Paddock-To-Plate Experiences On The Sunshine Coast
- Kurt Penberth
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
When you find yourself in a bountiful food bowl with a hungry belly, you’re naturally obliged to make a wise dining decision. And in a region that loves its tucker as much as the Sunshine Coast does, the pressure is certainly on.
Our rich soil, unrelenting sunshine and sub-tropical climate provide the perfect conditions for a delicious array of crops. We’re talking pineapples, bananas, figs, avocadoes, macadamia nuts, ginger and much more.
The region is dotted with small-scale organic produce farms, niche food producers, dairy and beef farms in the hinterland and fresh seafood off the coast.
With such abundance on our doorsteps, there’s no shortage of paddock-to-plate opportunities. It’s all about supporting local and eating fresh.
Freshly harvested experiences
Photo credit: Saltwater Eco Tours
Saltwater Eco Tours: Forget farm-to-fork, it’s forest-to-fork in this one-of-a-kind sailing experience. Saltwater’s signature Bushtucker Cruise offers a degustation-style menu featuring freshly caught fish and locally foraged, sustainably sourced, seasonal native ingredients. Think Mooloolaba king prawns with bush tomato sauce or local squid with wattle seed mayo.
Photo credit: Terra Firma
Terra Firma: Carrying a name that translates to ‘solid ground’, this team of talented chefs is committed to sourcing the best quality ingredients grown in local soil. Terra Firma offers an immersive open-air dining experience for private functions, corporate events, festival celebrations and cooking class participants. Watch local ingredients slow roast over hot coals on an open fire pit for the ultimate farm-to-fire-to-fork experience.
Paddock-to-plate tours
Photo credit: Noosa Eat & Drink Festival
There’s no shortage of delicious foodie adventures in the region, where guides will take you directly to farm gates and local food providores. Join a Creative Tours Trawler to Table experience where you can enjoy a canal cruise to the Mooloolaba Fish Market for a behind-the-scenes peek into the local seafood industry, before enjoying a seafood feast at See Restaurant. Or explore some of the region’s best food producers including chocolate, macadamia nuts, bushtucker, coffee and wine with Tasty Tours.
The Curated Plate: Don’t miss this annual festival for your chance to enjoy some truly magical paddock-to-plate experiences. The 2025 program will be revealed soon, but if last year’s line-up was anything to go by you could be indulging in Mooloolaba prawns and local beer on a sunset whale-watching cruise, or embracing a locally fuelled Mad Hatter’s Tea Party in a lychee orchard.
Noosa Eat & Drink Festival: Let the belt out a few notches and make your way to this annual foodie paradise from Thursday May 29 to Sunday June 1. Nab a ticket to one of the festival’s coveted farm-to-fork events – maybe a long lunch on Main Beach or a day sampling local culinary delights in the Festival Village.
Restaurants focused on farm-to-table
Photo credit: Flame Hill Vineyard
Fairhill Courtyard Cafe Bar Restaurant: You’ve likely heard of this iconic native nursery, but did you know it’s also a paddock-to-plate dining destination? Now owned by the family behind Valdora’s Bamboo Park tropical nursery and organic farm, Fairhill opts for seasonal, unprocessed, organic-where-possible, local produce. Free-range eggs, pasture-reared pork and native honey come direct from Bamboo Park farm and are complemented by other local elements such as Yandina Apotheca sticky wildflower chai.
Mapleton Public House: This charming slice of hinterland paradise is all about reconnecting to each other and the earth. Making excellent use of its abundant market garden The Falls Farm just 3km down the road, the lunch and dinner menu served in the iconic Queenslander shines the spotlight on seasonal and sustainable. Wash it down with a local craft beer or farm-inspired cocktail.
Flame Hill Vineyard: Pull up a chair on the Flame Hill deck and admire the rolling green vineyards before you as you savour their final form in your wine glass. Similarly, many of the herbs and vegetables in your meal were plucked from the soil around the estate, while the beef comes from Flame Hill’s own grass-fed Angus cattle.
Virtue Bar and Eats: Amongst the hubbub of Mooloolaba, you’ll find one venue doing things differently. Proudly Indigenous owned and operated, this family business uses local, native ingredients in every dish and aims to engage First Nations suppliers as much as possible. Tuck in to cured kangaroo and potato hash for breakfast, or bush-spice-and-chilli-marinated Mooloolaba prawn skewers with bush apple slaw later in the day.
BASK Restaurant: The ever-changing menu at this Peregian Beach beauty is firmly dictated by the season and the bounty it’s produced in nearby fields. From pancetta-wrapped, new season asparagus with wattle-seed butter and fried egg to Mooloolaba king prawns with escabeche sauce, golden carrot and citrus, there is no doubt these guys deserve their two Chef Hats.
Alsahwa Estate: Foodies, keep your eyes peeled and appetites poised. Alsahwa Estate is planning to open a new farm-to-table restaurant in Palmwoods this May. The team is excited to bring its renowned passion for regenerative agriculture and local, spray-free produce to the menu.