Brisbane

18 Breakfast Spots In Brisbane

Skip over the smashed avo this time around.

Hellenika

We all think it’s getting out of bed, but the first task of every morning is seeking out breakfast. Without the promise of crisp waffles, gooey eggs, or even just a strong cup of (decent) coffee, Brisbane would cease to function. What can we say? We’re a bunch of early rising, coffee chugging, nourish bowl-loving brunchers. Perhaps it’s all that non-weather of ours…

Lucky for Brisbane locals, then, that this town plays a strong hand when it comes to breaking the fast. Don’t DIY, here’s where you’ll find the best breakfasts in Brisbane.

Morning After

West End
The hype around Morning After sets it apart from the upturned milk crates demarcating most West End cafes. The astroturfed clad cafe on the corner is most easily recognised on weekends by the queue of people snaking down the block. And while queuing certainly doesn’t denote merit or a guarantee a good meal, in this case it absolutely does. Morning After is worth the wait (plus, locals know to stick it out—the queue moves fast). On their minds are a cup of 5 Senses coffee and one of Morning After’s signature breakfasts: the breakfast MaMuffin (just like Macca’s, only fancy) and the breakfast carbonara. 

Scout

Petrie Terrace
It’s been eight years since Scout first flung open its doors on their café-come-living room-come-workers cottage, and the local love has never once wavered. The specialty here is bagels; a menu resplendent with schmears and stuffings all destined for your belly via the iconic vehicle that is the bagel. Homemade brownies fresh out the oven are piled high at the counter, and a juice menu written on brown butchers paper hangs happily by the cash register. Serving serious coffee by Supreme, come for the brekky, stay for the quality banter; breakfast at Scout feels like breakfast at your mate’s place.

Plenty

West End
Thanks to their reliance on seasonal harvest there’s no such thing as an old faithful at Plenty. Omelettes with organic greens and pumpkin puree, poached eggs on thick-cut sourdough, French toast specials (recent iterations include sherry poached pear, candied pecans, House made chocolate halva, sesame tuille, and orange crème fraiche) and loaded sandwiches stuffed with locally cured pastrami, the all-day breakfast menu changes constantly, flirting with new flavours but sticking firmly with the hearty classics. The Plenty kitchen has a sweet tooth, baking enormous cakes sold by the slice—think, chocolate mud cake, lemon chiffon, and mango coconut. Serving specialist coffee, selling a fantastic array of house pickled veggies and condiments, you just have to go in and spin the wheel with the trust and faith that it will always land on something seasonal, sustainable, and made entirely from scratch.

Florence Cafe

Camp Hill
Part café, part pantry, Camp Hill lucked out when Florence moved into the neighbourhood. With a commitment to sustainability, low waste, and local produce, their breakfasts and daily counter spread are known for bringing freshness and vibrance to the morning. The menu changes according to the local produce available, but dishes of note include the omelette with zucchini, piquillo peppers, goats curd and pangrattato, or the savoury mince of calamari and sobrasade ‘bolognaise’ heirloom tomatoe, buffalo curd and seaweed vinaigrette. Don’t forget a jar of pickles from their selection of house picked veg for the road. 

Naïm

Paddington and South Brisbane
When Adi Shabtay and Guy Frawley opened their little Paddington café, Naïm (previously named Shouk) in a gorgeous old Queenslander, they set the bar high. Neatly walking the line between tradition and innovation, Naïm introduced the incredible colour, delicacy of flavour and rich history of Middle Eastern cuisine to the city fringes. Turning out Tunisian shakshuka alongside corn shawarma ratatouille and decadent waffles, it’s been named one of Brisbane’s best cafes countless times. It’s so popular in fact, that a second, larger venue, now graces the streets of South Brisbane, dishing up its famous dishes both sides of the Brisbane River.

Hellenika

Fortitude Valley
While trips to Europe are still off the table, breakfast at Hellenika is the closest we’re going to get to a Mediterranean summer. Housed on the rooftop of The Calile Hotel, book a table poolside (the only Brisbane breakfast joint to boast views poolside) and go full Hellenic with the rizogalo (rice pudding), crab omelette, or firm favourite ‘eggs on eggs on eggs’—lashings of taramasalata, salmon roe pearls, and perfectly boiled eggs on house bread, all washed down with a strong and syrupy Greek coffee. 

Kiki

South Brisbane
Trading exclusively in Bellissimo coffee, Doughluxe doughnuts, Chouquette pastries and a short menu of banh mi, Kiki’s little brick kiosk breaks up the banality of the commuter coffee route.

