In search of riverside lunchtime dining in the sun on a lovely winter day, I headed with a group of gals to Bar Alto at the Powerhouse in Lamington Street at New Farm.
The forecourt of The Powerhouse is home to Jan Power's Farmers Markets on a regular basis and Watt, another restaurant, is downstairs, a little closer to the river. There's plenty of parking near the forecourt.
Bar Alto is quite a large restaurant with a spacious deck overlooking the river. We didn't find the sun as the angle of the deck eluded it, but we did find fabulous river views and food to match.
Just to keep us from starving (not) we ordered some zucchini fritters to start with. These were small pieces of very moreish deep fried zucchini. They went fast!
The it was down to the serious business of talking and eating. Our choices included pan fired mulloway in a guazzetto of prawns, mussels, calamari, fennel and acini di pepe and stufato di maiale - pork rib and cotechino stew with lentils, kipfler potatoes and cavalo nero.
My choice was one of the lunch specials which combined squid ink pasta with a great selection of seafood in a buttery sauce. As one of my companions said - you would want to like butter - but I do so all was fine. The scallops were Canadian rather than Hervey Bay which was not to the liking of another fellow diner but I was happy to finish hers. Scallops at any price, I say!
We finished with coffee and no room for desserts, happy and relaxed after a river sojourn.
Bottom line - well priced and great for lunch.
Bar Alto
119 Lamington St, New Farm, Brisbane
(07) 3358 1063
