Introduction
The Gold Coast has a food scene to rival any city with bustling cafes and multi cultural restaurants. With trendy suburbs like Palm Beach, Burleigh Heads and Broadbeach its hard to pick the destination let alone the restaurant.
From fine dining, casual and food markets the selection is endless.
We brought you our Gold Coast Best Cafes guide now we take a look at the evening scene.
Influences from Asia, Europe, America and Latin America brings a vast range of choices to this pleasant dining scene.
Gold Coast Top Restaurants
Bonita Bonita
Bringing modern Mexican dining to new heights, pack up your faijitas you wont find them here. Tacos, taquintos, croquettes and chimichangas are all on and pack full of flavour. Can personally recommend the guacamole and pescado and achiote chicken tacos are firm favourites with us.
Dark lights, candles and Mexican flair brings Bonita Bonita to life, the sound of Mexican music in the background all set the scene for this authentic experience.
Adding to the Mexican authenticity is a back bar loaded with 50 + tequilas. You wont find a better margarita than here.
Located in the ever trendy Mermaid Beach suburb of the Gold Coast, tucked nicely away in a quiet alcove.
Bonita Bonita is not somewhere to miss and is why it is a one of the top restaurants Gold Coast has to offer.
Details
Monday To Sundy 5pm to Late
Etsu Izakaya
Hidden away being the large white wooden doors is this hidden little gem, you’d say speakeasy as other than the music it is relatively unseen. Enter through the doors and through the tunnel shaped bar area and don’t forget to look up at the impressive half pipe (yes half pipe skate ramp) as a ceiling. And into the large dining area of share and private tables.
Modern Japanese food with designed to share theme. Sushi, raw bar, yakitori and robarta grill specials are a few specials but the ones we love are the homemade gyozas.
The bar at Etsu has a great selection of high quality Japanese whiskies and sake, along with classic and Japanese style cocktails.
Certainly a unique and great and great dining experience and one of the best dining experiences you can find.
Located in the suburb of Mermaid Beach close to other great eateries and bars.
Details
Monday to Sunday 5pm to Late
Social Eating House
Class and sophistication is the key in this relaxed yet formal dining experience. The food at Social Eating House is based around share plates with a variety of influences all over the world. Known as one of the best fine dining restaurants around the Gold Coast.
The menu features and musts would be the roast quail or the wagyu tartare from the small plates and slow cooked lamb shoulder in yoghurt or twice cooked pork belly in chilli and tamarind.
Wines are definitely the go at social eating house, with a great selection and staff that are clearly trained in what is paired correctly or not. With this said a cocktail list is impressive with a mix of classic and contemporary.
Details
Monday to Sunday 12 to 3 and 5:30 to late Lunch and dinner
Edgewater Dining
Edgewater Dining located in the residential area of Isle of Capri just a stones throw from Surfer Paradise offers good quality contemporary dining, with probably the best backdrop on the Gold Coast.
Take a seat on the water front and at night a cascading view out down the river with the lights from the Surfers Paradise high rises in the background set a unbeievable scene.
The food and drink delivers to, with a modern Australian feel and more of a formal dining experience, than the share plate theme the Gold Coast adopts. With a great selection of menu items like lemon pepper calamari and pork tacos to start and sticky pork belly and grass fed eye fillet for mains.
Another great option at Edgewater would be the afternoon we often wandered down enjoyed bread platters, cocktails and sensational river views.
Details
Monday to Friday 11am to Late Lunch and dinner
Saturday and Sunday 8am to late. Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Can Tho Kitchen
A little slice of Vietnam on the Gold Coast. Located a bit out of the city in the suburb of Runaway bay.
A once uninspired dining room was transformed and modernised a few years back and Can Tho has never looked back. The modernisation has really bought a sense of comfort and sleek look.
The food has always been second to known, known for the homemade Vietnamese pancakes. With fresh and vibrant rice paper rolls and flavorsome bowls of Pho is not hard to see why Can Tho is a leading player in the Gold Coast food scene.
Details
Tuesday to Sunday 5pm to 10pm
Lucky Bao
I love the Lucky Bao story we used to visit there stall at the markets where there were pumping out Bao’s out of a small marquee to foot traffic. Then fast forward they opened the doors of there own restaurant.
Located away from the center of town in the suburb of Mermaid Waters. Lucky Bao has small a small yet trendy eatery, with a perfectly relaxed environment.
