At the end of last year we declared 2023 the year of the sandwich. Mid-way through 2024 there’s more diversity: Japanese sandos and soba, Thai spots specialising in regional curry egg noodles, a Coorparoo spot serving comfort food with Korean DNA, and more. Whether you’re picking up pastries near home or looking for a Thai restaurant worth heading up the M1 for, these are the best new cafes and casual spots in Brisbane (in alphabetical order).

This Brunswick Street cafe is a partnership between Sam Holman (Dibs, If You Say So, Noir) and Yolanda van Houtte of Drip. It pairs warm greens, retro prints and lots of rattan with an elevated farm-to-table concept. Most of the produce on the menu is grown by Van Houtte at her Kurwongbah property. The menu changes seasonally but you could expect summer semolina porridge with compressed blood plums; a fancier version of eggs Benedict featuring kaiserfleisch (hand-cut smoked German pork belly), poached eggs, kimchi, and a seven-spice hollandaise; and a grilled swordfish burger with house-made broccoli pesto. The cafe is also Brisbane’s first to serve Black Lab’s coffee under the new brand name Dibs.

Since opening in May there has rarely been a day when there hasn’t been a line out the door of Cerin Pasticceria. Co-owners Giuseppe Caputo and Matteo Cerin – from Turin and Vicenza respectively – took over the former Baker’s Arms space and turned it into a meeting point for the local Italian community. It churns out 230 cornetti a day (crowd favourites include a traditional vanilla custard and a roasted pistachio number). There are also fluffy maritozzi (chocolate-coated brioche buns filled with whipped cream); Nutella-filled bomboloni; fruit tarts; and ricotta cannoli. Savoury items include a carbonara-inspired danish, focaccia sandwiches and pizza by the slice.

For Andrew Yu opening a pan-Asian restaurant in the West End was long overdue. “Chinese food isn’t represented in West End and there is very little pan-Asian [cuisine] throughout the city. The area needs it,” Yu told Broadsheet. Yu’s menu starts with snacky treats including salt and pepper corn ribs, crispy eggplant, and sesame prawn toast. Mains include comforting laksa noodle soups, social media-friendly flying noodle dishes, and Bangkok-style sweet and sour trout cooked with lychee. Yum cha favourites like sui mai, xiao long bao, wontons, special fried rice and barbeque pork buns are also represented.

Okay, so yes, technically this spot is in the Sunshine Coast. But it’s more than worth the drive. The casual 24-seat spot is run by Adam Muscat and his southern Thai-born wife Patcharin “Ying” Samila. It specialises in khao soi (egg noodles served in creamy coconut curry sauce with braised meat, typically chicken or beef, topped with crispy, deep-fried egg noodles). Diners can customise it with pickled mustard greens, red shallot, coriander, lime and optional chilli oil. While the noodles alone are worth the drive up the M1, it’s not the only dish worth ordering. There’s also som tum (papaya salad), sai ua (grilled northern Thai sausage) and beef brisket massaman. And khua kling moo, a dry curry of house-minced pork shoulder with loads of lemongrass and makrut lime leaf. The recipe comes from Samila’s mother, a lemongrass farmer in southern Thailand.

Muscat’s passion for Thai food began during his time at Longrain in Sydney, where he worked alongside renowned chefs Louis Tikaram (Stanley) and Martin Boetz (Short Grain). He later worked at Michelin-starred restaurant Paste, before joining Tikaram to open EP & LP in Los Angeles.

After opening the original Shiro in Southport last year, Kobe-born Kei Okamoto has brought onigiri and Japanese-leaning gelato to the city. There are 12 onigiri packed tightly with spicy tuna; chicken mince with marinated egg; shallots with miso and citrus chilli paste; or salmon wrapped in imported seaweed from Japan. Nine flavours of gelato include yuzu chocolate, miso caramel, Hokkaido milk and black sesame. Shiro’s signature offering is gelato wrapped in mochi, known as daifuku. There’s also warabi mochi – a jelly-like confection coated in soybean flour, matcha or chocolate. The combination of Japanese-style gelato and onigiri appeals to office workers seeking a quick, affordable lunch option, as well as those looking for a sweet treat or late-night dessert.

Co-owners (and couple) Leaham Claydon and Jianne Jeoung met while working at Yoko and Greca respectively. Deciding to go out on their own, their olive green spot is both snug by name and by nature. Coffee is St Ali’s Wide Awake blend, a dark roast with “full-on chocolate and caramel notes, with not a lot of acidity,” according to Jeong. The brunch menu is Korean-inspired “We don’t want to do full-blown Korean food, but we want to incorporate some ingredients. It’s more about [giving Snug] a Korean personality that maybe some people won’t notice,” says Claydon. Comforting brunch dishes include scrambled egg brioche sandwiches, and omurice with prawns. There’s a twist on Korean corn cheese with artichokes and provolone. And duck leg terrine with mandarin that you wrap in sesame and roasted seaweed and eat with your hands. There are house-baked soft pretzels, and salty butter rolls. The seasonal soup of the day is one of Brisbane’s best.

Brothers Tze-Huei and Chewie Choo opened croque hot spot James & Antler in October last year, but have said goodbye to French fare to focus on Japanese. This lunchtime spot serves sandos. There are classics like the chicken katsu sando, and the tomago sando with Japanese soft egg, chive and mayo. The pork sando is pork cutlet tonkatsu with sweet barbeque sauce. And there’s a Black Angus katsu sando. Less conventional options include spicy tuna (canned tuna and togarashi pepper), and the Supersando – a $75 Wagyu beef, caviar and gold-leaf extravaganza. Sandos share the limelight with soba (buckwheat noodles) dishes served in a miso and shoyu broth, which come solo or with proteins such as tuna, beef tataki, vegetable tempura or crispy-skinned barramundi. There’s coffee, ceremonial-grade matcha, and hojicha. And a trendy strawberry matcha latte with a dash of Yakult and a fresh strawberry mix.

Toby’s Estate, one of the biggest names in the Australian coffee scene, delighted caffeine fiends by opening a local flagship earlier this year. The hero of the warmly lit, contemporary space is a round coffee bar. With baristas at the centre of the ring, punters can step up to the bar and order the brand’s signature espresso and filter coffee. Or chat with the team, which can provide expertise and suggestions. There are also free monthly coffee tastings.

Two Yolks has been dishing up runny-yolk breakfast burgers, smash burgers, burritos and loaded fries to devoted fans in Burleigh Heads since 2021. Last month it opened its first Brisbane spot. For breakfast, find two-hander burgers like the Triple B, with bacon, house-made pork sausage, a smashed beef patty, American cheese, tater tots and a fried egg. And the Benny’s Bangs, a hollandaise-topped egg and bacon burger. There’s also a breakfast burrito with scrambled eggs, tater tots, guacamole, bacon, haloumi and chipotle aioli. Burgers are made with Cape Grim beef ground in-house. The all-day menu includes classics like a bacon cheeseburger, and a standard smash burger, plus more elaborate options like the Double Truffle (two smashed patties, cheese, rocket, red onions, truffle cheese sauce and truffle aioli). And the Burly Burleigh (two smashed patties, cheese, egg, bacon, roasted beetroot, grilled pineapple and barbeque sauce).

Additional reporting by Elliot Baker, Becca Wang, Daniel Wilson and Emmanuel Yu.