Agnes Restaurant

Agnes has been on my bucket list for years so I was glad to finally visit for a solo weekend lunch. On arrival I was shown to my table in the main dining room and the wonderful server looking after our area soon came by to walk me through the menu, offer some excellent recommendations and point out quite a few items on the menu, primarily starters and sides for which they could do half serves of. Given their focus on fire most menu items were touched by fire in some way. I started with some snacks, a baked oyster and grilled pork and prawn betel leaf. Both were full of flavour with the oyster being my favourite. I moved on to a half serve of the scorched red emperor; this was recommended by the waitress and was an excellent choice with really intricate flavours. For the main I went with the roast Bangalow pork and a half serve of the King Edward potatoes. Not only did it look amazing it tasted great too and was a very generous serve. For dessert I couldn't go past the pear tart tatin and would recommend you get this top, it really showcases the skill of the kitchen and is a wonderful ending to the meal! There is an extensive drinks list available with cocktails, beers and wines for any budget however I stuck to water and some non-alc beers. The staff are clearly passionate about what they do and appreciate diners who also take an interest, they were happy to answer questions and provided a lot of interesting insight about the kitchen set-up and their processes. The restaurant itself is a beautifully designed space and most tables have a good view of the open kitchen. One small area for improvement could be the speed and flow of service as there were unusually long gaps between courses, I think being so close to Christmas they are welcoming a lot of large groups and this takes up a lot of time and resources for the kitchen, probably less of an issue at other times of the year when there are many smaller groups and it's easier to fit things in. All in all it was an enjoyable experience and one I would recommend. Tables are in high demand so be sure to book early!

This is an experience and a must do for those that enjoy fine dining. It's a shared room with long tables that everyone can enjoy. The service was impeccable, each staff member was amazing, knowledgeable, patient, kind and so friendly!! We felt special from the moment we stepped in. The oyster were fresh, the calamari pasta scrumptious , the bread sour and huge , the cheese, the beef rare, delicate and so tender, the lamb not big enough, but so smoked, my favourite was the dessert, omg wow!! Book ahead and enjoy the busy but personal ambience. Thank you we loved every moment

We went for dinner and the atmosphere was quite elegant and classy. However, the lighting inside was very dim — so if you’re planning to take photos, it can be a bit challenging. The overall vibe was nice and sophisticated, but the dining experience had a few drawbacks. The food took quite a long time to arrive. The steak, though, was excellent — perfectly cooked and full of flavor. Unfortunately, the rest of the dishes were just average, nothing particularly memorable. Prices are on the higher side, which would be fine if everything matched the same quality as the steak. What bothered us the most was the service. The staff kept insisting that we order more, repeatedly asking even after we had already ordered a lot. It felt quite pushy and a bit annoying, especially since we were already a group of six and spent around $800 in total. Overall, it’s a beautiful restaurant with great ambiance and good steak, but the slow service, dim lighting, and pushy upselling made the experience less enjoyable than expected.

As soon as you walk in, the overall vibe of the restaurant is really good, and the service is spot on. It doesn’t feel like one of those stiff, pretentious places where everyone’s trying too hard, which was a relief. The menu changes seasonally, so most of the dishes previous diners posted are no longer available. Luckily, the menu isn’t huge, so at least you don’t get stuck with decision paralysis. Photo 1 shows their signature oysters. Honestly, the seasoning was outstanding. The combination of garlic, lemon juice and chilli sauce worked incredibly well — easily one of the top three oyster dishes I’ve ever had. It set the bar so high that we couldn’t help but have big expectations for the rest of the meal… little did we know this would turn out to be the peak of the whole dinner. Photo 2 is their signature beef tongue. The presentation was unusual — it came as one whole piece, and you’re meant to cut it up yourself however you like. We couldn’t wait to try it, but the flavour was genuinely hard to describe. It was just bitter. Pure bitterness, with no other noticeable flavours at all. Even dipping it in the accompanying sauce didn’t help. Not wanting to waste food, we forced ourselves to finish it, frowning the whole time. Photo 3 shows the main dishes: the 6+ wagyu, roasted potatoes and grilled cabbage. These dishes really made us feel the chef’s “vision” — almost as if he’d poured every emotional struggle from this period of his life straight into the food. Every. Single. Dish. was bitter, sour and aggressively salty. It was all so abstract, so “artsy”… honestly, too much.

Loved the ambience and service. Great selection of wine as well. Sadly the cold smoked venison was a tad too salty and my quail was very overcooked and tough. The ox tongue was great, while snap peas weren’t outstanding in any way but a good accompaniment for the tongue. Really wanted to love the restaurant but it fell short of expectations!

Had a great lunch here recently, I think it was actually my favorite time I’ve dined at Agnes. I loved the quail, tuna tartare and the apple tarte tatin.

Agnes is easily one of my favourite restaurants in Brisbane. I’ve been a few times now and it never disappoints. I personally love coming here for lunch; the atmosphere is a bit more relaxed and the space feels brighter during the day. The food is centred around seasonal produce and cooked over fire, which gives everything a beautiful flavour. Some people might see it as pricey, but I think it’s great value considering the quality of the ingredients, and how consistently good the food is. It’s always hard to choose a favourite dish because everything is so darn yummy, but some recent highlights for me have been the baked oysters, the peach-smoked tomato toast with anchovies, the scored red emperor, pipis with sweet corn velouté, house potatoes, and the John Dory with lemon butter and parsley. Every dish is balanced and scrumptious. The drinks list is also really good! Well chosen wines, interesting cocktails, and even good coffee to have with dessert later. Service is always spot on: the staff are attentive without being overbearing, and they know the menu which i appreciate. What I also love is that the food feels elevated without the pretentiousness; it's a place that takes food seriously but still feels warm and welcoming. If you haven’t been, definitely make a booking. It’s popular for a reason:)

Went for the NYE night. Food was very well executed but menu might not have been for everyone. I really enjoyed it though!