With its new location under the trees of East Street in Fortitude Valley, Happy Boy’s light-filled space lends itself to the early hours. Brunch has long been in the plan for Cameron and Jordan Votan, and now, with the support of the team for its soon-to-open Italian concept, morning  dishes are on the menu from Wednesday through to Sunday, as well as Supreme Coffee Roasters espresso and batch-brew filter coffee, and Italian-style grab-and-go counter pastries.

Much like Happy Boy’s lunch and dinner offering you can expect the brunch menu to deliver bold intense flavours, presented in an approachable way. John Speranza, who has come on board as head chef for the group’s Italian restaurant, has crafted a menu of familiar dishes with a distinct Chinese influence. From Wednesday to Friday you’ll find a slightly more condensed selection, including the almost-too-pretty-to-eat sago pudding with coconut milk and pandan, topped with a crown of roasted coconut and seasonal fruit, and the avocado on sourdough awakened by Sichuan seasoning, herbs and pickled radish. The fluffy breakfast bao comes in both vego and meat-eater varieties, each packed with egg, avocado, kewpie mayo, pickled carrot and fresh nashi – the former with haloumi, crispy shallots and plum sauce, the latter with bacon, pork floss (yes, pork floss) and Chinese barbecue sauce. On weekends the menu expands to include wok-fried eggs and the moreish mapo haloumi – that’s beef in spicy sauce over fried haloumi and sourdough. Oof. More items will be added soon, experimenting with the wok and other traditional Chinese cooking techniques, such as wok-tossed granola and morning fried rice.

For Happy Boy’s revised opening hours, head to our Stumble Guide.