Ipswich:
Eat & drink            

20 JANUARY 2023

Be it a generously portioned countery at the local pub, a freshly brewed tea in a quaint teahouse, or a hotdog devoured in a mid-century-style diner, Ipswich’s food scene is every bit eclectic (and delicious). 

Caffeine dreams: where to find your fix 

Dappled with cafes, tea houses, espresso bars and more, Ipswich is ready to refuel weary travellers visiting this historic city. Whether it’s a long black, a jumpstarting breakfast, a sweet treat or a treat for the road, these are the Ipswich cafes you’ll want to get to know, pronto. 

Loved by locals and visitors alike, stylish St Shoebill nests inside a refurbished heritage building and serves beautifully plated, produce-driven dishes alongside top-notch coffee. 
 
In the early hours, mosey on down to Moselles Café + Restaurant for its copious breakfast fare (think corn fritters, brekkie burgers and pancakes) flanked by a life-affirming coffee, enjoyed while overlooking a peaceful lake.  

Plentiful plates of wholesome foods (think attractive acai bowls) and specialty coffee are served to a merry crowd at Oikos Cafe Ipswich – conveniently positioned nearby the Ipswich Art Gallery. 

Enticing cakes, flaky pasties and great coffee are the order of the day at Rafter and Rose. Inside this plant-strewn, creatively adorned café, visitors can stock up on road trip snacks to keep spirits (and sugars) high while traversing Ipswich. 

Part of the Woodlands of Marburg – where luxury accommodation, a sophisticated restaurant and manicured gardens abound – Tommy Smith Cafe offers café-favourite breakfasts, a sustaining brunch menu, well-made coffee and high teas. 

If tea is your choice of tipple, Tranquil Tea House is an idyllic space to hold tea-centric events and sample an impressively wide range of, you guessed it, teas.   

Enjoy a slice of nostalgia at Wild Rose Cottage. There, you’ll find the tempting likes of classic vanilla slice, carrot cakes swathed in a layer of cream cheese frosting, scones and more in its ever-evolving sweets cabinet.  

Inside resplendent Queens Park sits Queens Park Café, an open-air venue that has all your breakfast, coffee, tea, and cake needs sorted.  

Discover The Girls’ Coffee Bar for caffeine and reviving breakfasts served with a smile, for a leisurely brunch try Remedy Espresso Café, take your four-legged friends to dog-friendly, The Café Kalina, and, for a health-centred feed try Raw Energy Springfield.

Beers and redclaw at the Prince Alfred Hotel in the City of Ipswich.

Lord Alfred Hotel, Ipswich

With the lot: hearty meals for the hungry-eyed traveller in Ipswich 

A day spent exploring the historic city of Ipswich is bound to prompt a healthy appetite. Here’s where to eat in Ipswich when you’re feeling particularly peckish. 

Let’s start with burgers – and, in this city you have your pick of them. American-style UB’s Milk Bar – opened by the famed gelato-slinging Ungermann Brothers – has become a go-to for burgers, loaded chips, waffles, shakes and ice-cream. Then, there’s the popular Ruby Chews Burgers & Shakes. At Ruby Chews, burgers are piled high, tater tots come fully loaded, fried chicken sells like hotcakes and sundaes with all the mix-ins are demolished en masse.  

It seems the people of Ipswich adore a well-layered burger, and The Retro Diner is heeding the call of its locals. As guests enjoy diner-style food – from burgers (including a vegan option) and fries to hot dogs and French toast – 1950s music fills the keepsakes-filled space. 

No trip to a heritage-building-filled city would be complete without a proper pub meal, and there are plenty to try in Ipswich. The Racehorse Hotel is home to all your pub favourites – from steak sandwiches and parmies to sticky date puddings – in The Grill House restaurant.

Inside the Prince Alfred Hotel, three dining destinations await: the newly renovated and dapperly dressed Plantations Restaurant, craft beer and bites bar Tap’d, and Char’d, where pizza, pasta and pies reign supreme. 

At 4 Hearts Brewing’s Pumpyard Bar, visitors can sample craft beers brewed on site, alongside well-matched, beer-friendly food. 

Step back in time in the historic space that houses The Sugarmill Restaurant at Woodlands of Marburg. In this ambient restaurant, with its warm cedar-clad walls and chesterfield lounges, dinner becomes a memorable experience served beneath sparkling chandeliers.  

In a heritage Queenslander on Limestone Street you’ll find The Cottage Restaurant. Here, culinary creativity is pulled off with aplomb – from the tasters menu’s mushroom cappuccino with truffle oil, to the entrée’s kangaroo loin with Kakadu plum, onward to the main’s rolled rabbit with dates and pistachio, to the dessert’s tonka bean panna cotta.  

Woongooroo Estate may specialise in wine, but its lunchtime offering of Turkish Bread Pizzas are further incentive to venture beyond the vines.  

For relaxed meals, Sourdough Crust Co lures passers-by inside with the scent of perfectly cooked pizza, Memories of India keeps diners well fed with its enchanting curries, and Montezuma’s slings fresh Mexican dishes and cocktails. 

Ready for your food-led escape? Start planning next adventure in Ipswich now. 

An image of some European dishes with hands holding the food and glass of wine.