Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town
Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point's desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town

Sunsets Rooftop, Kangaroo Point’s desert-inspired oasis in the sky, is serving some of the best views in town

Brisbane’s newest rooftop bar has opened at the perfect time. At Sunsets in Kangaroo Point, sensational city views are enhanced by a menu of Mediterranean-inspired eats and zingy citrus-laced cocktails – the perfect recipe for sun-soaked springtime sips. Take a look at what’s on offer …

When we sit down with Daniel Tuivaiti at Sunsets Rooftop in Kangaroo Point, it’s Friday September 1, the day before Riverfire. It’s lunchtime and the place is packed – a common sight ever since the elevated bar and eatery opened on Thursday August 24. A C-17 Globemaster III and a Boeing EA-18G Growler practice their flyover routes ahead of the following night’s festivities, and though our conversation is punctuated by the deafening roar of aircraft soaring overhead, one can’t help but get excited at the sheer spectacle guests will experience once the action is truly underway. Daniel and his partner Katrina Mead knew they had something good on their hands when they first spied the vacant rooftop site online, but even their boldest predictions failed to match reality. “After the amount of [pre-opening] hype we received, we kind of knew that this could be much bigger than what we imagined,” says Dan. “We expected maybe a couple of hundred people through the first weekend, but we had over a thousand covers.” Having secured the lease to the site in March last year, the Sunsets ownership team (comprised of the Tuivaiti, Mead and Hartley families) have had a long time to mentally simulate every scenario – both good and disastrous. Looking at Sunsets in full flight, however, it’s hard to imagine it would ever be anything other than warmly received.

The rooftop oasis, located at the summit of Linton Apartments, is an eye-catching, desert-inspired locale tastefully accoutred with sand-toned tiling, low-set couches, woven lamp shades, sun-bleached timber furnishings and bar top, cacti gardens and gold accents. Boasting north-facing views of The City’s skyline and even a bird’s eye view into The Gabba over the road, Sunsets has claim to angles that you can’t get at other rooftop bars. “It was going to be more Ibiza-inspired with white tones, but when we got the travertine tiles we decided to build around that,” says Dan, who spearheaded the design and fit-out effort alongside Grant Hartley. “We wanted [Sunsets] to be relaxing and calming, and we thought nothing does that better than timber, stone and organic materials.”

Overseeing the kitchen is the team from Alemré Group (OléDowntown Istanbul), which has devised a menu that encompasses tapas-style bites and shareable mains. “Eddie [Isik, founder of Alemré Group] has a Turkish background,” explains Daniel. “We knew he did Mediterranean food extremely well and we knew the Turkish roots could translate very easily for our menu.” The Sunsets menu starts with dips and bread (including house-made hummus and chargrilled red-pepper muhammara), before moving onto snacks like marinated-chicken tacos, crispy baby calamari with fennel salt and fried pork belly with orange glaze. From there, the offering broadens to include fried cauliflower with tahini lemon sauce, chargrilled lamb salad, grilled tiger prawn doused in roasted garlic butter, two kinds of shish, lamb cutlets and whole slow-cooked lamb shoulders. The drinks menu has been built to fuel sun-soaked sipping sessions, with a range of refreshing libations on hand for the warmer months. “That’s kind of what we wanted to build the menu around,” says Dan. “Very tropical, fruity, citrusy and fresh. We’ve got a beautiful gimlet that’s very lime based and it’s so refreshing – you can just sip on it all day.” Classic cocktails are available alongside a clutch of signatures (the Casa Paloma –with Casamigos reposado tequila, Fever-Tree pink grapefruit soda, agave and lime – was a popular option when we visited), a tight wine list, tap and tinned beers, and some zero-alcohol options. There’s also talk of a spritz menu launching in summer.

Sunsets Rooftop is now open to the public – click over to the Stumble Guide to find menu details, booking links and operating hours.

The Stumble Guide is our comprehensive Brisbane dining guide with more than 2400 places to eat, drink, shop and play.

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