Because food is the way to everybody’s heart. And Tier 1 friends list.
Because food is the way to everybody’s heart. And Tier 1 friends list.
Friends, they’re the family we choose and worth their weight in gold. But LBR, don’t we all kinda fancy ourselves as the group authority on where to go for the best nosh, vibe and cocktail list? Well stick with us kids, we’ve got this!
Here are our tried and tested (on repeat) recommendations to elevate you to Queen Bee status. XOXO.
If you’re out to impress, Norté is basically your cheat code. From the team behind Rick Shores and Southside, this luxe rooftop restaurant and bar (aka Sueño) brings Latin American flair with serious flavour and even more serious design credentials. Think mango-drenched raw scallops, wagyu tostadas and a Peruvian-style potato dish stuffed with tender kangaroo tail – yep, they’re doing things a little differently here. The vibe is high-end without the fuss, the mains are made for sharing, and the drinks list is a mezcal-lover’s dream.
Where: The Oxley Atrium, 17 Lavarack Road, Mermaid Beach
Srsly, the mere mention of The Langham will have your mates nodding in approval. The bougee T’ang Court honours its Michelin-star sister restaurants specialising in fine Cantonese dining. Reflecting the timelessness of the Tang Dynasty, China’s golden age, score extra points for the epic cultural nod. The authentic Cantonese dishes are complemented by the high-end, contemporary fit-out. In the words of Nike, just do it.
Where: The Langham Gold Coast, 38 Old Burleigh Road, Surfers Paradise
Dripping in coastal-styled furnishings and high-quality on-fleek accents, COAST is the restaurant with the most! This spectacular $2.5 million-dollar venue adorning the first floor of the brand-new Ocean by Meriton is all about fine modern Australian shared cuisine, and breathtaking uninterrupted views of the big blue. Sink a margi with your gang at the 14m marble bar, a second one outside on the stunning terrace, and the next (several) with your designer dinner in the main dining room.
Where: Ocean by Meriton, 86 Esplanade, Surfers Paradise
Occupying arguably the most iconic turf on the Coast, Siblings packs wow-factor for days. This modern Aussie brunch and dinner hot spot at Kirra Beach Pavilions is dripping with 1950s Miami beach vibes from pillar to post. Beautifully styled with a colour palette and décor celebrating its glorious surroundings, a meal here should be on every Gold Coaster’s to do list. The food is on-point and there are 52 signature cocktails to enjoy with your chums. Nuff said.
Where: 15 Marine Parade, Coolangatta
When The Australian Good Food Guide awards you 14 points and two chef’s hats, you’ve officially arrived. With accolades like this, your fancy friends will be all over it like Pro Hart on a Stainmaster commercial. Situated in the stunning HOTA Gallery, Palette takes inspiration from artworks on display and major exhibitions to show just how naturally art and food blends. Fresh ingredients sourced locally where possible create a showstopping modern Australian menu guaranteed to woo.
Where: HOTA, Home of the Arts, 135 Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise
Steak night just got a glow-up. Lars Bar & Grill is bringing woodfired flair and coastal cool to Nobby Beach, dishing out the kind of smoky, sizzling goodness that’ll have your friends drooling before they even sit down. From the team behind The Oxley 1823 (and with hospitality royalty Lars Kollrepp at the helm), this spot nails the fine-diner-meets-grill-house vibe. With over ten epic cuts of steak, next-level sides, and a wine list that means business, Lars is where you go when you want to eat like a king but feel like you’re still at the beach.
Where: 2217 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach
There just aren’t enough stars for this Burleigh blockbuster. Another modern Australian restaurant to dine for, it is fine dining at its, well, finest. The work of passionate husband and wife team Alex and Karla Munoz Labart, Labart offers a seasonal, share-style menu made with only the best produce and a sustainable wine list to match. The earthy, refined and understated interior creates a warm and welcoming ambience, providing the perfect setting for an intimate meal with friends.