The menu is based on Asian share plates large and small and of course the highlights are the bao’s. There are no bad bao’s here however the Taiwanese fried chicken and the tempura soft shell crab are our favourites.
Other highlights include succulent Korean chicken wings and the bang bang chicken vermicelli salad.
Contemporary cocktails and and a selection of craft beers make for perfect accompaniments to a great dining experience.
Details
Open for lunch and dinner
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 11:30am to 3:30pm and 5:30pm to 8:30pm
Saturday and Sunday 11:30am to 8:30pm
Closed Tuesdays
Brooklyn Depot
I think the name gives it away “Brooklyn“. Bringing a slice of the best of Brooklyn and New York street food scene. With burgers, wings, tacos, fries, fried pickles and juicy hotdogs.
Surrounded in a relaxed environment, with great selection of craft beers, including there own Brooklyn lager, and not forgetting the mix of classic cocktails.
Located in the 4217 building in the central hub of Surfers Paradise and close to everything making this a popular spot for everyone, and certainly one of the best restaurants Surfers Paradise has to offer.
Details
Sunday to Monday 11am to Late
And Finally
If I’m honest there could of been double the amount on this list but I went for our top lot maybe soon a volume two will come out soon.
The Gold Coast really has become a city for foodies and drink experts alike. Some may say the new Melbourne and we believe it certainly isn’t far off competing with Australia’s food capital.
Whilst we have produced our best restaurants here stay tuned soon for a look at the best cheap eats, best markets and best vegan restaurants on the Gold Coast.
36 replies on “Best Restaurants Gold Coast, Australia”
Roast quail, wagyu tartare, soft shell crab, pork belly or a lovely pho or tacos… I’d try them all!
I’m often shocked when I meet people who think the Australian diet is entirely barbie-based… The food scene downunder is fabulous, and Gold Coast scene sounds right up there.
Its a great and wide selection of variety in Australia now with great top quality restaurants. The Gold Coast has come a long way over the years
I was watching a show on the Gold Coast yesterday and felt myself getting excited about eventually being able to get out there – it might be a few more years with COVID tho!
From what I’ve seen of your blog, the way Australian’s eat is amazing and totally my vibe. All fresh, super healthy, it’s my eating goal.
Rosie
It is a great place to be and the food is right up there with the best around. Many healthy and fresh restaurants offering nutritious delights.
We hope you manage to get there soon
Looks like you tried every type of cuisine going while there. Which makes the guide all the better. You have something for everyone. I think the Edgewater place is for me- calamari and fillet. Yum!
A city with a great variety of food catering fir everyone. Edgewater certainly was a favourite of ours too
Sounds like an amazing culinary scene!! I’d go for the Bao place and the soft shell crab. Yum!!!
The cafes already looked amazing. Is it possible that the restaurants look even better?
Way better and the variety made it all the more impressive
Can Tho restaurant would be my choice! That Pho in the photo is killing me! Need to try it. I have also been in that city 😁
Thanks for sharing such fantastic list guys!
Great choice with Can Tho was one of our favourites too. Vietnamese would be one of our favourite cuisines
You have a nice variety to try. I love Mexican so Bonita Bonita would be my first choice. We would love to try a Vietnamese restaurant so Can Tho sounds fantastic too. We’re enjoying your reviews from the Gold Coast!
Can Tho and Bonita Bonita are both popular choices with variety a huge thing on the Gold Coast.
Great list. It’s funny – we’ve been away for almost 8 years now and I’ve only been back to the Gold Coast once and that was just to go see the Brisbane Lions VS Gold Coast Suns game at Carrara. Next time, we might make a day or two of it just to see what’s changed – I bet everything feels different!
It has changed a fair bit over the years even in my 12 years I couldn’t believe how big the city has got. Plus there is always something to do.
Fantastic guide! Lots of great variety. I’m partial to Mexican and Asian foods so I think you know which ones I’d definitely try 🙂
Great choices thats what gives the Gold Coast a great name is the variety and choices something different all the time
I love Asian food and I definitely should not have read this post before lunch because my mouth is watering and my cheese sandwich is a sad let down!
I hear you food posts before lunch are never a good idea. The Asian food onbthe Gold Coast is top class
I love trying new foods while travelling! Thanks for sharing your recommendations.
I hope the list can help you
I completely agree that there are no bad baos! Thank you for this amazing list that has me absolutely famished and rummaging through the fridge!
Thats always a good sign. Agreed put anything in a bao and it will be great
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