A visit to Palm Beach Ave makes me feel as though spring has arrived. It’s fresh, breezy and beautiful.
Palm Beach Ave is Daniel and Ruggie Ridgeway’s tribute to Palm Beach and a coastal lifestyle. The 150-seat venue sits on the corner of the Gold Coast Highway on the ground floor of Village Palm Beach, its balcony looking down Palm Beach Avenue to the beach, just a stone’s throw away.
In Art Deco meets Palm Springs style, full of feminine charm in blushing pink with sparkling clamshell chandeliers and wallpaper sourced from the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles, the venue is a flashback to grander times before ‘shabby chic’ fogged our senses.
“We had a vision to create a venue that would pay homage to the local area. Coastal, relaxed, unpretentious, but still have a slick fit out that anyone in board shorts to a suit would feel comfortable,” says chef and owner, Daniel Ridgeway.
It’s testament to the team’s skill that such a stunning place feels so relaxed as a café by day, transforming into a sophisticated smart casual restaurant by night, as on point as the cherry blossom tree gracing its entrance. It’s chameleon chic.
It’s the first ‘all day and night’ Ridgeway location, as Daniel explains: “Due to its location, it wouldn’t feel right if we were not open for breakfast. Our breakfast menu has some classics like Eggs Benny and bacon and egg rolls, through to savoury waffles with karaage chicken.”
At breakfast, guests order at the counter or from the table by QR code. While Avo smash and an Acai bowl may take your eye, we have our sights set on the chilli scrambled eggs with feta, mint, chorizo crumb and fried shallots.
The menu switches up at lunchtime with full table service and a glimpse of the food for which Chef Daniel is famous at Little Truffle and Bin 232 at Pacific Fair. His love of fresh seafood, stunning handmade pasta and exceptional local seasonal vegetable sides is evident in the menu which spans both lunch and dinner.
“This menu has been designed with my team to ensure there is something for everyone. As casual as a double cheeseburger to oysters, gold band snapper fillet or generous porterhouse steak. I am particularly excited about our raw section [which emerges as the sun sets], featuring an array of fresh seafood including kingfish sashimi, flamed scallop sashimi and spicy tuna tartare,” says Daniel Ridgeway.
Although some of the food servings are suitable for individual diners, it’s food we love to share. Truffles feature in arancini and on pizza, salad is vamped up with sticky pork, fresh beet salad paired with a deliciously creamy goat’s cheese and candied walnuts.
My favourite dish, tender pillows of handmade Agnolotti pasta filled with Moreton bay bug and prawn meat is drenched in a lemon butter sauce, a taste sensation.
Boasting an extensive wine list and an enticing range of ‘It’s never too early to have a cocktail’ creations, it’s all too easy to while away a few hours in this fabulous location.
Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, and inclusive enough of both children and dogs (in the outdoor garden) to give them their own menus, Palm Beach Ave is a ‘must visit’ dining destination.
With its relaxed unpretentious aesthetic and stunning coastal menu, it’s topping our list as a place to visit with friends.
Palm Beach Ave, 6 Palm Beach Ave, Palm Beach Qld 4221 Ph: 07 5646 6966 Open: Wed – Fri 11.30am – late, Sat– Sun 7.30am – late
NOTE: Good Food Gold Coast dined as a guest of Palm Beach Ave.