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 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 Croissant Benedict (poached eggs, wilted spinach, Harisa Hollandaise sauce & croissant); Paw Paw Signature Hash (potato hash, poached eggs, turmeric hummus, smashed avocado, halloumi, beetroot relish & almond dukkha); and Creme Brulee French Toast (French toast, honey yoghurt, cinnamon sugar crumb, strawberry, cream custard, maple brown syrup).

Lunch dishes are available all day and include Chilli Popcorn Chicken (Thai laab spices & Japanese mayo), Asian Fish 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 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 Beef Massaman curry puffs; Seafood dumpling and creamy Tom Yum Soup; Chicken Bao; Fish Taco or Pork Ribs. 

Larger plates include Pad Thai Noodles; Cashew Nut Stir-fry (tofu, chicken, prawn or wagyu); Malaysian Yellow Curry (eggplant, potato, pumpkin, coconut cream, fried onion, coriander, roti); Green Curry (slow-cooked chicken, green curry, eggplant, bamboo shoot, chilli, basil, green beans, coriander, krachai); and Pla Sam Rod (crispy fish, sweet chilli sauce, crispy chilli, coriander, bok choy, tofu).

Save room for dessert, with scrumptious offerings such as Mango & Coconut Sago Pudding; Chocolate Brownie (warm chocolate brownie, fresh strawberries, cinnamon crumble, vanilla ice cream & salted toffee sauce); and Soft Serve (flavour of the month).

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.

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