FNQ Food Magazine

16/06/2026

🎉☕️ Coffee Harvest Has Begun at Skybury Farms!

This week marks the exciting start of the 2026 coffee harvest season in Far North Queensland, the heart of Australia's coffee industry.

FNQ, particularly the Atherton Tablelands near Mareeba, produces around 85–90% of all coffee grown in Australia. While Australians enjoy more than 6 billion cups of coffee annually, locally grown coffee accounts for less than 1% of national consumption. That makes every FNQ-grown bean a unique part of Australia's coffee story.

The harvest season is a celebration of the dedication, resilience, and expertise of our coffee growers like Skybury Farms, who continue to produce high-quality beans in one of the world's most unique coffee-growing regions.

As the first cherries are picked and processing begins, we wish all FNQ coffee farmers a safe, productive, and successful harvest season.

Here's to another great year of Australian-grown coffee! ☕️🇦🇺

11/06/2026

🎉 Macalister Brewing Company is turning 9! 🎉

One of Far North Queensland’s favourite craft breweries is marking a major milestone, and they’re doing it in style. 🎸🍻

Macalister Brewing Company is throwing a big 9th Birthday Bash this Saturday 13 June, and the entertainment is on them! Party on with the incredible The Hype Boys – a high-energy live band renowned for getting the crowd on its feet and delivering an unforgettable night of entertainment.

If you experienced last year’s celebration, you’ll know just how special this event is. The atmosphere was electric, the dance floor was packed, and the music kept the party going all night long.

There are no tickets and no bookings required – just great music, great beer and a great opportunity to celebrate nine successful years with the Macalister Brewing community.

Arrive early if you’d like a seat, but don’t be surprised if you’re up dancing before long!

📅 Saturday 13 June
📍 Macalister Brewing Company

Gather your friends and help celebrate nine years of great beer, great hospitality and one of the region’s most-loved breweries. With a massive birthday party, outstanding live entertainment and a venue ready to celebrate, this is shaping up to be one of the must-attend nights of the month.

Happy 9th Birthday to the Macalister team! 🎂🥳

10/06/2026

Looking to learn more about wine without the intimidation factor?

The Conservatory Bar weekly Book Club is proving that wine education can be both approachable and fun. Held every Wednesday, the concept is simple: no books, no homework, and no need to be a wine expert. Instead, guests are invited to explore a different wine topic each week through guided tastings and conversation.

For $30, participants enjoy a selection of wines paired with a snack, while gaining practical knowledge one sip at a time. Best of all, there’s no need to book and no set start time—simply drop in when it suits you.

Whether you’re just beginning your wine journey or looking to build your confidence, Book Club offers a relaxed way to learn more about what’s in your glass.

📍 The Conservatory Bar
📅 Every Wednesday

Who says learning can’t come with a wine glass in hand? 🍷

& wine experience

27/05/2026

Experience a 𝓽𝓪𝓼𝓽𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓽𝓻𝓸𝓹𝓲𝓬𝓼 at Guyala Cafe with Skybury Farms smoked papaya and Mungalli Creek Dairy ricotta. 🤩

Or, get in touch with your inner chef and try this Oliver James recipe!
https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipe/smoked-papaya-dukkah-finger-lime-ciabatta/ev48498jc

20/05/2026

✨ Cairns foodies… this is your excuse for a night out in Yungaburra (or maybe even a Tablelands staycation!) 🍸🔥

Little Eden and Wolf Lane Distillery are teaming up for a special cocktail social!

Expect signature cocktails, food stations, live fire cooking, music and a relaxed atmosphere designed for sipping, grazing and celebrating with friends. Grab your gang, dust off your winter wardrobe and head up the hill!

Perfect for locals, a weekend escape from Cairns, or anyone looking for something different.

📍 Little Eden, Yungaburra
📅 Saturday, 6th June | From 6:30pm
🎟 $120pp

Tickets:
https://www.trybooking.com/DLFCJ

✨ TABLELANDS… this one is for you 🍸🔥

There are only TWO weeks to go until our Wolf Lane Cocktail Social at Little Eden — and tickets are steadily disappearing.

The Tablelands doesn’t often get nights like this.

https://www.trybooking.com/DLFCJ

A chance to dress up, gather your favourite people, sip beautiful cocktails and spend an evening moving between live food stations, fire cooking, music and cocktails in a relaxed social atmosphere.

No formal sit-down dinner.
No rushed evening.

Just a really good night out.

✨ Included in your ticket:
• Welcome Drink on arrival
• Three signature Wolf Lane cocktails
• Roaming food stations
• Live cocktail demonstrations
• Live music from 7:30pm

🍸 Wolf Lane will also have bottles and merch available to purchase on the night.
Wolf Lane Distillery

We’ve already had a great response from people excited to finally have something a little different happening up here — so if you’ve been thinking about booking, now is probably the time.