Huddled in a newly refurbished nook of Fish Lane, it serves as the perfect commuter pit-stop, its lush plants spilling out across its alfresco courtyard. The perfect spot to demolish a banh mi.

The Maillard Project

CBD
A specialty café, roastery and training hub, The Maillard Project is an ambitious one, recently opening its doors in the CBD. An offshoot of Adam Wang’s wildly popular Coffee Anthology (one of a handful of highly specialised coffee shops in Brisbane) it offers seven different blends daily (four espresso and three filter) and a neat menu of breakfast options. The chilli scrambled eggs, or pork congee get top billing, with a selection of house made croissants and pastries for grab-and-go option.

Bear Boy Espresso

Windsor
A favourite Gold Coast café come north, Bear Boy has been welcomed with open arms by Brisbane’s breakfasting community. Everything from the décor, the exceptional service and seasonal menu elevates Bear Boy Espresso’s weekend breakfast. Settle in for chicken and waffles, or grab your coffee, croissant, and some merch to go. 

Corner Store

Toowong
Evoking the same convenience and reliability as their suburban namesake, locals flock to Corner Store from right across town whenever they need a break from the malaise of the city. Executive chef Dylan Brace and head chef Jordan Mckenzie have a laser-sharp focus on the locality of ingredients, the bulk of their produce coming straight from said garden; the dedicated organic herb and veggie patch out the back. Corner Store’s approach to their menu is slightly fancy comfort food, served generously, in a revamped, century-old cottage, complete with a garden overlooking the property’s gardens. 

Cafe O Mai

Annerley
Cafe O Mai’s traditional Vietnamese breakfast dishes have patrons lining up round the street seven days a week. A southside institution, Café O Mai serves up fresh pho, seven types of banh mi, and condensed milk iced coffees like a well-oiled machine. Also up their sleeve is classic breakfast dishes like baked eggs and French toast (what’s known as ‘range’ in the biz)—all with a Vietnamese spin. So popular are their French-style baguettes that they even put in a pop-up window for banh mi and coffees to take away. Perfect for recovery mode.

Industry Beans

Newstead
Industry Beans is one of those roasters that takes an almost surgical approach to their execution of the perfect brew. The precision and dedication to flavour looms large over this Melbourne-born, light-filled Newstead café, their breakfast menu undergoing equally impressive attention-to-detail. Reading like a fine dining banquet, dishes like the pandan bubble waffles with blueberry gelato, coconut gel, sesame brittle and banana coconut foam, and the sous vide Coral Coast barramundi folded omelette with sambal oelek, crispy chilli, soybean oil, mango coffee togarashi, native succulents, bonito flakes and sourdough, needless to say, are as delectable as they are delicious.

Miss Jones

New Farm
A vision of pink on Brunswick Street, the doyenne Miss Jones has charmed the pants clean off the Brisbane breakfast set. Head chef Emily Bartholdt is hot on the tools, tweaking an already abundant menu with classics (the eggs benny loaded with hickory smoked pork shoulder) to lofty new heights. Get amongst instant classics like mango Weiss granola, kiss my peach açai, and the Australian icon that is smashed avocado, only sexed up with maple pepitas, roast beetroot, garlic hummus and snowpea sprouts. Wash it all down with Single O Paradox Blend coffee. That Miss Jones, she’s a real morning pulse-racer.

King Arthur

New Farm
James Street in Fortitude Valley is known for its swanky offerings, but while King Arthur may rub shoulders with the high end of town, this Brisbane bolthole keeps things real when it comes to morning meals. They know you want a fresh, tasty refuel at any time of the day, which is why their brunch menu is available from open to close. 

Think classic breakfast buns with chilli jam, haloumi, and fried egg, nourish bowls, and indulgent dishes like red velvet waffles, yuzu custard semifreddo, poached stone fruit and crumble. Even with two storeys and outdoor seating, this small but mighty cafe still has people spilling into the street for want of their daily cakes and pastries piled high behind the counter.

Paradise

Fortitude Valley
If the checkerboard fit-out of Paradise doesn’t provide enough intrigue, then perhaps the oddity of a breakfast cafe beside empty nightclubs will. Owners Dutch and Becky Brills resurrected the old Alf’s Pizzeria building, turning the once vacated lot into an elegant Brisbane café fit to rub shoulders with the best pancake slingers in town. Ex-MasterChef contestant, Chloe Bowles is behind the pans, focussing on a tidy menu of classics – but you’ll fall for their classic breakfast fry-up and coffee made on Padre specialty beans.

