Foodie Treats
The Great Sunshine Way offers a range of delightful dining experiences from award-winning restaurants to beachside cafes, as well as abundant fresh produce and seafood. Check out this list of delicious yet affordable treats.
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Brisbane | Gold Coast | Sunshine Coast | Fraser Coast | Worth a Splurge
Great Saver: Jan Powers Farmers Market
This popular local market, located in the heart of Brisbane city, offers everything from organic fruit and fresh prawns to handmade chocolates and herbal teas.
Where: Powerhouse, 119 Lamington Street, New Farm (Every 2nd and 4th Saturday)
Cost: Known for offering "half the price and twice the flavour of supermarkets"
www.janpowersfarmersmarkets.com.au
Great Saver: Micks’ Nuts Shop
This little wholesale shop has all sorts of roasted and raw nuts, dried fruits, olives, organic cereals and more, which can be bought in small to bulk quantities at great prices.
Where: 31 Hardgrave Road, West End
Cost: Organic cereals from A$3 per kg, quality macadamias at A$22 per kg
Great Saver: Dan Murphys
This Australian liquor retail chain has over 4,000 products including hundreds of spirits, beers and wines. Plus it guarantees the lowest prices. For a truly good bargain, choose from its range of cleanskins, or label-less wines.
Where: 867 Stanley Street, The National Hotel, Woolloongabba (5-minute drive to Brisbane city centre)
Cost: Cleanskins range from A$5.50 to A$8.50
Great Saver: Chinatown
Brisbane’s Chinatown, which opened in 1987, has a range of traditional Asian supermarkets as well as very reasonably priced restaurants. Popular eateries include Super Bowl Chinese restaurant and King of Kings.
Where: Fortitude Valley (10 minutes drive from Brisbane CBD)
Cost: Varies, but you can enjoy a simple meal for under A$10
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Great Saver: Seafood at Seaworld Drive
Head to Peter’s Fish Market, an all-time favourite of the locals, where seafood is selected straight from the trawlers and cooked to perfection. The nearby Seaway Jetty Kiosk also offers yummy mud crab sandwiches. The locals will be wondering how you discovered this hidden gem.
Where: Seaworld Drive on Main Beach
Cost: A$7.50 for fish and chips (Peter’s Fish Market); A$9 for a mud crab sandwich (Seaway Jetty Kiosk)
Great Saver: Charis Seafood
This award-winning seafood market and kiosk offers everything from prawns and scallops to fish and chips. Have a picnic in the parklands overlooking the Broadwater and watch the daily feeding of wild pelicans.
Where: Labrador, less than 10 minutes from Surfers Paradise
Cost: A$6 for fish and chips snack pack, A$20 for seafood picnic pack
Great Saver: Superbee Honey Factory
This honey factory offers a wide range of pure honeys including eucalyptus, macadamia and other flavours, as well as quality Manuka honey and Royal Jelly products at good prices. You can also enjoy a live beekeeping show and free honey tastings.
Where: Tomewin Street, Currumbin (20 minutes from Surfers Paradise)
Cost: From A$4.75 per bottle of Australian honey
Great Saver: Clock Hotel
This unique 3-level bar, bistro and entertainment centre offers an excellent value-for-money menu, which includes pizzas, steaks, gourmet salads and tapas. Check out the daily specials too.
Where: 33 Elkhorn Avenue, Surfers Paradise
Cost: A$12 on average
Great Saver: Pancakes in Paradise
A local legend, this pancake parlour offers affordable family dining, big breakfasts and of course their famous pancakes.
Where: Corner of Clifford Street and Gold Coast Highway, Surfers Paradise
Cost: A$7.50 for all-you-can pancake deal
Great Saver: George’s Paragon
This waterfront restaurant is one of the Gold Coast’s best seafood restaurants. What’s more, you can enjoy the ala carte menu at half price during lunch or if you’re seated for dinner before 6.30pm.
