STATE WINNER
Agnes
22 Agnes St, Fortitude Valley
(07) 3067 9087
Chef Ben Williamson & Alex Gregg
Price guide $$
Bookings Essential
Wheelchair access Yes
Open Lunch Fri-Sat; Dinner Tue-Sat
AUSTRALIAN
A little smoke goes a long way, but restraint is one of chef Ben Williamson’s triumphs at wood-fired-only Agnes. While the menu leans unapologetically meaty and the flavour of the grill is put to excellent use, the brilliant ingredients never taste like they’ve escaped a house fire. Instead, stewed leeks and almonds have a fine, clean, acidic balance, perfect with spectacularly tender lamb sweetbreads or slivers of grilled ox heart lifted by gorgeously rounded miso hollandaise. Other dishes, meanwhile – a betel-leaf roll filled with prawn and pork mince; sweet clams with frothy potato velouté and house-made hot sauce; a dessert that successfully teams charred lemon with white chocolate – barely whisper “smoke”. The renovated warehouse embraces the feudal firepit spirit, with the black furniture, double-height ceiling and flickering firelight giving off Game of Thrones vibes – albeit with less slaughter and more great wine that embraces old-world classicism and new-world experimentation.
Anekawa
Cnr Swan La and Railway St, Mudgeeraba
(07) 5645 6462
Chef Koki Anekawa
Price guide $
Bookings Essential
Wheelchair access Yes
Open Dinner Tue-Sat
JAPANESE
This pint-sized, chef-run venue isn’t quite a portal to Shibuya, but as you push aside ochre-hued noren curtains and slide back the glass door, you certainly leave the Gold Coast behind. Interiors are distinctive, with dark walls, blond timbers and bent cane; tables capped with freeform bluestone slabs. A daily changing menu showcases an equally winning blend of Australian and
