Communal Bar & Eat House

COMMUNAL BAR AND EAT HOUSE HAS PERMANENTLY CLOSED.

Communal Bar and Eat House is a casual al fresco diner and bar resembling a funky covered marketplace, found at the base of the Brisbane Square council headquarters.

And with its laidback all-ages friendly, drop in any time for a drink or decent bite to eat vibe, it’s a welcome addition to the river end of Queen Street and well worth a wander south of the mall.

Diners get to order under one of the retro Hollywood light-bulb lit signs and food is then delivered to the table, either in the brick and art-adorned side dining room or on the glass-fenced terrace, which by night enjoys splendid views of the lit-up Treasury façade.

The menu at Communal is best described as cosmopolitan bistro, and features a dedicated Pizza section wherein divine Italian pizzas are cooked in the traditional wood-fired pizza oven by a dedicated Italian pizza chef.

A must try for tourists, visitors to Brisbane and seafood lovers is the Seafood Skyscraper, with one ‘chilled’ floor of fresh seafood, Mooloolaba prawns, natural oysters, sand crab, bay bugs, ocean trout and black lip mussels, while the ‘hot’ floor contains coconut prawns, grilled scallops, termpura whiting, fish goujon and salt and pepper calamari.

The rest of the extensive menu covers Starters like wood-roasted ciabatta or antipasti share plate, Communal salads of warm beetroot and feta or Greek Style Lamb fillet, Burgers such as Chimi Churri Chicken, Wagyu Beef or the Bavarian Dog (with flamed German bratwurst).

For something more substantial there are Mains like Ham Hock Papardelle and Stour Braised Beef Shin Pie, a range of Flame Grill steaks served with wood roast potato and chopped salad, or the mega Communal Share Plates (think Seafood Skyscraper or 1.5kg Tomahawk beef rib fillet).

Meanwhile from the Dessert Board come home comfort favourites with a twist like Passionfruit Cheesecake, Pavlova or the melt-in-the-mouth Warm Chocolate Fudge Brownie.

The bar list is as comprehensive as the menu, with Cocktails by the glass or jug. The former are a mix of classics like Singapore Sling, Rob Roy, the Savoy Hotel’s Barbadian Swizzle or the in-house mixologists own creations like the Bull Run – a refreshing blend of bull dog gin, chartreuse, Benedictine, pineapple and sage. Otherwise, by the jug comes Lynchberg Lemonade and Sangria Rosso or Bianco. The latter – a refreshing heady mix of passionfruit, pineapple, apple, strawberries, ginger, cinnamon, sav blanc and Don Julio blanco makes the perfect summer evening cocktail.

Wines come from around Australia and NZ, with the odd Italian drop in the mix, and beer, cider and white wine all come as draught from the Communal Ale House or ‘packaged’.

Need to know – Communal is a great family friendly diner, with plenty of space for prams inside and plenty of Reddacliff Place to run around in outside, efficient service.