Ronnie’s Clubhouse
Family sits at the core of Middle Park’s newest addition, Ronnie’s Clubhouse – the brainchild of mother-daughter duo Claire Parviz (mastermind behind South Bank trattoria The Spaghetti House) and Leila Amirparviz (Pasta Club in West End). The 30-seat restaurant has been conceived as an homage to family patriarch, the late Ronald ‘Ronnie’ Lowthian, a Middle Park local who was a familiar face around the suburb thanks to his work as a real estate agent. Ronnie’s Clubhouse will open before the end of June at Metro Middle Park, the retail precinct where Ronnie operated his real estate business for more than three decades. Claire and Leila will be drawing upon their considerable experience in the pasta scene to create a menu steeped in Italian influences – we’re talking red and white pizzas (including options topped with fior di latte, burnt honey, salumi, pancetta and chilli oil, and mushrooms, thyme, confit garlic, truffle paste and smoked ricotta), phenomenal pasta (naturally), large-format mains, and a selection of sweets and sides. Darcy Adam, Leila’s partner and Pasta Club co-owner, will be overseeing the drinks list at Ronnie’s Clubhouse, led by ten cocktails named after Ronnie’s grandchildren and a wine list led by Ronnie’s Pinot Grigio – a special drop produced and bottled in the Murray Darling winemaking region. Claire’s sister Sarah will be handling the coffee machine, which will dispense quality brews from Vittoria, while Claire’s mother Glenys will on hand as the restaurant’s patron and hostess, sharing stories and welcoming guests with friendly warmth. We’ll have an up-close at Ronnie’s Clubhouse when it opens later this month!

OPA Bar + Mezze reopens
It’s been a few months between serves of OPA Bar + Mezze’s spanakopita, but by week’s end lovers of the restaurant’s eats will be able to savour its Greek cuisine once more. Months after flood waters inundated the riverside restaurant, OPA Bar + Mezze is now set to officially reopen to the public on Thursday June 23. Owner Michael Tassis has taken the rebuild opportunity to implement some new additions to OPA’s space and menu, including a new deck for outdoor seating as well as an extension of the dining area. A new breakfast and brunch menu will feature Greek-inflected dishes like sand crab omelette (with kefelograviera and pita bread), Cypriot eggs (poached eggs with yoghurt sauce, spices, mortadella and village bread), rizogalo (Greek rice pudding with poached pear) and an egg yiros, which sees a warm pita filled with fried eggs, mortadella, kefalograviera, haloumi chips, loukaniko sausage and a dollop of lemon-mustard sauce. OPA’s lunch and dinner menu will feature a familiar selection of winners, from fresh and raw bites, mezze, large mains, share plates and a luxurious seafood selection. Check in later this week for our look at OPA Bar + Mezze 2.0!

Fat Noodle at Treasury Brisbane’s Street Food Series
The sidewalks of Southeast Asia will take centre stage at Fat Noodle at Treasury Brisbane over the next three months, as chef Luke Nguyen takes diners on a tasting tour of authentic flavours from across the region. The Fat Noodle Street Food Series will kick off in July with a month-long celebration of Vietnamese cuisine, celebrating its sense-enlivening qualities through a menu of authentic street-style dishes elevated via Fat Noodle’s own contemporary style. Drawing upon his own Vietnamese heritage and experiences travelling across the country, Luke has crafted a limited-edition selection of snack-sized delicacies, including the likes of chargrilled scallops in spring onion, pork and lemongrass skewers, green tea-smoked duck with vermicelli noodles, and pumpkin flowers stuffed with prawns and dill. The menu traces a path across Vietnam, from the central highland city of Da Lat to Sapa in the country’s mountainous northwestern corner. After Vietnam, the series will look to spotlight other Southeast Asian countries, with August dedicated to the tastes of Thailand and September’s spread centred around Malaysian flavours. Keen to take your tastebuds on a holiday? Bookings for Fat Noodle can be made via the Treasury Brisbane website.

Mis.spelt Bakery
With its abundance of cafes, wine bars and upscale restaurants, Paddington is one of Brisbane’s most complete foodie suburbs. The only thing it is missing is a bakery of its own. We’re not the only one to have noticed this glaring gap in the market – Eli Rami and Sam Holman of Latrobe Terrace coffee spot Blackout has seen it too. They’re taking it upon themselves to rectify the situation with mis.spelt Bakery – a new retail resource stocking an assortment of baked goodies for locals to enjoy. The duo has secured a spot next door to its hole-in-the-wall coffee spot for the new concept, which will also double as the new home for Blackout itself. On one side of the space will sit Blackout’s new coffee bar, complete with a moody material palette of concrete, exposed brick and grey tiling. On the other side will sit mis.spelt, a brighter space (boasting terrazzo surfaces and lighter materials) where a range of artisanal breads and viennoiserie (supplied by a renowned local baker) will be available alongside deli sandwiches made on site. Blackout will reopen in three weeks, with mis•spelt on track to open in a month and a half. Keep your eyes on The Weekend Edition for more details as they emerge!

The Tiller Coffee closes
In sad news for Brisbane coffee lovers, one of Brisbane’s caffeine scene OGs – The Tiller Coffee in Alderley – has announced that it will be closing permanently at the end of June. In an announcement posted to The Tiller’s social-media pages, owners Chris and Charlie Grainger revealed that the last day of trade for their shipping-container cafe (which has been operating since September 2013) would take place on Thursday June 30. Beloved for its sublime specialty coffee (including its selection of ethically sourced single origins from local and not-so-local roasters), The Tiller was an early adopter of alternate brew methods, championing chemex, Aeropress, and cold-drip methods before such techniques were ubiquitous. If you’ve enjoyed brews from The Tiller Coffee in the past, we suggest popping in for one more before it closes.

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