Newcomer to the Eagle Street Pier dining precinct is Blackbird Bar and Grill and its presence is well deserved. The experience starts right from the front entrance with a double staircase taking you up to the main level. It is split into two halves, the restaurant dining area and the bar, and both have uninterrupted views of the Brisbane River and Story Bridge.
The main dining room has a very 1920s-style fit out, from the decorative print on the windows, carpet and seats to the extravagant lighting fixture in the centre. Only a passing glance was had of the bar area, but it appeared much more open with an deck style arrangement.
It could be assumed that a restaurant of this look and feel would be expensive fine dining, but the prices are in fact quite reasonable for what is served – mains are in the $30 to $40 range.
On this visit, I ordered the Steamed Australian green asparagus, blue swimmer crab cake and warm yuzu mayonnaise as an entree, followed by the Kobe Cuisine wagyu sirloin with caramelised red onion sauce and sides of Steamed broccolini with garlic and parsley pangrattato and Dutch cream potato with parmesan butter and rosemary salt. That sounds like a lot of food and it was, the sides are really designed to share.
The crab cakes were divine. Once combined with the asparagus and yuzu it became a creamy, flavoursome flavour mix. Slight nitpick, the dish probably should be named as crab croquettes rather than crab cakes, but I digress. The steak was equally well cooked. Good quality wagyu is usually recommended to be cooked to at least medium due to the marbling, however I typically like to order steaks rare. The waiter said that it should be fine with this meat, and it was. The steak nearly melted in my mouth but with a slight hint of texture on the outside. The sides were just as tasty and complimented well, although, as previously mentioned, they were a little too much for one person. Interestingly, the potato side was cooked in a clay pot which was broken up and displayed on the plate. If there were to be one thing to criticise it would be the sauce, the caramelised red onion tasted not too much different to a red wine jus.
Dessert was stunning and both looked and tasted like a dish from a much higher priced restaurant. I ordered the Strawberries and cream, served with meringue, sorbet and rhubarb purée. A wonderful sweet, fruity and creamy dish to finish the dining experience with.
Service was impeccable at Blackbird with the wait staff explaining the components of each dish as it came out and also offered well paired wine choices. Noise from the bar, particularly on a Friday and Saturday night, can be a bit overpowering at times, but that is to be expected with a restaurant having an adjoining popular bar. Blackbird is a well positioned and outstanding addition to the Brisbane food and entertainment scene.