Garden of Eating in South Townsville launch new menu and celebrate 31 years

A restaurant tucked away in South Townsville has launched a fresh menu and celebrated its 31 years in the business as being one of the town’s best kept secrets.

Wayne Gilray and Adelle Scott at the Garden of Eating. Picture: Evan Morgan

It’s nestled in the heart of Townsville’s CBD, tucked away from the usual concrete walls and pavements and instead lined with fairy lights and trees.

The Garden of Eating, which is celebrating its 31 years of success this year, is a hidden gemrun by New Zealand-born Wayne Gilray and Adele Scott and the couple have just launched a new menu that encapsulates its pure quirkiness.

“We put a lot of thought into our menus we don’t like to be run of the mill, we like to be different to everybody else,” Adele said.

“We like to infiltrate a little bit of quirkiness into both our menus and our decor.”

Foodies can expect to see a diverse selection of meals on the new menu from smoked kangaroo to venison tenderloin roasted lavender beetroot ravioli – and of course, the infamous snails in which Wayne has been incorporating into the menu for the last three decades in some form.

‘A French Twist’ (sauteed snail with garlic and herbs pesto in baked croissant) at Garden of Eating in Townsville. Pictures: contributed

“I do flavours not chemistry,” he said.

“We’ve done (snail) curry, Mediterranean, tandoori snails – they’re always done completely different. This one here is the most traditional one I’ve ever done in 30 years because I’m using cream garlic.”

The new dish is called ‘A French Twist’ and is sauteed snails with a creamy garlic and herb pesto in a baked croissant.

“We like to go a bit more adventurous, we never say ‘Oh we can’t do that’,” Adele said.

While the couple offer unique meats, they also provide vegan dishes and accommodate for gluten and fairy free eaters.

The intimate dining area which is situated in an outdoor garden, but has the option of indoor seating on rainy days, fits up to 25 people but can house 30 people for events.

“Wayne’s specialty all up is desserts because he makes them all, and he makes all the ice creams himself,” Wayne said.

‘In Good Taste’ dessert dish at Garden of Eating in Townsville. Pictures: contributed

One of their most beloved desserts so far is the ‘In Good Taste’ which features a mini size cheesecake, mousse, pudding and three matching ice creams so people can get a taste of it all, alongside their BYO feature.

“We love that people can make the decision to bring their own wines to have with good food,” Adele said.

“31 and a half years later we’re still BYO because we love it, our customers love it.”

While it’s been more than three decades of serving up hearty foods, the pair still loves to meet new customers.

“We’ve always called ourselves a little bit of a secret gem that you have to find out about,” Adele said.

Garden of Eating is open Thursday to Saturday from 6pm to 10pm and open for Sunday lunch between 12pm and 3pm, bookings are preferred.

Originally published as Garden of Eating in South Townsville launch new menu and celebrate 31 years