📍 Little Eden, Yungaburra
📅 Saturday, 6th June
⏰ From 6:30pm

🎟 Tickets: $120 per person
Bookings online at Trybooking

19/05/2026

There is something mildly amusing and deeply representative about the fact that after the formalities, slides, QR codes and bureaucratic choreography had concluded, the most useful part of the afternoon was ultimately two blokes standing in the corner talking plainly about business in the north.

Far North Queensland hospitality remains one of the region’s great hidden-in-plain-sight industries. More than 1,200 food and beverage venues. Over 100,000 seats needing occupants every day. Tens of thousands of meals leaving kitchens daily. An industry still overwhelmingly built upon owner-operators, families, risk, exhaustion, optimism and caffeine.

And yet because it is everywhere, it is often noticed nowhere.

Hospitality in FNQ is not merely tourism adjunct or lifestyle garnish. It is employment, activation, social infrastructure and confidence made visible. Empty dining rooms tell stories just as quickly as full ones.

Good to briefly hijack Hon. Steve Minnikin MP after today’s formal presentation and provide a more unvarnished snapshot of where the sector actually sits within the broader northern economy and the peculiar realities faced by small business operators in this part of the world.

Our thanks to minister Minnikin and for taking the time to engage with the region and receive our observations regarding the state, pressures and future of the industry. And thanks of course to Bree James - Barron River MP as facilitator and representative for our unique and diverse region.

19/05/2026

Congratulations to Bec, Dom and the team at Wild Local on taking out ‘Qld’s Best Fish & Chips’ award in 2026!

We know it’s good! 😋 Make sure you include a stop here in your next Hinchinbrook itinerary!

18/05/2026

Celebrate the newest season of Taste of the Tropics at Guyala Cafe. 🍍🥥🔥

Enjoy a one-night-only menu including dishes from the SBS episode ‘Foodie Friends’ while enjoying the screening featuring Oliver James.

📍 May 22 | 6–8pm
🎟 Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/taste-of-the-tropics-season-2-celebration-tickets-1987371105475

14/05/2026

FNQ Food Magazine is proud to sponsor the Cairns Show Wine Awards, established in 1992 and now a highly respected event with a long-standing history of celebrating Australian winemaking excellence. Firmly positioned as a national showcase rivalling major metropolitan competitions, the awards attract entries from leading wine regions across the country, reflecting the breadth, diversity and calibre of Australia’s finest vintages.

More than a celebration, the event is a benchmark of quality, highlighting exceptional craftsmanship, wine style, and the art of food pairing. It brings together wineries, industry leaders, and passionate enthusiasts, all united by a commitment to excellence in wine.

A key point of distinction is the way wines are judged—grouped into style-based categories designed to guide food pairing and enhance the consumer experience. These thoughtfully curated classes connect wine directly to the plate, reinforcing the role wine plays at the table.

The eleven categories include:
• Sparkling Wine
• White Wine – Fragrant & Aromatic
• White Wine – Light to Medium Bodied
• White Wine – Dry Full Bodied
• Rosé & Light Red Wine
• Pinot Noir
• Red Wine – Medium Bodied / Rounder Softer Tannins
• Red Wine – Full Bodied / Firmer Tannins
• Dessert Wines
• Fortified Wines
• Wines of Provenance

The prestige of the awards is reinforced by its panel of highly trained judges and officials, drawn from across Australia and operating under internationally recognised judging standards. Leading the event as Chair of Show is Hamish Seabrook from Seabrook Wines, supported by an accomplished panel including Brooke Blair from Peter Lehmann Wines, Tom Wallace from Brown Family Wine Group, and Mr Ben Wilcox from d’Arenberg.

Among the judging team are also familiar local industry figures serving as senior and associate judges, including Bart Foley from Barefootdrinker and Ross Stevens from The Conservatory Bar, bringing regional insight to a nationally significant event.

Wine judging will take place from 17 to 19 June, with the results showcasing some of the country’s finest wines. Wine lovers won’t want to miss the Public Tasting on Saturday 20 June—an opportunity to experience award-winning wines firsthand and connect with the stories behind the labels.

Find out more and secure your ticket to the tasting - https://cairnsshow.com.au/cairns-show-wine-awards/

11/05/2026

The ever popular Manu returns to the tropics for Taste Port Douglas - Food & Drink Festival 2026, bringing his unmistakable charm, energy and world-class culinary flair to one of the region’s most anticipated events.

A familiar face to Australian audiences and a favourite on the Taste stage, Manu Feildel is known for turning every appearance into an experience — equal parts exceptional food, lively storytelling and pure joie de vivre. His connection with Far North Queensland runs deep, and his return promises many standout moments.

Set against the stunning backdrop of Port Douglas, the 10 Years of Taste festival program is shaping up to be the best yet — and Manu only raises the bar.

📅 August 6–9, 2026
🎟️ Tickets available now at tasteportdouglas.com.au

Expect flavour, flair and a festival atmosphere that FNQ does best.