Brisbane’s top restaurant proves the ultimate quiet achiever

It’s not a name synonymous with Brisbane cuisine, but last month this quiet achiever was crowned the city’s best eatery on TripAdvisor. So does it live up to the hype?

There are restaurants that have become synonymous with Brisbane over the years: E’cco Bistro, Gambaro Seafood, Montrachet, to name a few … then there’s Lamberts in Kangaroo Point.

A quick poll around the office and no one has heard of the eatery at the base of The Point Brisbane Hotel in the inner-city suburb.

But last month the quiet achiever was crowned the No.1 restaurant in Brisbane on TripAdvisor.

The world’s largest travel platform has recently updated its algorithm to calculate rankings on a popularity index, adjusting the weighting of historical reviews to supposedly better reflect and reward consistency.

The update has pushed Lamberts to the top of the table, leapfrogging it over far more well-known restaurants and giving the 10-year-old venue a moment in the spotlight.

It’s strange and slightly disconcerting then when we arrive for our booking only to be the sole diners in an entirely empty restaurant.

It turns out it’s State of Origin night on our visit and it seems diners – including all the guests in the 202-room, fully booked hotel above – are instead watching the NRL clash.

It means after a short wait at the front desk for a staff member to appear when we arrive, we’re well taken care of by a jovial, career waiter who knows the ins and outs of the broad, bistro-style a la carte menu and one-page, mostly Australian and New Zealand wine list, with bottles $50-$139.

Chef Marcus Turner is in the kitchen and has created a sizeable modern Australian offering, which moves from Asian influences like Brisbane Valley quail with a taro fritter, pak choy, lotus root and chilli plum sauce for entree to classic French mains of duck a l’orange and herb-roasted chicken with Paris mash.

The ubiquitous Aussie favourite of salt and pepper squid ($16) comes slightly chewy in a crisp and bubbly batter dotted with coarsely ground pepper alongside a citrusy soy Japanese ponzu sauce for dipping.

For mains, the house-made seafood fettuccine ($39) has become a signature according to our waiter and the description on the menu. It’s a solid enough version generous with fish, prawns, mussels and squid, but the saffron pasta is pushed well beyond al dente and the garlic and chilli in the olive oil sauce could really be ramped up to make it worthy of the title. Better is the lamb rump ($42) served pink and splayed over a sunshine-hued, saffron- infused potato mash with dots of green pea puree, carrots in various geometric shapes and a rosemary jus.

Dessert packs the biggest flavour punch of the night, but don’t expect the lime and blueberry cheesecake ($17) to resemble anything of the classic version you know.

More like a French entremet, it features multiple layers of cream cheese, sponge and blueberry jelly capped with a white chocolate glaze dyed a vivid blue normally reserved for the icing on children’s birthday cakes.

The lime has been dialled up so high what could be a sickly sweet dessert suddenly becomes refreshing and an unexpectedly light finish to a classic bistro meal.

Does Lamberts deserve the title of Brisbane’s best restaurant?

If it’s innovation and a fabulous fit-out you’re craving, then no.

But this humble hotel eatery with its
diverse, classic-with-a-twist menu and merry service will certainly hit the spot for plenty
of diners.

LAMBERTS

The Point Brisbane Hotel, 21 Lambert St, Kangaroo Point

1800 088 388

lambertsrestaurant.com.au

Open

Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily

Verdict - Scores out of 5

Food 3

Service 4

Ambience 3

Value 3.5

Overall 3.5