Where: 8 West Street, Burleigh Heads
Focusing on fresh, locally sourced produce with the intention to share, soz but we don’t want to #TooGood. At one with the ocean, the infamous Rick Shores overlooks beautiful Burleigh and serves up some of the very best eats in town. With awards up the wazoo, it’s a sure thing when you want to impress. Speaking of, insist your mates order the Fried Moreton Bay Bug Roll and don’t be surprised when they weep tears of joy. Wash them down with a few of Rick’s cocktails and this is not the time to volunteer for DD duty. Happy days.
Where: 43 Goodwin Terrace, Burleigh Heads
If your peeps are fangirling/fanboying over perfectly cooked, juicy steaks of the highest quality (paired with the tastiest sides to level up the yum factor), look no further than Glenelg Public House in Mermaid Beach. The vibe of the low-lit space is relaxed and welcoming, encouraging you and your crew to settle in – with a glass of red in hand of course – for the long haul. May we recommend the banquet for a well-rounded, standing-ovation-worthy nosh-up. You’re welcome.
Where: 2460 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach
Let’s be real – if you’re trying to wow your mates, Haven is your ultimate flex. Perched up high at the ridiculously chic Mondrian Gold Coast, this beach club-meets-restaurant is pure coastal cool with a side of “how is this even real?” Think elevated seafood, sultry sunsets, and spicy margaritas that go way too well with DJs and wood-fired scallop pies. Executive Chef Aaron Teece is plating up flavour bombs that champion fresh Aussie produce – from juicy Ballina king prawns to wagyu sirloin you’ll be dreaming about for days. Luxe, laidback, and definitely not your average dinner spot.
Where: Level 3, 3 First Ave, Burleigh Heads
Words by Bianca Trathen
The Rick Shores team bring Latin heat to Nobby Beach.
Ay, caramba – it’s a culinary fiesta! The legends behind Rick Shores are serving double the deliciousness in Nobby Beach. Adding a dash of Latin flair across the top two levels of the new Oxley 1823 development, Norte and Sueño promise to be more than just the guac to your corn chips.
The Rick Shores team – Nick Woodward, David Flynn and Frank Li, along with award-winning architect Jared Webb of J.AR OFFICE, have created not just places to eat but spaces to celebrate.
With design elements that nod to vibrant Latin American culture and a menu that’s equal parts tradition and innovation, Norte and Sueño are set to make your taste buds salsa dance.
“This concept has been in discussion since before the pandemic,” Nick Woodward said.
“There’s definitely that pressure. But we’re blessed to have an incredible team and we had to wait for the right location.”
Norte and Sueño have been worth the wait.
Walk up the impressive set of stairs and enter Norte, the chic and sultry level one venue. Inspired by Mexico City’s vibrant Roma Norte district, it’s where the big open kitchen takes centre stage. Watch the talented chefs make magic with fresh and flame-licked fare. Surrounded by bold architecture and furnishings, it’s the perfect spot for a romantic rendezvous or a lively catch up with your amigos. Upstairs is Norte’s fun sibling, Sueño. This sun-kissed rooftop cantina embraces the breezy, open-air atmosphere with colourful Latin American touches to the terrace and its own kitchen for snacks with a view.
Now let’s taco-bout those menus!
Chef James Brady, head chef of Rick Shores, spent years perfecting the concept – traveling extensively around Latin America, drawing flavours from the mercados of Mexico City to the parrillas of Buenos Aires. James said, “I’d head back to the apartment and just cook and cook. It was such a great opportunity to develop the stocks, the sauces, the pickle blends, the salsas, the protein marinades – those foundation recipes for a restaurant and bar.”
Centred around the huge custom-made hearth, Norte’s menu goes on a culinary journey from raw dishes, bar snacks, masa (corn-based plates), mains, sides and desserts. Signature dishes include a 72 hour short rib, al pastor aji amarillo and pineapple and a mouthwatering flank steak, native chimichurri, caramelised onion. Seafood lovers can dive into the Fremantle octopus, guajillo, roasted bone marrow and fine herbs as well as Grilled coral trout, koji butter, guacachille and green pico de Gallo.
