Shop 4, 48-54 Duke St, Sunshine Beach
With a simple motto to eat good food and drink good wine, the dynamic duo of chef Stacey and front-of-house extraordinaire Jade put on a spread praised by some of Queensland’s top chefs and restaurant critics.
The tiny eatery with plenty of personality thanks to vibrant artwork delivers a set, share-style menu for either $85 or $105pp with the option to add on extra dishes for the super hungry or simply gluttonous. With dishes leaning towards the Middle East, diners could possibly be biting into baba ganoush with house-made Turkish bread, icli kofte or maybe cheese-filled pastry cigars, alongside top-notch wines and cocktails made with the best local spirits.
Kooroomba Vineyard and Lavender Farm
168 F M Bells Rd, Mount Alford
You’ll need to book if you’re planning a weekend visit to the restaurant at the centre of this picturesque vineyard and lavender farm. Patrons come from far and wide to wander through the purple fields and rows of grapes trying to capture that perfect Instagram moment, before stopping in for lunch. Food is modern Australian with the likes of wagyu with local mushrooms and Tasmanian salmon with coconut and finger lime, accompanied by a wine list of the property’s own drops.
Da Biuso
Ascot Green, Ascot
This family run restaurant is like no other in the state, it’s on wheels. Set in a converted old bus made to look like a stunning, vintage European tram, the fine diner plates up elegant Italian-influenced fare with a contemporary twist as part of a set degustation. Diners can book for lunch or dinner, or take over the whole 12-seat space for a private event. The mobile restaurant has been positioned at Ascot Green since February, but will move to its new riverside location at Bretts Wharf, Hamilton on August 3.
Essen
2 McGregor Terrace, Stanthorpe
From the outside it looks like a humble little home – unassuming and unpretentious and easily missed. But Essen has those in the hospitality industry shouting its praises. Owned by head chef Clarissa Pabst, the restaurant is all about serving up the best of local produce, which means a set menu that is constantly changing and evolving as the ingredients come in and out of season. One week that could be wood-fired Darling Downs beef with salsa verde and crunchy potatoes, and the next, 9Dorf Farm chicken with polenta. The restaurant is also BYO with a flat rate of $3 per head.
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