Overview
Gusto da Gianni is a traditional family Italian bistro with views overlooking the Brisbane River, which has built a loyal following over the years. Owner Gianni Greghini grew up in Italy's Marche region on the country's central east coast before settling in Queensland. He built Gusto to bring a taste of home back with him. Rather than sticking to the pizza-and-pasta staples most diners expect, he set out to build a menu of regional Italian specialties that goes well beyond the familiar — the kind of dishes you'd find at a family table in Le Marche rather than on a standard Australian-Italian menu.
The restaurant has held its spot on the water for well over a decade, through a full renovation that stripped the space back to its rough-cut stone-tiled walls before rebuilding around them. The result pairs that original texture with a lighter, more modern fit-out, plus an enclosed outdoor area that opens the dining room right up to the river. Seating runs from alfresco tables with river views to private dining rooms built for bigger groups, and the venue flexes to suit whoever's booked in — romantic dinners, family gatherings, corporate functions and casual catch-ups over wine all get the same setup.
Food and drink lean into that same regional focus: an à la carte menu built around the osteria's four food pillars, a dedicated cocktail list, and a wine program weighted toward Italy rather than the usual crowd-pleasers. Aperitivo hour is treated as its own event here — order a negroni or a glass of Italian white, and let the Brisbane skyline do the rest as the sun goes down over the water.
It's a dog-friendly spot with two hours of free parking at Portside Wharf. Sundays run a slower, walk-in-friendly service built around seafood by the river rather than a rushed brunch. Between the river frontage, the stone walls left over from the reno, and a menu that keeps digging past the obvious, it's built less for a quick dinner than for the kind of night that runs long.
Images: Markus Ravik.
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- After Work
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Dog-Friendly- Good for Dates
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