Felix For Goodness

CBD
Finding somewhere decent for breakfast in the CBD is a sensation similar to hitting the jackpot. Finding somewhere slinging specialty coffee, homemade jams, and a seasonal and nourishing all-day menu—all under the same roof (!) – is almost unheard of, so the fact Felix does all three so well make it quite the catch. Hidden along Burnett Lane, Felix’s all-day brunch is varied from indulgent blow-outs to considered vegetarian and vegan. 
Chocolate sourdough hotcakes with salted caramel cashew cream, roasted pears, and buckwheat brittle, chimichurri scramble with scrambled eggs, chimichurri salsa, daikon, and chilli pickle and paprika oil, and vegetable-stuffed ‘hippy bowl’ of veggies, seasoned nuts, and seeds, and served with a creamy vegan dressing. If you drop in for a coffee, be prepared to leave with an arm full of impulse buys, notably their irresistible cakes which adorn the counter and their displays of glass jars, full of pickled veggies, jams, and condiments, just aching to be taken home.

Brisbane

Where to Find the Best Italian Restaurants In Brisbane

All your Italian cravings are sorted.

The best restaurants come steeped in tradition. Luckily Brisbane is in full supply of rustic pizzerias channelling Napoli-style dough and candle-lit trattorias, serving steaming bowls of ragu. Whether you want hearty and full-flavoured dishes or modern takes on Roman dining, there’s an Italian restaurant for every occasion.

Here’s where to find Brisbane’s best Italian feasts.

best italian restaurants brisbane

Gemelli

Fortitude Valley
If you need to book a long lunch or simply want to indulge in a rich, comforting bowl of pasta, pull up a seat at Gemelli. This large Italian restaurant sits on the corner of James Street—one of Brisbane’s most popular shopping strips—and is the perfect pit stop to fuel up after a long morning of shopping. The menu boasts home-style family recipes and generous servings, including pasta served in bread bowls. We recommend the gnocchi al forno. The pillowy soft gnocchi is bathed in Napoli sauce, topped with buffalo mozzarella and cooked in a wood-fired oven. Don’t forget to pair it with a cocktail or glass of wine.

best italian restaurants brisbane

Bar Tano

Fortitude Valley
Next door to Gemelli is Bar Tano, the sister restaurant sharing the same la dolce vita approach to Italian food and drink. Stop in for a refreshing Aperol spritz, soak up a sunset, or stay after dark and let loose at a late-night disco. Bar Tano is reminiscent of taking an evening passeggiata through the cobbled pathways of Sicily, where bars and restaurants overflow with personality and exuberance. The food, which includes antipasti and salumi, is by Gemelli, so you know it’s going to be good. As for the bar, it’s charming and intoxicating. An afternoon at Bar Tano will transport you to Italy.

best italian restaurants brisbane

Otto Ristorante

South Brisbane
Otto’s signature bright outdoor furniture is hard to miss when you’re taking a stroll on the River Quay Green South Bank. The recently renovated restaurant commands riverfront views making it a destination, not just a restaurant. Most weekends, you will find it filled with locals and visitors, sharing pizzas and toasting cocktails. The menu is packed with homemade pasta and larger mains for sharing. However, the heavily awarded restaurant is best known for its  Champagne lobster and bottarga spaghettini—a must-try.

best italian restaurants brisbane

1889 Enoteca

Woolloongabba
1889 Enoteca is the kind of establishment where the servers are Italian, and the walls are exposed brick. Step in and be transported to Rome, with authentic Roman dishes laid out on white Bretagne dinner plates and hosts an extensive and lauded wine list. The pasta is all housemade and can be ordered as an entree or main. We suggest ordering the slow-cooked pork and beef ragu wrapped around pappardelle.

best italian restaurants brisbane

Bianca

Fortitude Valley
Are you looking for somewhere romantic for dinner? Bianca is a beautiful Italian restaurant with waiters flittering around a buzzy dining room. Despite its modern and slick decor, there’s nothing pretentious about the dining experience here. Curly graphics, monogrammed serving ware, and pops of colour keep it light and fun. As for the food, it’s a straightforward menu of snacks, entrees, house-made pasta dishes and a range of main courses. If you need something lighter, you can order from the antipasti section and dig into little creamy bags of burrata, mortadella, sardines, and marinated mushrooms.

best italian restaurants brisbane

Mosconi

Fortitude Valley
This unassuming warehouse hides an exceptional 60-seat Italian restaurant serving up an innovative menu drawing on the family’s Italian-Australian roots. Think Moreton Bay Bug risotto, lamb ragu, local grilled fish with fennel, and yellowtail kingfish Crudo. The wine list draws from Australian winemakers and some tipples from Europe’s biggest regions.

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