A new Japanese fusion eatery for Nobby Beach.
A new Japanese fusion eatery for Nobby Beach.
We love Japanese food A LOT. So many tasty, perfectly prepared options, so many sweet, flavour-packed sauces, so much goodness. Happily, a new Japanese eatery opened in Nobby’s a couple of weeks ago, giving us even more of our favourite cuisine to fill our tummies with.
Found on Chairlift Ave, Aburibi is a low-lit space reminiscent of a secret, back alley venue that serves only the very best.
Vintage photographs of Japanese culture line one wall and the intimate space is
lined with textured wallpaper giving it an edgy, perfectly-at-home-in-Nobbys vibe.
The menu primarily showcases charcoal chicken, a preferred method of cooking in Japan but there are plenty of dishes you’ll definitely want to try.
It’s a tapas style of menu designed to be paired with the many tasty tipples available at the bar so you know you’re in for a good time.
There is no reason in the world to not begin your dining experience with the Pasta Sticks, which are indeed sticks of deep fried pasta with Aburibi’s original seasoning. Of course you’ll also want to sample their signature grilled Yakitori (chicken) and you may choose from thighs, wings and meatballs. Taste sensations.
Next up, you’ll want to order some share plates and obviously Karaage chicken is the go, as are a few plates of Gyoza and perhaps some Camembert Cheese Tempura because is there anything better in the world than deep-fried cheese? No there is not.
All the regular delights are available too, including Aburi Salmon, thinly sliced Wagyu Beef and slow cooked pork belly.
For mains, we would always (every single day) order Teriyaki Salmon plus the Mixed Fried Seafood dish also looks the goods.
For dessert, give the Matcha ice cream a go, or perhaps the Black Sesame. Maybe both.
There’s also a set menu, if choosing isn’t your thing. You may choose from the $40 and $55 (per person) options, both of which include a selection of the most popular dishes so you can sample a few.
Drinks-wise, the cocktail menu is made up of a few Japanese favourites including an Umesyu Highball with plum wine, whisky, soda water and fresh lemon and a Mongo Sour with syochu, frozen mango nectar and soda water. Of course, there are a few sakes to sip too.
So, if you, like us could eat Japanese food (and sip Japanese cocktails) all day long, you best get yourself in to Aburibi at the earliest available opportunity.
We’ll probably be there too.
LOCATION: Shop 8, 28 Chairlift Ave, Nobby Beach
HOURS: 5.30pm until 9pm Monday to Saturday
Words and photos by Kirra Smith
Everyone’s favourite beachside wholefoods café is upping the ante on their already mouthwatering menu, adding new dishes to nourish you from the inside out now that winter has us in her clutches.
Fuelling the health food revolution on the Gold Coast, BSKT has been wholeheartedly embraced by locals since opening exactly four years ago this week. The ocean views certainly help, so does being located in the foodie hub that is Nobby’s Beach but the obsession is largely due to the food – BSKT is passionate about providing the highest quality wholefoods in the tastiest possible way.
New additions are no exception of course enhancing the already jam-packed menu and giving you even more anxiety over which delicious dish to order.
First and most importantly is Adam’s Porridge Bowl filled with coconut and banana soaked gluten free oats, sticky mango, quinoa and black sesame chards and infused with chai spices. Proceeds from this dish go to former BSKT Chef Adam Begic’s ongoing recovery from a motorbike accident that tragically left him paraplegic.
New breakfast dish number two is the MVP Pancakes – buckwheat and banana pancakes with wild berry compote, vegan honeycomb and coconut icecream. MVP indeed.
For lunch there’s two new smaller dishes. The Keuben Quesadilla is made with a low carb Keto tortilla, corned beef, house made sauerkraut, pickles, Gruyere cheese and Russian dressing. If you’re after something a little lighter, there’s a Poke Bowl with fresh salmon cuts, pickled ginger, zucchini noodles, avocado, edamame, organic brown rice and spicy sesame soy sauce.
In need of something a little larger? Krab Tacos are made up of tapioca dusted soft shell crab, Asian slaw, bean sprouts, fresh coriander, wakame and Chipotle Mayonnaise on grilled tortillas and Spicy Korean Stew is a steamy bowl of oyster mushrooms, bean sprouts, shallots, pac choy, fermented red peppers and stewed chicken.
All delicious and all radiating the freshest and healthiest of vibes. Exactly what you need when everyone around you is reaching for the tissues.
LOCATION: 4 Lavarack Rd, Mermaid Beach
HOURS: 7am to 4pm Monday to Thursday and 7am to 10pm Friday to Sunday.
Words and photos by Kirra Smith.
One of your favourites has come through with the goods again, this time in the form of a sleek, breezy rooftop bar that brings all your European summer holiday dreams to life.
Bar Hellenika is the long-awaited venue perched on top of the Nobby’s institution of the same name (but without the bar part). It’s a fresh, colour-filled space decked out with an abundance of white, grey tiled floors, a marble bar perched right in the middle and yellow umbrellas to give it a very laze-by-the-beach-with-mimosa-in-hand kind of vibe.
Bright, eye-catching art adorns the walls depicting well-known Greek folk and a HUGE wine cellar boasts hundreds of bottles that we will certainly enjoy sipping over the next few years. Maybe months, depending on how 2018 pans out.
A big old olive tree takes pride of place in the front reminding us all how very lucky we are that olives are a thing and that we can now eat as many as we like while gazing out over Nobby’s at our new fave spot.
So, the rooftop bar part. Quite obviously the idea is to be roofless but as we all know, the Gold Coast is going through a (quite annoying) wet season right now. But, because he’s a man of the people, owner Simon Gloftis has that sorted. The roof is retractable and it’s quite the sight to behold so, no matter the weather, you can enjoy a tasty tipple in a semi-outdoor space without a care in the world.
Not only can you drink up there though, you can eat and hooray for that because everybody knows Hellenika’s food is the goods.
The menu, known as a mezze menu, is a share plate style scenario filled with delicious eats along the lines of Tiganito Kalamari (flash fried calamari), Gavros (cured white anchovies) and Arni Sti Schara (grilled lamb ribs) to name a few.
Wash those down with an Ari Onassis made up of Tanqueray gin, elderflower, lemon and cucumber (among other things) or a Pimms Cup and your life may just be complete.
As you’d expect from the man with a slew of the Coast’s best restaurants under his belt, Bar Hellenika is a beautiful space oozing good vibes and promising plenty of fun times. It’s casual chic (sans thongs and singlets thank you) at it’s very best and the perfect spot to spend some time with your crew sipping tipples and thinking yourself lucky you live in this increasingly epic city.
You’ll be seeing us there A LOT.
LOCATION: 2235 Gold Coast Hwy, Nobby Beach
HOURS: 5pm until midnight every day throughout the Commonwealth Games and 5pm until midnight Wednesday to Sunday after that.
Words and photos by Kirra Smith.
