Pearl Cafe

Add a touch of European elegance to your day at this stylish little cafe-come-bar, which does a mean line in seasonal dishes and fresh pastries.

Enjoy a glass of wine beneath the striped awning on the veranda (which occupies a prime position in Woolloongabba’s antique shopping precinct), and you could almost be in 19th century Paris. The chicness continues inside with exposed brickwork, wooden floorboards and plenty of flickering candles.

Concise menus change to reflect the seasons, but always include small plates, sharing boards, delicious salads and flavour-filled mains, while the globe-trotting drinks list offers a well-thought through selection of wine, beer and aperitifs.

Enjoy the likes of slow-braised beef cheeks and line-caught fish with oyster cream, and be sure to try the side of potatoes roasted until golden in rosemary salt.

The baked goods are particularly strong here. Peruse the pretty sweets that line the counter, or opt for the Providore tart with frozen cream. It’s their signature sweet for good reason...