Naldham House Brasserie & Terrace

Overview

When Brisbanites initially stepped inside Naldham House in the 1800s, they weren't greeted by a brasserie and terrace, then a supper club upstairs. In a building with history across three different centuries, that's firmly a recent experience. Behind its white facade on Felix Street, this heritage-listed former shipping office is now all about drinking and dining — and, decor-wise, about strikingly rich colours adorning every surface, with a huge 1,110 different hues used.

Thank DAP & Co for transforming this patch of the inner city into a three-venues-in-one hub. The hospitality group is co-owned by Andrew Baturo, Denis Sheahan and Paul Piticco, which is also behind The Gresham, Popolo Italian and Walter's Steakhouse and Wine Bar.

Part of the Waterfront Brisbane project that's revamping this area of town, the Naldham House is a project four years in the making. DAP & Co can't be accused of holding back. Naldham House Brasserie & Terrace takes its cues from both European brasseries and grand hotel lobbies around the globe. If you can't be elsewhere, pretend, basically. The markedly old-school atmosphere extends to the pianist playing the grand, and also the service, whether you're among the 95 people that the venue can cater to inside or the 120 outside on the terrace with its own bar.

Meal options in the brasserie include hand-cut beef tartare, chicken liver parfait and a beetroot tart among the snacks, then oxtail ragu pasta, crumbed rock flathead and noisettes of lamb from the mains. You can also share a pork tomahawk, the market fish or rib steak, then finish up with a berry mille-feuille — aka a vanilla slice — plus crème caramel, three cheeses and a chocolate Paris-Brest. Outside, the terrace menu sports the likes of crispy chicken skin with whipped cod roe and caviar, smoked mortadella and potato croquettes, steak frites, a wagyu cheeseburger and a king salmon gravlax sandwich.

Whether you choose to get comfortable indoors or out, a 28-page drinks list awaits, filled with European and Australian wines both by the glass and the bottle, beers both local and international, and a hefty array of spirits. The cocktail selection hops from spritzes to signatures, and then from classics to zero-alcohol sips. A mandarin spritz might take your fancy, or a Yuzito made with gin, orange curacao and yuzu soda — or perhaps a negroni or the non-boozy Watermelon Sugar.

Images: Dexter Kim.