FNQ Food Magazine

24/12/2025

🎄✨ Merry Christmas & a Happy Food Year from FNQ Food Magazine! ✨🎄

As 2025 draws to a close, we’re raising our glasses to YOU — our incredible community of readers, creators, growers, cooks, makers, and food lovers across Far North Queensland and beyond. 🌞🍍

Thank you for being part of a year filled with unforgettable flavours, inspiring stories, passionate producers, and the vibrant hospitality that makes FNQ’s food scene truly special. From rainforest farms to reef-fresh seafood, from distillers and brewers to café heroes — we’ve loved celebrating every bite with you. 💚 🍽

Here’s to sunshine, shared meals, joyful gatherings, and a Happy Food Year ahead! 🥂✨

📲 Read the full festive message here: www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/12/24/merry-christmas-a-happy-food-year/

13/12/2025

🎄🥃 Win Win Win WIN! FNQ BOOZE – Giveaway: Limited Edition Candy Cane Liqueur* 🥃🎄

Narrow Tracks Distilling is pouring festive cheer to celebrate the launch of FNQ Booze Magazine—and you could be sipping along with them.

As part of our FNQ BOOZE launch celebrations, this Far North Queensland distillery is giving one lucky entrant the chance to win a bottle of their Limited Edition Candy Cane Liqueur—a sweet, minty Christmas drop inspired by Santa’s secret recipe straight from the North Pole.

🎁 The Prize:

1 x bottle of Limited Edition Candy Cane Liqueur

Sweet, smooth and refreshingly minty, this festive favourite is perfect served:
• Neat
• On ice
• Or with a dash of lemonade and soda

Christmas spirit, sorted.

FNQ Booze Magazine is your new online guide to the best of Far North Queensland’s distillers, brewers, and wineries. Produced by the FNQ Food team, it’s the region’s first curated digital drinks directory—celebrating the makers, venues, and bold flavours of the north.

Narrow Tracks Distilling is just one of the many producers featured in the guide, and this festive giveaway is the perfect way to kick off the season.

👉 How to Enter:

✔️ Follow FNQ Food Magazine and Narrow Tracks Distilling on Instagram or Facebook
✔️ Like this post and tag a friend you’d share a Christmas drink with
✔️ Optional bonus: tell us your favourite festive cocktail or liqueur moment using

🗓 Competition Draw:
Monday 22 December at 5pm

📍 Where to Try:
Narrow Tracks Distilling
60–70 Magazine Street, Stratford

Opening Hours:
Wed & Thur: 1pm – 8pm
Fri & Sat: 1pm – 9pm
Sunday: 1pm – 7pm

Don’t miss your chance to win—and while you’re at it, explore the full FNQ Booze Magazine guide online and discover more local legends worth toasting 🍹
👉 https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/fnq-distillers-brewers-winemakers/



*Terms and conditions apply. Entrants must be of legal drinking age (18+ in Queensland).

07/12/2025

Cairns’ iconic fine diner Tamarind Restaurant Cairns has entered a thrilling new era — and it’s nothing like you remember. Newly appointed Chef de Cuisine Tom Martinez is steering a bold creative shift, blending precision technique with global influences and a deeper commitment to sustainability. Think dramatic plating, vegetable-forward hero dishes and thoughtful sourcing are reshaping the menu. Front-of-house is evolving too, with Restaurant Manager Shayla Singh elevating service into a personalised, guest-first experience where every detail matters. Tamarind isn’t just returning to form — it’s redefining fine dining in FNQ. If you think you know Tamarind, think again.

Read the full story → link in comments!

05/12/2025

ITS ABOUT YOU!! THE PEOPLE, PLACES, FOOD & BOOZE OF FNQ
Fantastic news from TTNQ, and a genuine step forward for regional tourism promotion and a moment our entire food and beverage community should seize.

FNQ Food has championed the message that food and drink are not just another element of the visitor experience, they are the thread that ties tourism together.

Food tourism in FNQ is a tri-sector ecosystem: locals using their leisure time to eat and drink, their visiting friends and relatives sharing meals and stories, and traditional tourists seeking an authentic taste of something unforgettable. For years we have called for collaboration, unity, and recognition of the sector’s true value. Today, that call finally has the full backing of the region’s peak body.

With more than 1,300 food and beverage businesses from Cardwell to the Cape, there isn’t a venue that doesn’t celebrate local produce or tell a local story. Food is consistently one of the strongest drivers of visitor satisfaction, and one of the clearest predictors of repeat visitation. When the food is good and genuinely local, people come back.

