aquitaine brasserie

went to aquitaine lastnightfor dinner for the first time, excellent service, menu and food. will be back again.

overall the food presented well but was less than memorable. everything was quite average, but at least was reasonably priced. what was most disappointing was that while we were eating our entrees, the waitress came over and told us we had to order our mains soon because the kitchen was closing. at that time it was not even 7pm, which made the rest of ournightfeel rushed and certainly does not live up to the restaurant's website which says dinner from 5.30pm-late. would not recommend.

had a datenightwith my partner at aquitaine before seeing a movie (dunkirk, see it!) and the booking experience through zomato was a good one. we had the garlic bread which was a nice combination of butter and soft confit garlic cloves. the mains were king salmon for me and my partner had the pulled duck cassoulet with mushroom and broccolini sides. the king salmon was crispy skinned, and while very tender, it was mostly raw on the interior and quite cool to eat, but some of this was due to the weather being rather cold for brisbane. the sides were delicious. the wine was a clare valley cab sav 2013 at a reasonable $65 per bottle, which was a nice accompaniment to the meal. our waiters were attentive and mildly friendly on the whole, however, there could be some improvement to the experience towards the end of the night. all meals came out in an efficient manner and the two courses took only an hour to complete. overall, a pleasant meal out with good food but not 5 star and a little on the expensive side for the mains.

what a great venue with great views and good service. the food! well we started off with fresh oysters, pork belly and ceviche scallops.

oysters with champagne + dill foam, very interesting but certainly top quality and fresh tho was a lot more shells in my oysters then usual. pork belly and scallops was delicious which went down like a treat.

mains we had the sword fish and duo of beef with buttered greens. the fish was very interesting with the lemon curd but the beef was also delicious.

finishing up with all things chocolate it was a greatnightout and would recommend to family and friends.

had a great meal out lastnightat aquitaine.. my partner had the kangaroo and said it was flawless, i had the mushroom entree and chocolate and salted caramel ganache which was also flawless.. the breads and cheese entree special weren't bad but felt like they were missing something.. would also be good if they ask if you want all the elements on the plate explained prior to launching into a lengthy explanation. otherwise great food and service, just these few things would make the experience flawless :-)

lovelynightwith the family last night. mixed reviews round the table about the food. i had the duck and it was cooked to perfection and the yoghurt that went with it was a perfect combination. however my partner had ordered the same thing and it was slightly over done. the chocolate ganache was every bit delicious and not too sweet. nice way to end the meal and they did a little something special for my mil who was celebrating her birthday. kids meals are not that kid friendly so you might need to consider that if you do have children.

had a greatnighthere with some friends but lost my phone thatnighttherefore had to borrow my friend's photos which were taken half drunk... dishes showed simplicity yet technical, my steak was cooked to perfection and the sauce was amazing. the desert left a very memorable taste to end a wonderful night. very technical and executed perfectly. beautiful decor and very prompt service, will return again to take more photos!

situated in the new section of southbank near the goodwill bridge, it offers a nice view of the river and the city on the other side.  it was a shame that on thenightwe went it was raining.  service was okay; it did take them a little longer than usual to take our order and bring our drinks, considering it wasn't busy at all.  food was enjoyable, the escargot in butter and herb sauce were to delicious as was the pork belly and scallop.  mains was also good with the beef being tender and juicy.  all in all a goodnightout.

rather let themselves down.

this is a fine location, perhaps a touch cool, semi-outdoors in late autumn, but the heaters are nice. the service is competent without being warm.

six of us - three couples who know a bit about food and about france and speak french - had dinner there one fridaynightin may 2015 and very much enjoyed the food. the "all things duck" entrée was seriously good as was the special shellfish.

we actually chose to go there because we saw there was a bouillabaisse. well, there is a limit to how good a bouillabaisse can be in australia, since we don't really have the right sorts of fish and anyway australian diners won't come at the ugly, bony little numbers that make a fish stew great (rock cod for example) but these guys get pretty near to that limit: plenty of saffron, a strong broth, a nice variety of textures and flavours.

one of us is a vegetarian and she was pretty well catered for - except that the rest of us kept pinching her stuff because it was so nice. go for the mushroom with cheese and egg!

a nice selection of cheeses for the grown-ups and a hugely chocolatey dessert for the rest.

and a good wine list: not too expensive, by brisbane standards.

all very happy so far.

but then, the bill.

so we are three couples and - this is australia, you know - we want to pay for ourselves, so we will just divide the bill in three and pay a third per couple.

and we all have credit cards.

well, it appears we are in luck because they will take separate cards but no more than three.

but my card is amex. well, there is a surcharge. ok, i'm used to that. i know that amex actually doesn't charge so big a fee and it does deliver higher spend customers to the restaurant so the surcharge is just a lie, but i just accept it and mark down the restaurant as a place not to go back to.

but wait! the amex surcharge does not just go on my portion of the bill - if one card is an amex, then all the cards get hit with the surcharge.

