FNQ Food Magazine

13/11/2025

🌱 FNQ Producers in Focus ☕️

Skybury Farms continues to champion the passion, people and craftsmanship behind Far North Queensland’s thriving food and agriculture scene.

General Manager Candy MacLaughlin captures the heart of the operation — a leader whose dedication reflects generations of farming knowledge and a deep commitment to quality.

Whether you’re a local or a visitor, a stop at Skybury offers exceptional coffee, genuine conversation, and a view that’s pure FNQ.

Support local. Taste local. Celebrate local. 💛

“Farming isn’t just what we do… it’s who we are!
Every roast is a reflection of generations growing together.” — Candy MacLaughlin

Join us for a coffee, a chat, and a view that’s hard to beat ☀️☕ 10am-4pm, weekdays!

www.skybury.com.au

13/11/2025

𝗥𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗚𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 — 𝗙𝗡𝗤 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝘇𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝘀 𝗟𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 🍹🥃🍺🍷🍸

The team behind FNQ Food Magazine is proud to introduce a spirited new sibling: 𝙁𝙉𝙌 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙯𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙚 — a digital-only edition celebrating the bold, inventive, and slightly irreverent world of Far North Queensland’s artisan alcohol.

This isn’t just a drinks list. It’s a love letter to the region’s distillers, brewers, and winemakers — the alchemists turning tropical fruit, rainforest botanicals, and volcanic soil into world-class spirits and beers. From Mareeba to Mission Beach, Cape York to the Cassowary Coast, FNQ Booze captures a scene that’s matured into something truly distinctive — playful yet professional, grounded yet globally competitive.

Expect profiles on the region’s rum revolutionaries, wild-ferment winemakers, gin geniuses, and the bars pouring their creations with flair. Expect stories of sweat, science, and sugarcane. Expect drinkable geography — a taste of place in every glass.

As the tropics’ first dedicated craft booze publication, FNQ Booze will be your go-to guide for what’s brewing, what’s new, and what’s next in northern drinking culture.

Pour yourself something local, and click through — the party’s online.
https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/11/10/raise-your-glass-fnq-booze-has-landed/

30/10/2025

Special specials! 🥳
From Johnny and the team — Pro FNQ Food tip: don’t miss Chef Chris’s cheesecakes.
Pop in, say hi, and taste why locals keep coming back for more!

03/10/2025

🌟 Celebrating Local Excellence! 🌟

A huge congratulations to Tamarind Restaurant Cairns for being awarded a prestigious Two Glasses (Excellent) rating in the Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards 2025 👏🍷

This recognition highlights Tamarind’s exceptional wine offering, showcasing a carefully curated list that perfectly complements their renowned dining experience in the heart of Cairns.

Established in 1993, these awards are Australia’s most respected program for wine and beverage lists – and Tamarind has proudly taken its place among the best in the country.

🥂 Cheers to the Tamarind team for putting Cairns on the national stage once again!

👉 Discover more about their award-winning wine list here: reefcasino.com.au/dine-2/tamarind-restaurant

02/10/2025

🌿🍷 Tropical Wines, FNQ Style

Forget rolling vineyards — at Shannonvale Tropical Fruit Winery mangoes, jaboticaba, and passionfruit take centre stage. Just ten minutes from Port Douglas, this family-run winery is crafting award-winning wines that challenge everything you thought you knew about wine.

From backyard experiment to cult favourite, Trudy and Laza Woodall are bottling the spirit of the tropics — bold, unexpected, and utterly delicious. 🌴🥭

📖 Discover their story: https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/10/03/beyond-the-grape-the-tropical-alchemy-of-shannonvale-winery/

30/09/2025

☕️ Happy World Coffee Day, Far North Queensland! 🌴

This morning, Queensland Premier David Crisafulli MP joined Bree James - Barron River MP at one of our favourite local spots — Perrotta's at the Gallery — to celebrate the day with a cup of brilliant coffee.

We love seeing our leaders supporting the venues that make FNQ’s food and coffee culture so vibrant. A big shout out to Perrotta’s and all the incredible cafés across the region that keep us fuelled and connected every day. 🙌

No matter your favourite brew — espresso, latte, flat white, or long black — today’s the perfect excuse to get out and enjoy it at your favourite FNQ venue.

— The FNQ Food Team

Starting World Coffee Day from Far North QLD with Bree James.

Thanks to the team at Perrotta's in Cairns for the brilliant brew. ☕️

29/09/2025

🇮🇹 La Fettuccina at 39: A Cairns Classic 🇮🇹

For nearly four decades, La Fettuccina Restaurant has been part of Cairns’ dining story — and since 2006, John Japp and Andrea Pinciarova have been the steady hands at the helm. No flashy reinventions. No shortcuts. Just the kind of Italian cooking that speaks for itself — pasta made fresh every day, risotto stirred with patience, tiramisu that rests just long enough to be perfect.

Regulars return not just for the food, but for the familiarity: birthdays celebrated at the same table, favourite wines remembered, plates of fettuccine arriving exactly as you like them. It’s hospitality built on memory, tradition, and trust.

✨ Discover how staying true has become La Fettuccina’s boldest move in FNQ Food Magazine:
🔗 La Fettuccina at 39: The Art of Staying True - https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/09/28/la-fettuccina-at-39-the-art-of-staying-true/

25/09/2025

Congratulations to Prawn Star Cairns on receiving a Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice™ Award 2025! 🎉

We’ve just snagged a Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice™ Award 2025! 🎉
A massive thank you to our amazing crew and all of you legends who’ve supported us—this one’s for you! 💛
www.prawnstarcairns.com

24/09/2025

✨ Splash Seafood Restaurant: Staying True at 23 ✨

For more than two decades, Malcolm and Megan McKay have steered Splash Seafood Restaurant on the Cairns Esplanade with a clear philosophy: keep it simple, keep it local, and keep it real. 🐟🍤

From wild-caught seafood to generations of loyal diners, they’ve built more than a restaurant — they’ve built a community.

Discover how Splash continues to thrive in a changing dining landscape, staying true to its roots while serving some of the freshest plates in Far North Queensland. 🌊

👉 Read the full story here: https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/09/21/splash-seafood-restaurant-staying-true-at-23/