Rise, dine and shine this weekend or next holiday stay with the local’s inspired Gold Coast guide to the most important meal of the day.
CARDAMOM POD
Experts tell us to eat the rainbow and you’ll find it on the plate at Cardamom Pod’s Brickworks base. Voted the Gold Coast’s Bulletin’s 2018 Best Breakfast Restaurant, it boasts the prettiest plant-based plates imaginable. Head chef Manju Pinnell is a food artist and her palette is loaded with the likes of blue spirulina, pink pitaya, turmeric, ube (purple yam) and beetroot. Smoothie dreams come true in the oversized Snickers bowl or try the pumpkin protein pancakes smothered in saucy chocolate – the Pod’s healthy homemade alternative to Nutella. If you prefer a savoury start, the Indian street food waffle is made up of a spinach pakora waffle with maple-sriracha glaze, roast sweet potato, potato peanut fritter, beetroot-coconut yoghurt raita and avo.
Where: Brickworks, 3/3 Brolga Ave, Southport
BAM BAM BAKEHOUSE
You won’t be judged if you want to eat dessert for breakfast at this parkside favourite. Passionfruit tarts, salted caramel eclairs, choux bombs topped with blowtorched marshmallows – early birds get the pick of the pastries from Bam Bam’s famous cabinet. Owner Ursula Watts recommends experiencing the best of both worlds by combining their most popular pastry with a breakfast classic. “Our eggs benny on a croissant is what we’ve become known for. But there’s no laurel sitting, we are constantly creating new items. It’s very much a creative outlet for us.”
Where: 2519 Gold Coast Hwy, Mermaid Beach
ELK ESPRESSO
Breakfast never takes a backseat at this Broadbeach beauty, where every dish is given fine dining treatment. While Gold Coast diners can thank the forest-themed cafe for the likes of green bowls and breakfast gnocchi, the spring superstar is all about nostalgia. Every nana’s favourite biscuit, the Iced VoVo, is recreated with coconut ice cream, raspberry gel, Ruby chocolate, raspberries, pretzel soil, strawberry jelly and white chocolate pearls sitting pretty on waffles. If your vice is fried chicken, the guilty pleasure has found its way on to eggs benedict, along with sautéed kale, salted pepitas, rockmelon spheres, chipotle hollandaise and pomegranate gloss.
Where: Beachside, Oasis Shopping Centre, Broadbeach
MR BROWN’S TUCKSHOP
This Labrador gem describes itself as a “tuckshop for big kids” and you won’t regret dropping your pocket money on favourite flavours reinvented with subtle Asian influences. “My partner Chee Ling Yap, her mum is Japanese and her dad is Chinese, so we have dishes that incorporate that,” owner Robert Barker says. “The Chinese style fried rice is one, with egg omelette and oyster sauce gravy and the rice is bacon and shiitake, so it has a breakfast feel to it.”
Where: 5/7 Brown St, Labrador
HOT SHOTT
Follow the smoke signals to this Tedder treat for a playful approach to the morning meal. The smoke trout dish is served under a cloche for an extra wow factor. “It’s not just food on the plate or eating, it’s a whole experience that makes food fun. You eat with all your senses so we try to wrap it all up in one,” co-owner Jenna Finch says.
Where: 3/17 Tedder Ave, Main Beach
DOUBLE BARREL KITCHEN
The rustic avo – Double Barrel’s version of a smashed avo – has been their best seller since day one. This friendly neighbourhood hangout balances the crowd favourites with creative seasonal specials. “We have a good mix between more detailed dishes and the staples that people love, including our rustic avo and acai bowls,” owner Jess Winter says. Reliable coffee completes the comfortable picture.
Where: 64 Karbunya St, Mermaid Waters
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
Destination Gold Coast acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we are situated, the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh Language Region.
We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their continuing connections to the lands, waters and their extended communities throughout Southeast Queensland.