Featuring: Maya, Stokehouse Q, Flora by Greenhouse Canteen…

ITS location, perched over a wide reach of the snaky Brisbane River, overlooking the City and the Kangaroo Point cliffs became as Queensland quintessential as its striking open-plan architecture. Stokehouse Q, sister venue to the famed St Kilda haunt was embraced by Brisbanites who flocked to the bar and the busy restaurant and event spaces in droves. But that was pre covid-19. Recently Owner, Frank van Haandel announced that the Queensland outpost had been sold (after being shuttered since March due to the pandemic).
Citing border closures and the difficulties of re-opening it with much of the management team based in Melbourne, the iconic location has been taken over by another southerner, John Fink of the Fink Group, who own OTTO in both Sydney and Brisbane (as well as several other high profile venues in and around Sydney).
Currently located at the opposite end of the CBD, Fink was enticed by the absolute riverfront location stating that he saw the OTTO brand as predominantly a waterside operation – the Sydney venue sits on Sydney harbour at Woolloomooloo – the relocation will happen at the beginning of 2021 with the restaurant trading on in its current location until then. Otto, 4/480 Queen Street Brisbane; phone (07) 3835 2888. Stokehouse Q, Sidon Street South Brisbane; phone (07) 3020 0600.
For the first couple of years it was standing room only at the uber popular Eleven Rooftop Bar, perched as the name suggests on the eleventh floor of a nondescript Fortitude Valley highrise. The roof folds back for sun basking and day drinking and its lounge style dining with views across the city to Mount Cootha and beyond. Like most venues, pandemic restrictions closed the popular rooftop watering hole and now owners Katie and Jason Coats have taken the opportunity to rebrand it as Maya, a Mexican pop-up that seats 90 socially distanced patrons in an open-air setting.
Once seated in the u-shaped lounge banquettes it’s time for guac and chips, battered jalapenos, ceviche with tamarind and lime and some ‘illegal’ short ribs with chipotle bbq and ‘illegal’ mescal glaze. The fish tacos are battered snapper, the chicken is pulled and served with guacamole and lashings of pico di gallo and the slow cooked pork has pineapple and crackling. For those looking for a main course there’s a flank steak with chimichurri, market fish with jalapeno beurre blanc or roasted pumpkin with pomegranate and pumpkin mole.

You can also expect a slew of inventive margherita’s – think watermelon, agave and curacao – as well as a sturdy wine list and possibly the largest collection of Tequila, Mescal and Sotol in town. Level eleven – Maya, 757 Ann Street Fortitude Valley; phone (07) 3067 7447.
Leila Amirparvis closed CJ’s Secret Pasta Club in West End early this year and now she and partner Darcy Adams have moved up the road and opened the retro-inspired Pasta Club in the vacant corner tenancy previously occupied by Flora by Greenhouse Canteen on Boundary Street.
Cosy dark and moody, a disco ball glitters above the room and the record player that featured at the previous venue has been installed and the team welcomes BYO vinyls as well as beers and wine while they await a liquor license.
Pasta is handmade daily and you can expect favourites like fresh burrata doused in salsa verde, truffled mushroom arancini and pumpkin agnolotti with pine nuts and burnt butter. Flora by Greenhouse Canteen, 237 Boundary St West End; phone 0407 577 707.
As James Street wakes up from its Covid slumber there’s a new chef at the burners of The Lobby Bar at the Calile Hotel. Andrew Gunn is just that, having hailed from a 6-year stint in Paris working in numerous Michelin-starred venues as well as an earlier stint at Sydney’s now defunct Becasse.
He began his career here in Brisbane at the much-loved Isis Brasserie in Fortitude Valley. Owner Simon Hill morphed Isis into the much lauded Ortiga and now runs Alto, a riverfront Italian at the Powerhouse Arts Complex.
Open every day to service in-house guests as well as the public, breakfast offers a big ‘hot English’ style plate as well as shakshuka, granola bowls and a croque monsieur with melting comte cheese. At lunch there’s a confit duck baguette, buckwheat risotto with peas and watercress and in the evenings there’s a tasting menu featuring quail escabeche, chorizo stuffed squid with pil pil, fish tacos with pico di gallo and a tonka creme brulee to finish.
The Calile Collection of signature cocktails includes some exotic blends such as the Honey Sour with honey water, Glenlivet, gingerbread and aquafaba all poured over ice. Calile Hotel, 48 James Street Fortitude Valley; phone (07) 3607 5888.