Riverside Cafe & Bar

Riverside Cafe & Bar is an outdoor restaurant in the Parklands at South Bank, Brisbane, close to Riverside Green Playground. Its setting combines bright white and ocean-blue tones with natural timber, creating a relaxed, family-friendly space with views towards the river and city. The location makes it a practical choice for a meal before or after time in the playground, as well as a casual catch-up over coffee, a drink or dinner.

Breakfast is served daily from 7am to noon, with a menu that moves from simple toasted sourdough and croissants through to more substantial plates. Standout options include the Riverside Bruschetta, with tomato, rocket, avocado, feta and tahini, the gochujang-seasoned Chilli Scramble, zucchini and corn fritters, and the Golden Crusted Potato Cake Benny, served with poached eggs, spinach and hollandaise. There are also vegetarian and larger breakfast plates, sweet choices such as waffles and pancakes, and dedicated kids’ breakfast options.

From 11am, the lunch and dinner menu broadens into tacos, burgers, wraps, salads, pasta, seafood and steaks. The offering includes fish tacos, chicken schnitzel and parmigiana, barramundi prepared battered or grilled, salmon, a fisherman basket and a 300g rib eye. Vegetarians have choices including mushroom risotto, mushroom linguine, a veggie burger and Greek salad, while families can choose from kids’ meals such as pasta, fish bites, nuggets, calamari or a cheese beef burger. Toasted sandwiches, bagels and sharing plates are available throughout the day.

The bar covers espresso coffee, loose-leaf tea, iced drinks, milkshakes, smoothies, wine, tap and bottled beer, spirits and cocktails. Options range from a morning coffee or afternoon beer to evening drinks, with the venue open late on Fridays and Saturdays. Riverside also offers catering platters for breakfast, morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea, making it suitable for workplace gatherings and informal celebrations. Overall, the combination of playground proximity, broad all-day menu, family provisions, outdoor seating and river-and-city outlook suits families, colleagues and groups looking for an easy South Bank dining stop.