"oh, the system just works that way."

what utter rubbish! this, guys, even in france, is the 21st century. cash is going out. people pay with plastic. you are not a hole-in-the-wall mum-and-dad eatery, you are a major player that can handle hundreds of diners, you want my money - you take my plastic.

and people split bills. you know that every time more than two people turn up at your restaurant, it is almost certain they will want to pay separately. you don't like this? then only have tables for two!

what worries me is that, if you have trouble with this, then what other basic 21st century technological issues also challenge you. food safety, perhaps?

picnic basket!. i organised a picnic basket for anightout with my fiancé. when we arrived, we were asked if we would rather sit inside at a table as it had been raining. the staff member set up our table beautifully, just like a picnic and explained what everything was. the cheeses and meats were delicious and the warm bread, a perfect touch!
we had a great experience and will definitely be back!

excellent evening. recently my wife and i went out for our normal fridaynightdinner and decided to give somewhere new a go. so glad we did. the service was good and the food excellent. a good variety in choice, well priced and great flavours. the location just seems to match the food with great views of brisbane. i can see this being a regular due to the service and food provided, a job well done on thenightwe were there. definitely going back and looking forward to our return.

disappointing evening at aquitaine. do not waste your time with aquitaine if you are in a large group. horrible service. we booked the private room upstairs on saturday 5th july for 20 people and the service we received allnightwas appalling.

it took three people asking and 25 minutes before we received drinks menus and another 20 minutes before one of the requested bottles of wine, arrived. then the rest of the drinks trickled in after more requests for drinks menus. we had to request a knife and fork for someone for their main, more people had to request wine glasses, the person of honour had to pour her own champagne because we the room wasn't properly staffed. we had 3 dietary requirements on one table, each were offered the wrong items. the gluten free main option was disappointing - tough venison with a 2 huge handfuls of kale.

after the 3rd reminders about an espresso martini ordered during the first drinks order, it finally arrived... with the mains! a comment about the espresso martini didn't result in a usual apology, just the wait person saying, "you'll have to excuse me, i'm the only person here tonight".

aquitaine, if you do not have the ability or staff to provide the right level of service to a private dinner party, then don't accept the booking.

fancy french cuisine. my partner and i dined here the othernightas a spur of the moment outing. we were a bit concerned about the cool weather but this venue has heaters and blankets to keep you warm!
the house bread with confit garlic was a prefect little appetizer to share between the two of us.
i enjoyed the market fish for my main with amazing flavours, colours and textures and my partner loved the corned beef cheek. you must try the brussels sprouts and pork belly side, it simply delish.
we finished off with the summer snickers and the crime brûlée for dessert - we could have had two desserts but was simply too full!
staff were friendly and knowledgable about the dishes. the food was outstanding and we will definitely be back for more indulgence :) loved it!!!!


-----01 dec, 2013-----

i recently celebrated my birthday here with a group of friends on a lazy sunday afternoon.
staff are friendly and attentive. they have a good knowledge of the menu and helped me match a nice bottle of wine with my entree and mains. the pork entree is a definite winner and the lamb main is divine!!!
but the stand out for me was the snickers dessert, delish!!!
best birthday lunch to date :)

will return. i celebrated my birthday here with hubby sat night. the staff were very professional and attentive - out waitress was friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. the prices aren't cheap but the food was fantastic - the pork belly entrée was sublime and my venison main was to die for! the hubby's chicken main was equally high quality. be careful when ordering sides though - you may not need them, we couldn't finish all of ours (but the panzanella salad is very good). the only downer for thenightwas that we just didn't have room for dessert. guess we'll have to return soon and make sure we can fit it in. will definitely go back.

brilliant. lastnighti celebrated my birthday with a few friends at aquitaine brasserie, southbank and could not have picked a better venue for it.

the front of house staff are polite, professional, attentive, thoughtful and friendly. one of my fellow diners pointed out that they were particularly impressed that our waitress waited until we had all finished our meals before beginning to clear the plates, something that is not done in a lot of establishments as they try and rush covers through.

highest compliments to the chefs at aquitaine brasserie. the menu was varied, creative and seasonal. the meals were beautifully presented and delicious!
for dessert i had a special surprise as our waitress must have figured out that it was my birthday and my (incredibly presented and gorgeously delicious) snickers inspired dessert had been decorated with "happy birthday" written in chocolate across my plate!

thank you to all the staff and chefs at aquitaine brasserie for a beautiful evening out to celebrate my birthday. i will certainly be returning in the near future.