Overview
When a restaurant hits the road, usually it heads away from its usual bricks-and-mortar base for a temporary pop-up or residency elsewhere. But for Brisbane's soon-to-launch Da Biuso, its home is the road — as the River City's first fine-diner on a bus.
If catching public transport was your regular method of getting around back in your teen days, then you might remember a golden rule: no eating on the school bus. However engrained that directive might be all these years later, Da Biuso wants you to ignore it. How else are you going to tuck into a degustation dinner in its meals-on-wheels setup inside a mobile coach?
Initially announced in 2022 with an aim to get rolling the same year, but now hitting the streets from Friday, March 3, the unique eatery hails from head chef Biagio Biuso, a veteran of Fortitude Valley's Casa Nostra Ristorante. With his wife Sarah and their son Joseph, they're pairing top-notch fine-dining degustations with regularly changing locations, all in the kind of venue that the city truly doesn't already have.
First stop: Ascot, with Da Biuso making its debut at Ascot Green, alongside the racecourse at 230 Lancaster Road. The opulent 12-seater restaurant doesn't actually move during the meal, but will change its locations regularly. So, make a booking a few months later and you'll be staring at different scenery from the bus windows.
"Being a mobile restaurant, we needed our first location to be a standout, somewhere that guests can enjoy the experience but also connect with nature in a calm and beautiful space," said Sarah.
"The racecourse is a staple in Brisbane's social scene, and Ascot Green sits alongside this as a newly developed precinct. It captures the essence of the city with its history, but also reflects the promise of what's to come."
"Brisbane is our home and we wanted to bring something completely new to share our passion for our city and what we do: hospitality. Part of this is showcasing spectacular locations to stimulate the senses through taste and place. We will have more locations announced soon, but for now, Ascot Green is our place to call home."
Revamping an old school bus and nodding to Brissie's old tram services, too, Da Biuso is all about serving up an intimate but lavish experience. That cosy yet luxe feel comes through in the decor, with elegant white and cream hues aplenty, including on tables and curtains. And, the Sicilian-raised and -trained Biagio and his family will be on hand at every service, with Sarah taking on the lead sommelier and maître d' gigs, and Joseph also in the kitchen beside his father.
Diners will tuck into six-course Mediterranean-inspired meals made with seasonal produce, with prices for a sitting starting at $170 (with paired Italian wines costing extra). Biagio's approach is to take classic dishes and drinks — such as oysters or a spritz — and then give them his own elevated twist.
"Take the spritz cocktail, for instance," Biagio explains. "With fresh Australian scampi paired with a prosecco reduction and Aperol and orange elements, this is our twist on classic summer flavours."
"The menu will change with the seasons and fresh produce available, but what won't change is the level of quality and attention given to each element you will see on your plate," he notes.
Other dishes that set to be featured include oysters with sea foam, watermelon granita and a caviar cigar; minestra di mare with cream of saffron potato and seasonal seafood; and broccoli stufati paired with Tasmanian lamb in a balsamic bone reduction.
As well as operating Friday–Monday for lunch from 12–3pm and for dinner from 5.30pm, Da Biuso will also be available for private functions in the future. If a treat yo'self meal on a bus is your ideal way to celebrate a big occasion, you'll also be able to book the mobile restaurant for any location.
Da Biuso will launch on Friday, March 3, with reservations open now for its debut run at Ascot Green, 230 Lancaster Road, Ascot, via the venue's website. It'll operate from Friday–Monday for lunch from 12–3pm and dinner from 5.30pm.