TTNQ Eat Local Month, launching April 2026, is the platform we have been waiting for. A region-wide celebration of local food and drink — not a single event but a constellation of them — from seasonal dish specials to farm experiences, chef collaborations, in-house events, agritourism encounters, dining experiences, and producer-led activities. It’s an open invitation for every operator to take part and shape the month in whatever way fits their business.

And here’s the call to action:
Whatever your venue, whatever your style, wherever you are in FNQ — THIS IS YOUR CHANCE to stand up, be counted, and show everyone what FNQ hospitality is made of. Proud. Local. United. To show that we are relevant, resilient, important, and above all an essential component of tourism messaging.

No other region in Australia can claim the diversity of products, cuisines, and experiences that FNQ can.

Let’s unite. Let’s participate. Let’s celebrate.
PLEASE JOIN IN NOW — link to further info from TTNQ is in the comments below.

04/12/2025

𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗢𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 — 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗡𝗤’𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗳é 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲

Far North Queensland’s hospitality scene has its share of loud, flashy chefs — and then there’s Oliver James. Known to most simply as “Olly,” he’s not about bells, whistles or flash mobs. Instead, he builds with intention, respect and quiet conviction. From the rebellious laneway energy of Caffiend to the serene coastal grace of Guyala Cafe, from thoughtfully roasted beans at Tattooed Sailor Coffee Roasters to meaningful gatherings at Newell Street Cafe — Olly has quietly shaped the way FNQ eats, drinks and connects.

In a region defined by vibrant landscapes and diverse voices, Oliver isn’t just another operator: he’s a storyteller. Through every café, cup, and meal, he invites the community in to taste, reflect, belong. This piece celebrates not just his restaurants, but his vision — that hospitality anchored in community, culture and craft can transform more than a plate.

Read how his journey — humble beginnings, fearless creativity and deep respect for place — has made him one of Far North Queensland’s true hospo heroes. Link in comments!

04/12/2025

Fantastic news from TTNQ, and a genuine step forward for regional tourism promotion, as well as a great opportunity for everyone across the food and beverage sector.

With more than 1,300 F&B businesses spread across Tropical North Queensland, there isn’t a venue that doesn’t champion local produce or tell a local story. Food is consistently cited as one of the top drivers of visitor satisfaction, and it’s also one of the strongest predictors of repeat visitation. When the food is good — and authentically local — people come back.

As an industry, we should absolutely take advantage of this initiative. No other region in Australia can claim hundreds of unique local products woven into dozens of culinary styles, from paddock and orchard to reef and ocean. Our chefs, producers and operators already form the vanguard of hospitality for the hundreds of thousands of visitors who come here annually — and Eat Local Month gives us a rare platform to celebrate that collectively.

This is a chance to show the depth and diversity of our food story, strengthen partnerships, and build a legacy that grows year on year.

Bring on April 2026

TTNQ is developing a region-wide celebration of local food and drink experiences to showcase the incredible chefs, producers, and agritourism stories that make Tropical North Queensland unique. Eat Local Month in April 2026 will be an opportunity to showcase Tropical North Queensland’s produce and dining experiences, encourage locals and visitors from neighbouring regions to enjoy food experiences throughout the month, and demonstrate what a strong food and drink story our destination has.

A name and logo are being developed to launch to the industry by mid-January with a public launch in mid-February to get the community excited and encourage visitation to food events. We are gauging interest from those involved in the food and drink industry with the plan to create a legacy that enhances our destination’s food and drink story with an ongoing annual food month that will grow each year.

The concept is not a single event, but a series of events throughout the region which could be as simple as a restaurant creating a dish celebrating a local ingredient in season that month and offering it to diners as a special. It will be an opportunity for businesses to host food events, for example a hotel may have a weekend of themed in-dining and develop accommodation packages to support visitation. Each event would be managed by the business hosting it and we encourage partnerships with other businesses to further draw attention to our food story.

We’re calling on TTNQ members across dining, accommodation, events, agritourism and food businesses to be part of this great new initiative celebrating the region’s vibrant food story. TTNQ will be publicising food activities throughout the region to media and on our destination website.

