Restaurant News

First look: Darling & Co, Brisbane

Our restaurant critics' picks of the latest and best eats around the country right now.

Baked eggs
Our restaurant critics' picks of the latest and best eats around the country right now: Darling & Co, Brisbane.
Popular wisdom says you can't be everybody's darling, but the team behind this recently opened hybrid all-day venue, a replacement for Paddington's cavernous Iceworks, is giving it a red-hot go. A speedy renovation has injected a splash of local whimsy, with banquettes now clad in a vibrant leaf and parrot-patterned fabric, adding warmth to the vast space. An equally full-of-character wine list offers a swag of minimal-intervention wines. Smallfry Tangerine Dream rubs shoulders with the likes of Mac Forbes pinot noir and Shobbrook's biodynamic Tommy Ruff Clarott. Menus are a rollcall of some of the state's top produce picks: Noosa spanner crab, Mooloolaba prawns, South Burnett olive oil, Darling Downs wagyu and more. Noise levels soar quickly - particularly when Suncorp Stadium is in full roar over the road - and the personality of the space shifts accordingly, with the ebb and flow. Skip ho-hum pizze in favour of a brace of snacks: Borrowdale pork belly teamed with a flavoursome pâté and sriracha-laced mayo on bijou banh mi, perhaps, or diced marinated Sunshine Coast yellowfin tuna crammed into crisp taco shells with pickled jalapeño, coriander and radish. Just the ticket, darling.
Darling & Co, 157 Given Tce, Paddington, Qld, (07) 3367 9800.
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