The people making Manly on Brisbane’s bayside one of Qld’s top food destinations

Visitors are coming from far and wide, rare leases are being snapped up and restaurants are being recognised among the state’s best — take a look at the area which has become one of Queensland’s top food and dining destinations. LIST

With visitors coming from far and wide, rare lease opportunities being snapped up and restaurants being rewarded with statewide recognition — this slice of bayside paradise is fast on its way to becoming Brisbane’s next foodie mecca.

Manly, on Brisbane’s bayside, has always been the city’s best kept secret but after a recent influx of new entertainment venues, the suburb has shed that tag and quickly become a destination for foodies from across southeast Queensland.

The Arsonist restaurant in Manly. Picture: Supplied

The bayside dining hub has gained a higher profile this year after two venues were named in The Courier-Mail’s top 100 restaurants in Queensland, with The Arsonist at No. 34 and The Manly Boathouse at No. 96.

Outside of the Brisbane CBD and surrounding areas, such as Teneriffe and Woolloongabba, Manly was the only place in the city’s outer suburbs to have more than one entry in the list.

The recent hype and increase in visitors has also brought new life to older restaurants in Manly, with Shucks Oyster Bar recognised in The Courier-Mail’s list of Brisbane’s top 20 suburban cult restaurants.

One of the people behind the rise of Manly as a food and dining destination, general manager of The Consortium Qld and Manly Harbour Village president Peta Prestidge said the secret was well and truly out.

“The secret is out about how great the location is, and how close we are to the city,” she said.

“There’s been a move to support local and close to home after Covid lockdowns and new operators are confident to invest in the area and offer new exciting venues.”

Manly Boathouse. Picture: Mark Cranitch

Ms Prestidge also said the new venues around Manly also gave the suburb “Instagram-worthy” places, which helped spread the word.

The suburb has also been boosted by the massive revamp of the former Moreton Bay Trailer Boat Club into the Manly Harbour Boat Club with a flashy new waterfront dining area, a renovation of the Manly Hotel to be completed by May next year as well as other venues rejuvenating themselves.

Kevin Stewart, a commercial real estate agent for Lamonds covering the bayside, said he believed Manly had overtaken suburban precincts like Bulimba and in other areas to become the city’s best dining hub outside of the CBD.

“There’s a few reasons for that, firstly you have everything you need here from flashy fine dining restaurants, to pubs and then your favourite fish and chip takeaway places and pizzerias,” he said.

“On top of that, you’ve got those restaurants right next to the water, which is becoming what people want.”

Interior photographs of Shucks Bar, Manly. Picture: AAP/Sarah Marshall

Mr Stewart also said Manly was not only a destination for foodies but also for business owners from the hospitality industry.

“Any time a lease comes up for a restaurant, bar or cafe in Manly, that site gets snapped up very quickly and there’s very rarely an opportunity to get a place here but people see what the suburb is becoming and want to invest,” he said.

Ms Prestidge said she wanted to continue to make the area a destination.

“The Chamber will continue its efforts to bring visitors to the area, in various food and harbour activity focused events, furthering our reputation as a dining precinct must do,” she said.

Behind Manly’s meteoric rise in the hospitality industry, there are several key people leading the charge – see who they are below.

MEET THE PEOPLE BEHIND MANLY’S RISE TO BRISBANE FOOD MECCA

NIKKI & GREG KAY – OWNERS, THE MANLY BOATHOUSE

Nikki and Greg Kay. Picture: Peter Wallis

With more than 15 years in the hospitality industry, Nikki and Greg Kay joined the lifestyle and entertainment scene in Manly last year.

Also the owners of Newstead’s Reef Seafood and Sushi, the couple took over Wilson’s Boathouse in the Manly Harbour and transformed the venue into a fan favourite as a seafood and grill-focused restaurant, French-style patisserie, gelataria and fish and chippery.

They also have a pontoon where boats can pull up to grab takeaway and own a commercial crab and fishing boat to provide the freshest seafood possible.

But Mr and Mrs Kay have also reinvigorated the restaurant into an entertainment venue, featuring live music as well as hosting numerous events on the bayside.

The couple also previously ran butcheries across Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

Featuring in The Courier-Mail’s list of Queensland’s top 100 restaurants, Anooska Tucker-Evans from Qweekend wrote:

“There are few joys greater than devouring freshly caught seafood by the waterfront – but doing so in a sophisticated, relaxed setting, sparkling wine in hand, enhances the experience,” she said.

“Diners at Manly Boathouse’s photogenic, white-swathed-weatherboard restaurant watch as boats sail by from their rattan seats. Inside the chic, former sailing club turned sprawling venue – complete with a cafe and fish-and-chip eatery outside – chef Braden White prepares his seafood-centric menu dappled with global influences.

“Perfectly befit this seaside spot.”

