Pawpaw Café

Pawpaw Café is a slick brunch café by day and ambient Pan Asian restaurant by night, inhabiting an historic shop on Stanley Street, East Brisbane.

With young Brisbane hospitality hotshot Giorgina Venzin at the helm, Pawpaw Café has established itself as one of the city's best foodie destinations from morning to night, as well as a great functions venue. 

The décor is a fresh eclectic blend of vintage and new, Asian and Oz, with one wall covered in 1960s palm tree motif wallpaper and another with stunning wall art.

The all day breakfast menu features delectable dishes such as Croffle Benedict (poached eggs, wilted spinach, smoked paprika hollandaise & croissant waffle); Paw Paw Signature Hash (potato hash, poached eggs, turmeric hummus, smashed avocado, halloumi, beetroot relish & almond dukkha); and Lemon Meringue French Toast (vanilla French toast, soft meringue, lemon sorbet, lemon tea curd, jasmine tea mousse & berry crumb).

Lunch dishes are available from 11am and include Korean Chicken Burger, Pawpaw Tacos (crumbed barramundi or jackfruit with Asian slaw, Japanese mayo, sambal, Thai laab spices & coriander); Massaman Beef Cheek Curry or Malaysian Yellow Curry.

The drinks menu is a match for the food menu, with lush offerings like Mango Weis or Pink Pitaya Smoothie, Coconut Frappe and Peach Iced Tea, along with cocktails such as Cold Brew Martini, Lavender Butterfly and Frosé. 

Delicious dinner dishes are designed to share, starting with small plates such as Chicken & Chive Dumplings with Thai vinaigrette; Steamed Crispy Chicken or Jackfruit Bao; Barramundi Larb; Satay Chicken and Sticky Eggplant.

Larger plates include Pad Thai Noodles; Cashew Nut Stir-fry (tofu, chicken, prawn or wagyu); Pork Belly (crispy pork belly, aromatic oil, greens, au jus, leeks, mustard greens & nori); and Grilled Wagyu (300g Wagyu sirloin, truffle soy dressing, wakame & mushroom), with sides like papaya salad or seasonal greens. 

Save room for dessert, with scrumptious offerings such as Lemon Tart, Lamington with fried ice-cream, berries and cream and Biscoff Caramel or Cookies & Cream Sundae.

Meanwhile, for groups of four and more, there are excellent and generous banquets available.

The evening drinks menu features a range of classic and house cocktails (think lychee martini and frozen mango daiquiri); a curated wine list of mostly Australian and NZ wines, including a selection from local south east Queensland wineries; an eclectic array of beers including Thai, Singaporean and Australian craft beers. plus classic spirits.

As well as one of Brisbane's best café-restaurants for any occasion, from date night to family or friends gathering, Pawpaw Café is also a top venue for that special event or function, with the same delicious food served at the restaurant guaranteed to wow your guests.  

Pawpaw Café has a beautiful floral-chic function room which is separate from the main dining area, ideal for private functions of up to 40 guests seated and up to 50 guests standing, with catering options ranging from canapes and dinner boxes to sumptuous banquets.

Need to know - A limited amount of on-street parking is available nearby.

The menu may have changed since our visit.

PawPaw Café is a valued partner of Must Do Brisbane.com