This is the insider’s guide to dining out in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.
Rani Parish (above) was working at Melbourne’s acclaimed Embla wine bar when the city’s pandemic lockdowns inspired a sea change. After returning to her hometown, Brisbane, she was tapped to become group sommelier for the Anyday restaurant group (anyday.com.au) and now oversees the wine lists at four Fortitude Valley hotspots: award-winning Agnes, which serves contemporary food centred on wood-fired cooking techniques; Italian restaurant Biànca; South-East-Asianinspired sAme sAme; and Japanese eatery hôntô. These are the other Valley haunts that Parish loves.
Bear Bones Coffee for the piccolo
“I’m a creature of habit and grab my coffee from this single-origin roaster (bearbones.com.au) on the way to work. They know me now so they see me come in and make a piccolo with full-cream milk. There are a few seats and pastries on offer but most people come for takeaway or to buy beans to take home.”
The Green for the green bowl
“This is a modern Middle Eastern-inspired café (the green.com.au) but it also sells plants and ceramics, two of my favourite things. I like to stop for breakfast surrounded by the greenery. I’ve had a great green bowl here – falafel with herbs, avocado, salsa verde and a poached egg – but it also does things like shakshuka with sujuk sausage and a breakfast mezze.”
Snack Man for the dumplings and a glass of wine
“I love popping into this wine bar (snack-man.com. au) on my way home from work. It has a focus on European imports and is always pouring really interesting wines by the glass. The menu is drawn from multiple Chinese regions and includes snacks, main dishes and noodles. The dumplings are excellent: it’s hard to pass up xiaolongbao.”
Ripiena for the handmade pasta
“The pasta at this tiny ‘pasta laboratory’ (ripiena. com.au) is all handmade on site, of great quality and well-priced. I sometimes try to sneak in for Friday lunch. I’m a sucker for filled pasta: there’s always ravioli or tortellini and the ragu is pretty epic. There’s also a good little wine list.”
Le’s Kitchen for the bánh mì
“This is our office go-to for bánh mì and noodle bowls (fb.com/leskitchenfortitude valley). We have a debate as to what is the best. I love the crispy chicken thigh bánh mì but the roast pork one is delicious, too. The staff are super-friendly and the service is quick.”
Mosconi for the sand crab tortellini
“This is a great little Italian-leaning bistro (mosconi.com.au) with bentwood chairs and mismatched vintage art in frames on the walls. My preference is to sit outside at a table on the footpath, choose a wine from the fantastic Eurocentric wine list, perhaps a chablis, and order the sand crab tortellini or yellowfin tuna crudo.”