Overview
Watch a Mark Wahlberg-starring movie, tuck into a burg from Wahlberg's burger chain Wahlburgers, get the words 'burger' and 'Wahlberg' stuck in your head for days: that's about to be on the menu on the Gold Coast. After first announcing plans to open Down Under back in 2021, and then launching its first Aussie store in Sydney at the beginning of 2022, Wahlburgers is heading to the Sunshine State — to Surfers Paradise, to be exact. Yes, southeast Queenslanders, it's time to pair a burger with some Sunkist by the beach.
Because there's a reality TV show for everything, you probably heard of the chain before it made its way Down Under, all thanks to the 2014–9 series Wahlburgers — which turned its lens on the burger joints owned by the actor formerly known as Marky Mark and his brothers. In the near future, with an exact opening date still be to be revealed, you'll also be able to eat the Wahlburgers' fast-food fare from the Paradise Centre, rather than just watch a show about it.
Wahlburgers will make its home in the Surfers Paradise spot's new beachfront dining precinct, which has just undergone a $40-million revamp — and the burg-slinging brand won't be short on company. Axe-throwing bar Maniax has already set up shop there, as has El Camino Cantina and Gelato Messina. Also at a yet-to-be-revealed date sometime soon, so will TGI Fridays.
On the menu when Wahlburgers' Paradise Centre eatery starts welcoming in diners, in the chain's first-ever Queensland store: burgers, obviously, including a meat-free Impossible burg that's been dubbed 'Mark's choice', plus a barbecue bacon burger that bears his fellow actor brother (and ex-New Kids on the Block member) Donnie's tick of approval. There are 13 burg options to choose from in total, with two types of chicken schnitzel burger, a crispy fish option, and a truffle burger — which pairs a beef patty with truffle aioli — also available.
Or, you can opt for salads, sides that span everything from French fries and sweet potato fries to onion rings and bacon mac 'n' cheese, and loaded versions of your favourite fries and potato gems. There's also a breakfast menu, complete with avocado on toast, granola, pancake stacks, breakfast burgers and French toast sticks. And, for dessert, get ready for fried dough — yes, that's what the menu says.
To answer the most important question, at least if you happen to remember that Mark Wahlberg was in the music business before he started acting and, as part of his hip hop group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, he released the 1991 single 'Good Vibrations': yes, Wahlburgers serves Sunkist, as referenced in that track's lyrics.
Drinks-wise, there's also other soft drinks, coffees, shakes and spiders in both boozy and booze-free varieties, 17 types of cocktails, a small wine list, and beers that include Wahlbrewskis, the chain's signature beer.
If the Wahlberg name has you thinking about movies — with Mark starring in everything from Boogie Nights to Uncharted, and co-owner Donnie also featuring in The Sixth Sense and the Saw franchise — then that won't change with Wahlburgers' Aussie venture. In fact, the chain's entire venture Down Under is a collaboration with United Cinemas, and some of the former's sites will be located within the latter's picture palaces.
Wahlburgers' Aussie locations join more than 50 stores in the US, Canada and Germany. Folks in Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane can all look forward to munching on the brand's bites to eat, too — and in New Zealand as well — with the brand expected to launch 20 stores across Australia and NZ.
Wahlburgers is also co-owned by chef Paul Wahlberg — another Wahlberg sibling — and, given its name, the chain unsurprisingly decks out its sites with photos and memorabilia from the brothers' lives.
Wahlburgers will open in the Paradise Centre, 2 Cavill Avenue, Surfers Paradise, at a future date — we'll update you with exact details when they're announced, and you can keep an eye on the chain's website and Facebook page in the interim.
Top image: Michael Rivera via Wikimedia Commons.
