The Shingle Inn

Today is my birthday, and what better way to celebrate it with a post on The Shingle Inn. Somewhat of an institution in Brisbane, The Shingle Inn has been creating superior quality cakes since 1936. There are a number of stores throughout Brisbane and the suburbs, however the one represented here is in the basement of the Macarthur Central. The store consists of display cabinets for cakes and pastries, with a cafe area with magnificent high backed chairs to sit, eat and enjoy purchased treats at your leisure.

The Shingle Inn has a long and distinguished history within Brisbane. The original Shingle Inn was unfortunately closed in August 2002. Located in Edward Street between Adelaide and Queen Streets, it resembled English Tudor architecture, and had a distinct feel both inside and out. It also was said to be a popular haunt of soldiers during the second world war, as detailed here. After its closure, the original was painstakingly dismantled due to its heritage listing, with the intent that it would be rebuilt at some future time.

I'm glad you can still savour the delicious cakes in the city even with the original closed. I must admit, however, that as much as I wanted to buy a birthday cake during the day, I knew my wife had made me scrumptious chocolate mousse to devour when I got home - so I had to knock it back for today. There have been very recent rumours that the original Inn will be rebuilt at City Hall, with specific budget put aside, but we shall see.

Cheers, I Love Brisbane, Wes.

Click Here for the Google Map Reference for this post. (In this case, it is for the Macarthur Central store.)

Jimmy's on The Mall

Jimmy's on the Mall is a restaurant and bar between Edward and Albert Streets in the Queen Street Mall. Effectively an Al Fresco cafe, they offer both a modern Australian (read beer, steaks and seafood!) and Asian influenced menu, and are open every day from breakfast until very late in the evening. There is seating for over 200 patrons, and they are licensed.

Meals range in price from around $10 for entrees, $25 for mains and $8 for desserts. Opened in 1984, Jimmy's has become one of the mainstays of central Brisbane. It is actually operated by the same crowd that runs the Pig 'N' Whistle pub restaurants within the city. There are both outside and inside seats, although the bulk of the seating still is undercover.

If you want a fairly laid back experience and want to watch the multitude of people who frequent the mall on a weekday or weekends, Jimmy's is a great place to go for lunch. Its also a great place for a late night snack or drink, and for a long time was a stop off point within the city for that last bite, due to it being one of the few places that was still open. There are now a number of cafes which do the same thing, but at least with Jimmy's you know you've got an original.

Cheers, I Love Brisbane, Wes.

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Elevat "at" 32

Hidden within every city, down a side street or lane, there will always be a local eatery, restaurant or take-away that doesn't seem to make it to any of the eating guides. One such place in Brisbane is Elevat@32. Located at 32 Burnett Lane, the restaurant serves simple Taiwanese food, but is always busy with mainly Asian clientele. They are open weekdays from 11:00am until 7:00pm, and later on Friday evenings.

The menu is distinctly Asian with a strong Thai influence. Most meals are served with either noodles or rice, and you can have chicken, pork, beef or vegetarian variations. Prices are excellent, ranging from a few dollars to generally no more than ten. They also have a variety of the pearl teas which are quite popular within the Asian communities here.

I was lucky enough to get introduced to this place by a colleague one lunchtime. Although the interior is nothing exotic, it is functional. The congestion at lunchtime to me is always a sign that they must be doing something right! I was glad I found it, however, I can't stress enough how little information there appears to be on the Internet about it. Perhaps if I could decipher the Asian characters I'd find more!

Cheers, I Love Brisbane, Wes.

Click Here for the Google Map Reference for this post.

City Garden's Cafe

The City Garden's Cafe is located at the top of the City Botanic Gardens, near the Dragon Tree. It is open seven days a week between 8:00am and 4:00pm for breakfast, lunch and morning and afternoon tea. The cafe was formally the curators residence, built in 1903. This itself was a replacement for the original curators cottage which was washed awayin the 1893 floods. During world war two the building was used as a Ward room for the WRAN officers of HMAS Moreton.

In its present form, the City Gardens Cafe was opened on the 7th of September, 1989. This venue is available for functions and events seven days a week. This includes wedding receptions, engagement parties, bridal showers, post-christening celebrations, birthday parties and corporate events. The menus are quite varied and reasonably priced in the restaurant itself. They are also licensed, so you can have a wine, beer or spirits with your meal.


There is no denying that surrounded by manicured lawns and sub-tropical rainforest, City Gardens Cafe offers patrons a unique dining and function experience. You also get to dine with some of the local fauna, well, the sculpted kind anyway. The only word of warning I could offer is that on Public Holidays the surcharge, particularly at the kiosk, can be a bit of a sting. However, you could consider it part of the experience, and it has to be worth it for the views.

Cheers, I Love Brisbane, Wes.

Click Here for the Google Map Reference for this post.