Gold Coast food has two big advantages working for it: the beachfront location and Australia's mix of cultures. Fresh seafood from the Pacific Ocean meets old-school British recipes and Asian flavours, and the three fold together neatly. Come hungry and don't miss the fresh barramundi, the Moreton Bay bugs, and the pavlova that Australia claims it invented.
#1 Barramundi, Grilled or Battered · Barramundi (Grilled or Battered)
This premium saltwater fish is one of Australia's signatures, and you'll find it everywhere on the Gold Coast. The flesh is white, soft and fine-grained, with no fishy smell, so it works equally well grilled or battered in beer batter and fried crisp. Queensland is one of Australia's main barramundi sources, which means the fish here lands fresher than most places. A good restaurant can tell you which farm it came from or whether it was caught wild. Expect to pay around AUD 25-40 a meal — worth every bite.
- Order it 'pan-fried with lemon butter' if you want the real flavour of the fish, not masked by fried batter
- Rick Shores at Burleigh Heads is known for barramundi with an ocean view — book a table ahead
- Ask the staff 'wild-caught or farmed' — wild-caught fish has a slightly deeper flavour
#2 Beachside Fish and Chips · Fish and Chips
This is the meal you can't skip on the Gold Coast. Crisp battered fish with thick golden chips — a British classic Australia adopted and now does just as well as the original. The magic is in the thin, crisp beer batter and the fresh fish underneath; good shops fry to order, every order. Eat it sitting on the sand or strolling along the water with seagulls coming over to beg — that's the real picture of Australia.
- Ask for tartare sauce (mayonnaise with pickled cucumber) on the side — it cuts the richness of the fried fish nicely
- Watch out for the seagulls, which love to swoop on food; eating inside or with your back to the sea is safer
- AUD 15-25 a serve; shops in the back streets cost nearly half what the beachfront ones charge
#3 Fresh Moreton Bay Bugs · Moreton Bay Bugs
These deep-water crustaceans are native to Queensland's Moreton Bay and you won't find them anywhere else in the world. They're flatter and shorter than ordinary prawns, with sweeter, softer flesh and a distinctive light sea aroma. The usual way to eat them is split in half and grilled with garlic and butter, or fried crisp. They cost more than regular prawns, but they're the signature seafood to try when you're in Queensland.
- Ask for them 'split and grilled with garlic butter' for the best aroma and flavour
- Buy them fresh from the Fish Market at Broadwater — half the price of a restaurant, and there's seating to eat right there
- If you love prawns, order Queensland Tiger Prawns alongside — the difference in flavour is clear
#4 Meat Pie (the Australian Beef Pie) · Australian Meat Pie
This is Australia's national fast food, eaten every day by everyone from tradies working in the sun to people watching the footy. Thin crisp pastry wraps minced beef in a rich gravy; some shops add mushroom, cheese or vegetables in their own style, with a little tomato sauce squeezed on before you eat. This is genuine Australian comfort food, just AUD 5-8 and available anywhere, anytime. It looks simple but it's far better than you'd expect.
- Small local bakeries (not the franchise chains) usually bake their pies fresh every morning — the difference in flavour is big
- Eat it hot, straight away, while the pastry is still crisp; left too long it goes soft
- Try a 'pie floater' South Australian style — a pie floating in green-pea soup; it sounds strange but it really is good
#5 Pavlova (the Australian Meringue Dessert) · Pavlova
Both Australia and New Zealand claim to have invented this one, but wherever it came from, it stands as an Australian dessert icon. The meringue — crisp outside, soft inside — is made from egg whites and sugar, then topped with whipped cream and an assortment of fresh fruit. The sweet richness is balanced just right by the tartness of the fruit. Queensland uses tropical fruit like mango, passionfruit and pineapple that's fresher than elsewhere.
- Look for a place that does pavlova in a 'mini individual size' for one, instead of a big cake to share
- Queensland's fresh passionfruit and mango are the toppings that make the pavlova here better than elsewhere
- Eat it the same day it's made — the meringue draws moisture from the cream if left overnight
#6 Flat White and Australian Cafe Culture · Flat White and Australian Cafe Culture
Australia has a coffee culture the world respects, and the flat white is the Australian coffee that spread everywhere. It's a double espresso topped with hot milk in a smaller amount than a latte, giving it a richer, more rounded flavour. Most independent cafes on the Gold Coast use specially roasted beans and seriously trained baristas. Bad coffee is almost impossible to find in Australia, and the average price is just AUD 5-6 a cup.
- Order a 'flat white' in 'small' (180 ml) if you want the most intense coffee; the larger size is more diluted
- Burleigh Heads has the best independent cafes on the Gold Coast, like Blackboard Coffee and The Paddock Bakery
- Don't order 'iced coffee' if you want black iced coffee — in Australia it usually means coffee with ice cream and whipped cream
Where to stay in Gold Coast for this trip
A well-located hotel means less commuting and more sightseeing. Here are real, top-rated stays in Gold Coast — compare Agoda · Booking · Trip.com in one click.
Mantra Circle On Cavill
Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Details
Rhapsody Resort
Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Details
The Island Gold Coast
Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Details
Q1 Resort & Spa
Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Details
Tours, tickets & activities in Gold Coast
Day tours, attraction tickets and travel essentials for Gold Coast — book ahead on Klook with mobile e-tickets.
Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Before You Pack
The best food on the Gold Coast tends to be at the small beachside shops or the farmers' markets, not the hotel restaurants. Ask the locals which fish-and-chip shop is best and you'll get a different answer every time — and every one of them is good enough that you can't pick a winner.