If you can plan a food event for April, please let us know via this form.
https://ttnq.wufoo.com/forms/tropical-north-qld-eat-local-month/

04/12/2025

A Very Happy 1st Anniversary to The New Conservatory Bar 🍷

Cairns already loved The Conservatory Bar — and this time last year, Ross and the team opened the doors to their stunning new home on Lake Street.

Twelve months on, the vibe is stronger than ever:
a full bar, beautifully curated wine flights, that signature old-fashioned charm… and today, even a slice of celebratory cake (while supplies last!).

If you haven’t visited the new space yet, this is your sign.
If you have — well, you already know why it’s become one of the city’s most beloved haunts.

Here’s to the next chapter for one of Cairns’ finest wine rooms. 🥂

28/11/2025

✨ Editor Eats: The Vine Room 🌴

Our editor has found Cairns’ ultimate Mediterranean-meets-Tropics escape — and trust us, you’ll want to try it. Think coastal breezes, a menu to delight and cocktails that taste like holiday mode. 🍸

See why The Vine Room is the newest must-visit in our Editor Eats series. Link in comments!

27/11/2025

Win Win Win WIN! FNQ BOOZE - Giveaway: a Tropical Six-Pack*

Shannonvale Tropical Fruit Winery is raising a glass to the launch of FNQ Booze Magazine—and you could be sipping right along with them.

As part of the FNQ BOOZE launch celebration, this Mossman-based winery is offering one lucky entrant a 6-bottle tropical gift pack featuring their signature small-batch fruit wines. This is your chance to experience the bold, beautiful flavours that make Far North Queensland a truly unique wine region.

The Prize:
A curated 6 x 187ml bottle sampler pack including:
• Mango Dry
• Mango Medium
• Passionfruit Dry
• Lychee Fortified
• Kafir Lime Fortified
• Chocolate Fruit Wine

Each bottle is handcrafted onsite, using local and estate-grown tropical fruit and a commitment to flavour over formula. From aromatic mango to bold chocolate, this is a true taste of FNQ.

FNQ Booze Magazine is your new online guide to the best of Far North Queensland’s distillers, brewers, and wineries. Produced by the FNQ Food team, it’s the region’s first curated digital drinks directory—celebrating the makers, the venues, and the unique spirit of the north.

Shannonvale is just one of the many producers featured in the guide, and they’re kicking off our giveaway series in classic style.

How to Enter:
Follow FNQ Food Magazine and Shannonvale Tropical Fruit Winery on Instagram or Facebook
Like this post and tag a friend you'd share an FNQ tipple with
Optional bonus: share your favourite tropical wine moment using

Where to Try:
Shannonvale Tropical Fruit Winery
417 Shannonvale Road, Mossman
Open Tuesday to Saturday, 10am – 4:30pm

Don’t miss your chance to win—and while you're at it, explore the full FNQ Booze Magazine guide online and discover more local legends worth toasting.

https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/fnq-distillers-brewers-winemakers/



*Terms and conditions apply, winners will need to be of legal drinking age in their jurisdiction, over 18 years old in Queensland.

25/11/2025

Restock local for Christmas…

Black Friday is in full swing
Build your own bundle
If you’ve been waiting to stock up for xmas, now’s the moment!

Any 4 bottles → 4th free at checkout

Ends 28 Nov.

24/11/2025

🌿🍽️ Editor Speaks - One Hundred Thousand Chairs

In his latest editorial, David Leith reflects on the 100,000 chairs spread across Far North Queensland’s cafés, pubs and restaurants — and the number left unfilled. Each empty seat represents more than a quiet service; it’s a missed chance to support the growers, makers and small businesses that shape our region’s food identity.

David highlights what many already know: running a venue in FNQ is tougher than ever. Rising costs, slim margins and daily pressures mean every booking truly counts. Those chairs stand as symbols of community, connection and the hardworking people behind every plate.

His message is simple: book ahead, choose local, share the places you love — and help fill those chairs.

Read the article here - https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/11/09/editor-speaks-one-hundred-thousand-chairs/

14/11/2025

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝘆 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲

From humble beginnings to national acclaim — My Little Bakehouse is proof that passion (and pastry) rise to the top.

Baker Sean Arnold has spent 23 years perfecting the art of slow-fermented sourdoughs, golden croissants, and pies that pack serious personality — all crafted right here in Cairns.

This isn’t just a bakery story — it’s a celebration of local grit, creativity, and community, baked fresh every morning.

👉 Read the full feature: https://www.fnqfood.com.au/index.php/2025/11/10/bringing-it-home/