BRADEN WHITE – EXECUTIVE CHEF, THE MANLY BOATHOUSE

Executive Chef Braden White at the Manly Boathouse. (Image/Josh Woning)

Having been a chef for more than 20 years, Braden White has helped transform the Manly Boathouse into one of Queensland’s best restaurants.

With experience in different kitchens throughout the state, including the likes of the Hamilton Island Yacht Club, Stokehouse Brisbane and Ricky’s River Bar and Woodfire Grill in Noosa – Mr White has developed the bayside restaurant’s menu into a mouth-watering experience for diners.

The Toowoomba product has also been head chef at many other venues around Australia and in Bali such as Hatch and Co, Bikini, Sisterfields, Miss Moneypenny’s and many more.

“From the small-plate selection, a surprise standout dish of melt-in-your-mouth gnocchi with local mushrooms, truffle cream and a satisfyingly crisp parmesan cracker lid lures you in,” it said in The Courier-Mail’s review of his food as part of the list of the state’s top restaurants.

“A combination of sharp, green nam jim with coriander chutney and lime flavours the daily catch with finesse, while Greek-style, slow-cooked lamb shoulder showered with lemon and oregano makes for a robust shared meal.”

PETA PRESTIDGE – MANLY CHAMBER PRESIDENT/GM THE CONSORTIUM GROUP

Peta Prestidge.

She already has been part of the Manly food and dining scene for years but Peta Prestidge will continue to play a major role in the precinct’s growth for years to come.

Ms Prestidge is the general manager of The Consortium Qld – a hospitality group based at the bayside suburb, which already had one of the most popular venues in Manly under its banner in Tide on the Jetty.

But the group extended their footprint on the bayside with the recent opening of The Arsonist, which has quickly established itself as one of the best restaurants in the state and was recognised as so in The Courier-Mail.

But Ms Prestidge’s impact stretches beyond just the venues featured under The Consortium Qld after recently taking over as president of the Manly Harbour Village Chamber of Commerce.

In this role, one of Ms Prestidge’s main visions is to continue to make Manly a food, dining and entertainment destination and she has already started acting on her plan with several new events, including the Taste of Manly event as part of the Brisbane Festival.

She also plans to bring and start many different food and wine events to the suburb.

MATT FULFORD – EXECUTIVE CHEF, THE CONSORTIUM QLD

Chef Mat Fulford.

With a mountain of experience as a chef, Mathew Fulford is another key player in Manly’s rise into a food and dining destination through his role as executive chef for The Consortium Qld.

Having worked in kitchens at top restaurants around Australia at Lakehouse at Daylesford, Qualia at Hamilton Island and Stokehouse at Melbourne, Mr Fulford’s talent shows through his development of the menus at the group’s two venues in Tide on the Jetty and The Arsonist.

The flamey experience at The Arsonist has resonated with diners so much, it was named at No. 34 in The Courier-Mail’s list of top 100 restaurants.

“An aromatic homage to wood, smoke and flame, The Arsonist offers much more than barbecued meats,” the review said.

“The menu here strikes a satisfyingly delicate balance.

“Firing up appetites, Hervey Bay scallops dressed in fermented chilli set the tone for an appetising meal ahead.

“Coal-roasted pumpkin sings on the plate, backed by a choir of smoked goat’s curd, saltbush, burnt sourdough, brown butter sauce and piquant slices of pickled pumpkin.

“From the large share menu, a heady yet refined smoked Stockyard brisket, ample for two, arrives flanked by locally caught king prawns, elevated by Chinese broccoli and XO barbecue sauce.”

BELINDA HO – OWNER, SHUCKS BAR

The owner of Manly’s cult favourite restaurant, Shucks Oyster Bar and Seafood Restaurant, recognised a gap in what was on offer in Manly and capitalised on it.

After becoming a local resident following 15 years in the design agency industry in roles in Brisbane and London, Belinda Ho opened the venue in 2017.

“After a living in the area for a couple of years, I wanted to see a bit of change in the area,” she said.

“I thought it was crazy that we were the closest body of water as far as bayside to Brisbane and there wasn’t sort of any restaurant championing Australian seafood produce.”

Since then, Shucks has overcome a few tough periods to become a fan favourite among locals and visitors.

“People thought it was crazy initially that we didn’t have steaks or burgers or even coffee, it was a weird concept to some,” Ms Ho said.

“Now we’ve created a nice following and people know why they want to come to us.

“We had a vision as far as having a north style and focusing on Australian seafood and what we can get close to us and it’s worked.”

Ms Ho also said people were starting to recognise the value in the bayside and cherishing that lifestyle while local groups were also championing what the area has to offer as well, which is what she credited to the rise of Manly’s food scene.

Shucks was featured in The Courier-Mail’s list of 20 cult favourite restaurants, with the review saying the venue had become a second home for some.

“Opposite the water at Manly, diners love nothing more than sucking down the ever-changing array of oysters (for which the restaurant is named) while sipping on bubbles from the eclectic global wine list, or pairing one of many Queensland beers to local prawns or wild-caught fish.”