Located on the Surfers Paradise beachfront beneath Peppers Soul hotel, the spectacular day-and-night restaurant, bar and events space Hyde Paradiso is adored for its seaside sips, flavour-packed Mediterranean bites, bottomless brunches and some of the best ocean views you’ll come across. If it’s been a minute in between sips, it’s high time you stopped by to take a squiz at the brand-new menu, which has been designed to showcase and spotlight locally sourced ingredients – we’re talking oysters from Coffin Bay in South Australia, prawns from North Queensland waters, free-range poultry and meat, and fruit and veg that is sourced directly from local farmers. While some head chefs adopt the ‘my way or the highway’ attitude, Hyde Paradiso’s head chef Nicholas Butler prefers a more collaborative approach. “When it comes to menu creation, I believe that the whole team needs to be involved in this process,” he says. “After all, this is our kitchen – not mine – every one of the chefs needs to be proud to pour their skills and passion into what we serve our guests.” The end result is nothing short of mouth-watering.

Get your day off to a delightful start by nailing your morning meal. The Mediterranean avo gives a little Hyde twist on the basic smashed variety, while the crispy spiced chicken promises a flavour bomb of bubble-and-squeak patty, topped with poached eggs and a drizzle of spicy chipotle hollandaise. As the day drifts along, the menu switches to a lunch/dinner offering that oozes Euro summer vibes. Given Nicholas’ background in some of the city’s finest seafood institutions including Oskars on Burleigh, Seascape and Seaduction, it’s not surprising that seafood features heavily on the rejigged menu. Oysters, kingfish crudo with pomegranate, cucumber and coriander, globes of buttery burrata and butterflied king prawns will get your feast off to a fine start while the larger plates contain crispy skinned barramundi, steamed clams and butterflied whole fish with green chilli verde. Are you drooling yet? You should be! If all that salivating has left you parched, you’re in luck – Hyde’s second-to-none selection of libations includes a clutch of specialty sips, such as a passionfruit pavlova and watermelon mojito alongside three different kinds of spritz, which are, in our opinion, the perfect accompaniment to balmy summer nights by the ocean.

If you’re yet to lock down a destination for Christmas lunch, there’s still a handful of tickets left to Hyde’s seaside soiree featuring a decadent seafood buffet lunch accompanied by a glorious four-hour premium beverage package. If Christmas is reserved for family, then surely New Year’s Eve is for fun. And fun is precisely what you will find at Hyde’s New Year’s Eve spectacular. Say sayonara to this strange old year and ring in 2023 with roaming tapas, free-flowing bubbles and, of course, when the time comes, a primo spot to catch the Surfers Paradise fireworks. You’d better be quick as tickets are getting snapped up faster than you can say “another, please”.

If you’re keen to check out Hyde’s new menu, jump over to our Stumble Guide for opening times and booking details.

Image credit: Steph Do Rozario