Dine in the Inner City

The Balfour Kitchen & Bar, New Farm

The Balfour Kitchen & Bar’s beautiful heritage charm and eclectic atmosphere carry through every season. As the weather shifts – from cooler winter nights to long summer evenings – the tasting menu follows suit, with a new tasting menu every season. Come back season after season to try something different and take in the art of Brisbane’s skyline while you’re here.

Exhibition, Brisbane City 

Love an element of surprise? Book your spot at Exhibition. There’s no menu here – just a specialty combination of dishes that hero exceptional seafood, premium meat and fresh produce from Queensland’s best biodynamic and sustainable farms. Inspired by a Japanese style omakase, each course is chosen by the chef, making every sitting a little different. Choose from a list of five drink options to suit the taste of your degustation

Hideki, Brisbane City

Tucked away in Burnett Lane, found in The City, Hideki offers a banquet style degustation, with two set menus that honour the complexity of Japanese flavours. Your table will fill with the restaurant’s best plates and aromas before finishing on a surprising dessert of the day.

Honto, Fortitude Valley

Hidden behind an unexpecting door, you will enter an intimate and moody restaurant, Honto. Highlighting the technique and Japanese technique, there banquet-style menu is a must-try and perfect for sharing. Prioritising seasonal and local produce, watch the open ‘Raw Bar’ kitchen to see every ingredient be treated with care. Linger a little longer to try the Japanese whiskey collection – one of the largest in the Southern hemisphere.

Joy Restaurant, Fortitude Valley

With just 10 seats, Joy Restaurant offers a truly intimate degustation experience. Owner and head chef, Sarah Baldwin, named Gourmet Traveller’s Restaurant Personality of the Year, guides the menu with creativity and seasonal ingredients, with each dish revealed as it’s prepared right in front of you. Expect a front row seat to the process and the chance to connect with the chef behind the flavour, brining joy to every plate and pour – just as the name suggests.

Tartufo, Fortitude Valley

With a motto of ‘come for a meal, leave with an experience’, Tartufo serves a degustazione menu that personifies bold Italian flavour. Inspired by the owner’s roots in Naples and the surrounding regions of Tuscany, the six-course grazing menu moves through individually plated dishes that will take your taste buds to the streets of Italy with authentic Italian wines to pair.

Perspective Dining, Fortitude Valley

A dining experience like no other, Perspective Dining is an intimate space seating and exclusive 14 people in the kitchen, so you can see each dish come to life. Watch the process unfold as plates are finished and served straight to the table, bringing you closer to the rhythm of the kitchen. Tasting menus range from three to nine-courses, moving through a seasonal progression of dishes. Did we mention that the head chef has only six percent sight? Andrew McCrea has a unique expertise in understanding flavours and textures creating a dining experience nothing short of extraordinary, one that just might change your ‘perspective’ on flavour. 

Maeve Wine Bar, South Bank

At Maeve Wine Bar, what pours into your glass is just as important as what’s served on your plate. From the styling of the venue to the six-course European-inspired menu and the curated range of wines available your tastebuds will be transported to the other side of the globe. As a wine bar first, there’s plenty to explore across sparkling, whites, reds and rosés, so whether you choose to pair the wine yourself or ask for expert advice, your experience is set to be one of a kind.

Dine in the Outer City

C’est Bon, Woolloongabba

For a taste of France in Woolloongabba, C’est Bon brings a little French flair to the dining scene that feels particularly fancy. Choose between the five or seven-course chef’s tasting menus, with dishes created around the paddock-to-plate philosophy, focused on freshness and quality. You can also opt for matched wines, with a cellar that spans boutique French and local pours, alongside an unmissable cocktail list at Le Bon Bar, after it does mean ‘the good bar’.

Rogue Bistro, Newstead

If you’re catering for dietary preferences, Rogue Bistro is hard to beat. The five-course degustation menu - ‘dego’ - changes monthly, which features beautifully plated delicacies that taste as good as they look. To get a glimpse of what’s on offer this month, the website is updated regularly so you can take a look – you’ll likely make a booking before you even made it to dessert! Don’t forget to book, as reservations are essential!

E’cco Bistro, Newstead

E’cco Bistro is a modern Australian dining destination, where each dish is designed to highlight natural flavour.  Swing by between Wednesday and Saturday to try their four or five-course chef’s tasting menu, both available with vegan and vegetarian alternatives. Multi-award-winning, the menu focuses on combinations that let each ingredient shine, with a curated wine list available by the glass to match.

Deer Duck Bistro, Auchenflower

Fall in love with Deer Duck Bistro’s moody atmosphere and vintage charm. The degustation invites you on a satisfying culinary journey, plating up evolving flavours and seasonal ingredients. However, there is a à la carte menu if you prefer, but it’s the degustation that they are famous for, with a choice of five-course, short-course, and long-course options, as well as vegetarian alternatives.

Sono, Hamilton

For lovers of Japanese cuisine, Sono's premium six and ten-course tasting menus are sure to satisfy! Settle in for tradition dishes, with most featuring the chef’s favourites – from tender sashimi to flavourful dobinmushi. Not only will you be treated to some of Sono’s most-loved dishes, enjoy your dining experience with stunning views of the Brisbane River too.