Upstairs at Sueño, it’s all about ceviches, skewers, and tacos. Soak in the sun and sink your teeth into fresh oysters and Hiramasa Kingfish served with avocado, leche de tigre, chilli and kombu oil.
For bigger bites, tuck into Moreton Bay bug “al pastor” tacos dripping with crustacean butter and pineapple or champagne crayfish skewers brushed with chipotle butter – flavours that hit harder than a mariachi trumpet.
And what’s a fiesta without drinks? Beverage director Peter Marchant has shaken and stirred a selection worthy of a Latin American party.
Norte boasts a 150-bottle wine list with nearly half dedicated to Central and South American varieties. Up at Sueño, it’s all about tequila, mezcal and cocktails that could make even Frida Kahlo crack a smile.
So grab your mates, raise a margarita and shout SALUD to the Rick Shores team’s latest jewels in their culinary crown.
Where: The Oxley Atrium, 17 Lavarack Road, Mermaid Beach
Hours: Norte: 12:00pm – 11:00pm Tuesday–Sunday
Sueño: 12:00pm – 10:00pm Tuesday–Sunday
Words by Lisette Drew
Images by Mathilde Bouby Photography
Mondrian's new beach club is turning up the heat this winter.
Cancel your Euro summer plans! Haven, a new restaurant and beach club, is opening this month in Burleigh Heads and it’s set to be hotter than a Mediterranean heatwave.
Perched three floors above the pandanus-lined shoreline at the stunning new Mondrian Gold Coast (Australia’s very first, no less), Haven takes beach club vibes to new heights. Officially opening on the 5th June, thanks to the dream team at Ennismore and Vitale Property Group, Haven is where laidback luxe and coastal cool collide.
Designed by Sydney’s Alexander &CO., Haven spans a refined yet relaxed dining room, private cabanas, a full-service pool club and a sunset bar. With every space having its own personality, there’s always a new nook to explore.
Whether you’re brunching in your bikini or toasting at twilight, Haven was made to move with you and your crew. As the sun sets, the evening comes alive with a soundtrack of DJs, curated playlists and live performances.
But what really sets the bar sky-high, is the food.
The man behind the menu is none other than Executive Chef Aaron Teece, whose impressive dining hotspots include EST., Felix, Manly Pavilion and his own creative food studio, Studio Neon. He’s bringing serious star-chef credentials but with a distinctly grounded vibe.
Aaron said, “I want people to feel the season and the source with every bite, because when ingredients are respected, simplicity speaks loudest.”
Haven’s menus are anchored in our coastline, with seafood heroing from Cairns, the Sunshine Coast and Northern NSW, backed by prime paddock-to-plate meats and vibrant hinterland produce.
We recommend your culinary adventure starts with a seafood platter of ½ lobster, oysters, Australian Bay bug, Ballina king prawns, Tweed Coast spanner crab, fish crudo, marinated octopus, scallop crudo. Talk about catch of the day.
The woodfire grill at the heart of the kitchen isn’t just for show. Wood-fired scallop pie with crisp pastry and curry sauce, Lobster frites kissed with café de paris butter and the whopping 600g Westholme waygu bone in sirloin served with red wine jus are sure to fire up a cool evening.
You’ll want to make room for dessert too, with Woodfired Basque cheesecake and Signature Haven Pavlova.
The drinks list is nothing to sniff at, it’s to sip through long after the sun goes down. Expect crisp coastal wines and a seriously savvy cocktail list, from spicy margs to frozen Matcha Colada. For the agave lovers, there’s even a dedicated menu featuring tequila, mezcal, raicilla and bacanora, perfect for sipping poolside as the sun melts into the sea.
From sunny days to moonlit nights, Haven invites you to slow down and celebrate that everything you need is right here on the Gold Coast.
Where: Level 3, 3 First Ave, Burleigh Heads
When: Haven Restaurant & Bar, Monday-Friday: 11:30am – late, Saturday-Sunday: 11:00am – late
Haven Pool Club, Monday-Friday: 11:30am – late, Saturday-Sunday: 11:00am – late
Words by Lisette Drew
