Eight Grown-Up Easter Treats to Hunt Down Around Brisbane in 2023

We reckon you're never too old for Easter. Let's be honest — when an occasion involves copious amounts of chocolate, that's something that you never outgrow (and if you claim you have, we call fibs).

Sure, egg hunts and bunny ears seem better suited for kids; however, there's still plenty of tasty concoctions that'll make even the most mature among us start salivating. You just need to know what to look for — from OTT chocolate treats and hot cross cruffins through to cocktails served in Easter eggs and other edible orbs with puzzles inside.

HOT CROSS CRUFFINS AT LUNE CROISSANTERIE

When Lune Croissanterie opened its first interstate store in Brisbane in 2021, pastry lovers across the city understandably got excited. And, when it launched its second Brissie spot in the CBD, our tastebuds were doubly happy. The baked goods haven serves up delicious bites that'll tempt your tastebuds all year round, of course — but a Lune Easter is particularly delicious.

On the menu: hot cross cruffins. Yes, they're exactly what they sound like, and they're only available for a super-limited time. The croissant-muffin-hot cross bun mashups come filled with a spiced custard and traditional hot cross bun fruit mix, which includes sultanas and candied citrus peel. They're then topped with a cross (obviously) and brushed in a sweet glaze. And, they're both vegetarian- and Halal-friendly. You'll find them in-store until Monday, April 10.

CHOCOLATE COCKTAILS AND TREATS AT COWCH DESSERT COCKTAIL BAR

Trust Cowch Dessert Cocktail Bar to serve up a month-long special menu just for Easter, running until Monday, April 10 at its Morningside, Chermside, South Bank and Broadbeach venues. On the lineup: five decadent bites to eat, two OTT dessert cocktails and a shake, with prices from $12.99. Whichever you choose, they'll get into the Easter spirit — sometimes with spirits.

The chocolate-only dessert offering has been fittingly dubbed House of Chocolate, and the golden ticket chocolate bar (aka a chocolate mousse cake made with a crunchy wafer base, then layered with milk chocolate ganache, passionfruit gel, milk chocolate mousse and vanilla cream — and coated in chocolate) is a clear highlight. Drinks-wise, the white chocolate margarita is made with white chocolate gelato, tequila, crème de cacao and white chocolate ganache, while the fudge nut fantasy includes chocolate sorbet, Frangelico, vanilla vodka and fudge sauce, then topped with whipped cream and crushed hazelnuts.

HONEYCOMB AND ROCKY ROAD EGGS AT NEW FARM CONFECTIONERY

Not content with handcrafting some of the best chocolate Brisbane gets to eat all year round, New Farm Confectionery dials the deliciousness up at Easter. More than a few delicacies grace its menu, so prepare to be spoiled for choice. The honeycomb and rocky road eggs ($40 each) take treatin' yo'self to the next level, as do the sprinkle eggs ($35). Available in milk, dark and white Belgian couverture chocolate varieties, and worlds away from the kind of choccies you'll find wrapped in foil, they're equal parts yum and fun.

Similarly on offer: caramel-filled eggs ($32 each), including both salted caramel and coconut caramel varieties. You'd best get in quick though — these melt-in-your-mouth beauties usually sell out.

EASTER BUNNY COOKIES AND EDIBLE GARDENS AT BELLE EPOQUE

There's never a bad time to treat yo'self to high tea, but Easter is one of the best. Plenty of spots around town celebrate the occasion with exactly that kind of spread — and this list includes more than one. So, what makes Belle Epoque's high tea stand out? Being dished up daily until Wednesday, April 12, this feast spans chocolate chip scones, a chocolate egg nest, bunny cookies and an edible garden. It also comes just with tea or coffee ($80), or you can add sparkling or champagne on top.

Don't forget the savoury range, either, as included in the price. You'l also enjoy roasted baby carrot frittata, marinated prawn on rye, caramelised onion and potato cheese tart, and pork and pistachio terrine with beetroot relish.

CHEESECAKE-FILLED EASTER EGGS AT ONE FISH TWO FISH

If your Easter routine usually involves a seafood feast, then you might want to make a date with a certain Kangaroo Point fish 'n' chippery this year. From Friday, April 7–Sunday, April 9, One Fish Two Fish is serving up plenty of the ocean's finest for the occasion, all as part of a $95 four-course meal that starts with seafood platters and remains just as indulgent from there.

Those platters are made to share, and come stacked with pacific oysters, Moreton Bay bugs, cooked Mooloolaba prawns, blue swimmer crab and green-lip mussels — as paired with bread, black sea-salt butter, sriracha mayo, chardonnay mignonette and lemons. Next comes pineapple and mint granita as a palette cleanser, followed by grilled goldband snapper with Amalfi salad. To wrap things up, you'll be tucking into a milk chocolate Easter egg filled with white chocolate cheesecake.

BOOZY HIGH TEA AT MOTION DINING

No one grows out of Easter, but there are definitely adults-only ways to celebrate the occasion, including over high tea. At Motion Dining at Marriott Brisbane, for instance, getting a huge choc fix from 12.30–3.30pm on Saturday, April 8 and Sunday, April 9 also involves three hours of drinks for $149 per person.

The Queen Street spot is serving up chocolate hazelnut tarts, passionfruit dark chocolate sandwiches, and jasmine tea mousse and strawberry cream groove tarts — and chocolate scones with rose, lychee and strawberry reserve, plus spiked Baileys cream tarts as well. You'll sip a Toblerone cocktail served in a chocolate bunny, too, as part of a drinks package that'll flow for the duration of your sitting. Also on offer: Moet & Chandon rosé champagne among other boozy beverages.

CHOCOLATE PUZZLES AND PINK COTTONTAIL MARTINIS AT W BRISBANE

W Brisbane's Living Room is dishing up High Tea in Bloom, a spin on its current Sunshine State high tea with an Easter twist, from 11am–3pm from Thursday, March 30–Sunday, March 2 and Thursday, April 6–Sunday, April 9. On the menu: gold easter eggs that you'll crack open to find a puzzle made out of white chocolate inside, as well as Queensland rum and banana cake topped with edible moss and a mini egg nest, plus hot cross buns with cream and spiced plum jam.

But you'll probably get most excited about the booze — including pink cottontail martinis that blend Absolut vanilla vodka, white chocolate cream liqueur and strawberry syrup. If you're keen for the whole spread, you have three price options. Pay $70, and you'll feast your way through the food, accompanied as much tea and coffee as you can drink. Opt for the $90 option, however, you can add that aforementioned cocktail — or $99 gets you a glass of glass of Veuve Clicquot NV Brut.

DIY COCKTAILS IN EASTER EGGS FROM COCKTAIL PORTER

Like Gelato Messina? Love Easter eggs? Then Cocktail Porter's DIY kit is your kind of treat. The make-at-home pack lets you whip up your own boozy beverages — an Messina dulce de leche salted caramel and coffee cocktails, no less.

There's no gelato, but there is Messina's popular topping, Baileys, cold-drip coffee and Mr Black Coffee Liqueur, plus chocolate Easter eggs to pour your mixed liquids into (and drink them out of) — and pieces of salted caramel popcorn to pop on top. Go small and you'll pay $80 to make five drinks. The large costs $145, and makes 12.