Where: The Promenade, Marine Village, Sanctuary Cove
Cost: From A$11 for mains
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Great Saver: The Ginger Factory
Visit the world’s largest ginger factory, where you’ll find all kinds of goodies such as ginger jams, ginger chocolates and even ginger ice cream. The gift shop often has "Factory Specials" where prices are even lower than usual.
Where: 50 Pioneer Road, Yandina
Cost: As little as A$1.50 for a pack of ginger bears and A$3.50 for a bottle of ginger syrup
www.buderimginger.com/gingerfactory
Great Saver: Surf Lifesaving Clubs
Do as the locals do. Head to the surf lifesaving clubs for superb and hearty yet affordable meals. What’s more, most of the clubs offer million-dollar ocean views.
Where: Queensland has about 60 surf clubs, many of which serve meals. Popular ones include Noosa Heads Surf Lifesaving Club
Cost: From A$10 for mains
www.lifesaving.com.au
Great Saver: Self-contained apartments
The Sunshine Coast is reputed for its fresh and affordable local produce. Visit the weekly farmers markets for a shopping spree and cook up a storm in the kitchen of your holiday apartment.
Where: Popular resort towns such as Mooloolaba and Noosa
Cost: From A$100 per night for 1-bedroom apartment
www.tourismsunshinecoast.com.au
Great Saver: Noosa Food Trail
Enjoy a self-drive journey through the Sunshine Coast and visit some of the local farms, orchards, markets and stores offering fresh local produce. Discover everything from Australian nougat and macadamia nuts to herbal teas and cheeses.
Where: Noosa and its hinterland
Cost: 1-day car rental
www.visitnoosa.com.au/index.cfm/contentitem/show/noosa-food-trail
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Fraser Coast
Great Saver: Birney’s Seafood
This popular takeaway offers some of the best seafood at unbelievably low prices.
Where: 426 The Esplanade, Torquay, Hervey Bay
Cost: A$8 for grilled barramundi with fries and salad
Great Saver: O’Riley’s Pancake, Pizza and Pasta Parlour
This family-owned eatery serves some of the best pizzas, pastas and pancake concoctions on the coast.
Where: 446 The Esplanade, Torquay, Hervey Bay
Cost: 2 pizzas for A$16, pastas from A$9.50 and pancakes from A$6.50
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Restaurant Lurleens
This multi award-winning restaurant is located in Queensland’s largest and most awarded winery Sirromet. Its cuisine combines flavours from all over the world, including traditional Aussie bush tucker and Asian influences to modern Italian and French cuisine.
Where: 38 Mount Cotton Road (30 minute-drive from Brisbane)
Cost: From A$28 for mains
Palazzo Versace
Dine at the world’s first and only Versace hotel, entirely furnished in Versace and boasting grand Roman architecture and European palace-style opulence. The hotel also has excellent restaurants including the award-winning Vanitas. Enjoy exquisite modern Australian cuisine in a luxurious setting.
Where: 94 Seaworld Drive, Main Beach, Gold Coast
Cost: From A$39 for mains (open for dinner Tuesdays to Saturdays)
Champagne Sailing Cruise
Sail the beautiful Gold Coast Broadwater on a private yacht and take in the splendid views of the city skyline and surrounding mountains and coast. Watch the sunset with a glass of bubbly in hand and enjoy a delicious dinner on board.
Where: Marina Mirage, Berth D10, 74 Seaworld Drive, Main Beach, Gold Coast
Cost: A$115 per person for 2-hour dinner cruise (or A$45 per person for 1-hour cruise)
www.champagnesailingcruises.com
Noosa Food & Wine Tour
Enjoy a guided off-the-beaten-path tour through the beautiful hinterland of Noosa and meet some of the best local producers that are generally not open to the public. Visit hidden gems such as a high-tech tomato farm, an organic tropical fruit farm, freshwater crayfish farm and boutique wineries.
Where: Noosa hinterland, Sunshine Coast
Cost: A$105 for full-day tour including lunch, wine tasting and return hotel transfers by Noosa Hinterland Tours
