Review The Walnut Restaurant & Lounge Bar - Brisbane

We stayed at the hotel in November 2020 but we didn't eat at the restaurant. A year later, in November 2021, we booked in at the Walnut. I had the char-grilled 180g pasture fed eye fillet, rare. It was perfect. The vegetables are a nice accompaniment to the dish. The meal portion is perfect for me. My husband had the char-grilled 300g scotch fillet, rare. He enjoyed his meal but was not an enthused as I was about my meal. We dined here again between Christmas and the New Year with a friend. My husband and I ordered the eye fillet. Our friend ordered the special. This visit we had dessert: one caramel tart brulee and one bombe Alaska. Both desserts were devine. Good portions for such rich and sweet desserts. Service was excellent on both visits. We'll be back again soon!

Came here in Feb and had a super experience with my friend. Very nice service with great dishes, you would sit in a old fashioned room and enjoy your time here. Still remember the fish and the impressive crab salad as the side.

We came with our friends for a birthday celebration. The food was extremely good, the customer service at the table was superb. The only reason I don’t give 5 stars is that when requesting the parking ticket the girl at the counter of the hotel asked us how much we’ve spent, we told her the value of the bill and looks like she didn’t believed it so we had to go back to the restaurant and request a receipt, the girl from the restaurant came to the counter and talked to the other girl and finally we got the ticket, but it was a bit uncomfortable.

Stayed at the hotel for a significant amount of days & every time we ordered room service or went down to eat in the restaurant itself, the food was just exquisite. Personal favourite was the Royal Spaghettini. The food was flavourful, good portions & consistent with quality every time & service was immaculate, especially Jessica (I think that’s her name), the best wait staff I’ve encountered. Will definitely return to dine in when we are back in Brissy & would highly recommend.

Last minute decision (instead of the Norman Hotel steak house restaurant) to The Walnut restaurant for a friend’s surprise birthday dinner. Ordered 2 x char grilled 180g pastured feed eye fillets steak, medium rare. Took > 30mins and my serve was cooked well done (not impressed!) and my friend’s steak was a a low quality meat and broccolini that was as old as the aged of the steak, tough stems. In hindsight, would have enjoyed a better quality steak at Norman Hotel at a cheaper price. Albeit the service was exceptionally, pity overshadowed by the kitchen’s poor quality of food.

The food is first rate. Steaks to perfection, risotto, crab spaghettini and chicken all excellent. Our table of 6 was well taken care of by young, totally professional wait staff. Thank your for a wonderful first night in Brisbane.

Fine dining at its best! Beautiful delicious food and outstanding service. Highly recommended!

This restaurant is situated opposite to the Botanical Gardens and within the Royal on the Park Hotel. I came here during the The Fork 50% promotions and was drawn to the many positive reviews on Google. All I can say is that the food we tried were absolutely amazing. The food portions were very generous. I highly recommend the duck breast and seared scallops. This is a fine dining restaurant so expect to wait a while for the food to be served but was worth every second for the wait. Staff were very friendly and the restaurant was very clean. Definitely would be back. Highly recommended.

Read Joe’s review on this restaurant that reminded me the experience that I had here couple of months ago. Remembered it was the second time within six months period to revisit this restaurant and incidentally it was the same as under 50% food bill off promo.<br/>We did not feel hungry so just order a seafood platter to share and two of the eye fillet with additional rustic chips. I always have no problem with its food preparation. This time was much better because there was no big group of parties so food and beverage came to the table within reasonable time frame. Love the seared scallops from the seafood platter and also love the quality of eye fillets too. Let me tell you, the hero is the rustic fries, the Rosemary salt is their good partner.<br/>Rating 4.5/5<br/>Previous rating: July 2019 4/5; Jun 2015 3.5/5

This is most definitely, one of the best restaurants, that I’ve had the pleasure to experience in a longtime ! The ambiance, decor and food, literally were all on point and the staff were absolutely outstanding in their manners and service. My beloved and good friend? had such a wonderful experience, that we will all be returning again and telling our friends about how amazing The Walnut truly is. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and I can’t wait to be back and try other things on the menu.

Phuong Tran, Mum and I visit this Hotel restaurant for dinner. Back in the 80’s it was The Parkroyal Hotel. I am told Royal On The Park is now owned by the Sultan of Brunei. <br/><br/>We are warmly greeted on arrival and PT sips on her Cosmopolitan while we decide on Dinner. It is a busy evening with over 30 patrons.<br/><br/>Our beautifully presented Entrees are a surprise.<br/><br/>* Pan Seared Scallops are a serving of three fresh plump Scallops garnished with Salmon Roe, Speck and Apple Sauce. Rating: 5<br/>* Crispy Pork Belly is a generous serve of tender roast Pork and Crackling. Rating: 5<br/>* Barbecued Octopus tentacle is fresh, perfectly grilled and tender. Served with Green Rice, Tomato Pico, Olive crumb and Lemon, this dish is delicious. Rating: 5<br/><br/>The Mains are served within 10 minutes. <br/><br/>* Fire Roasted Pork Cutlet is thick cut and tender, served atop whipped Mash and Sauerkraut. The Charcuterie Sauce is wonderful. Comfort food at its best. Rating: 5<br/>* Pan Fried Huon Salmon looks nicely seared but is overdone. The Salmon is a tad dry and the Salmon Skin is soft, not crisp. Served with a Vegetable Nicoise and Salsa Verde this meal is disappointing. Rating: 3.5<br/>* 300g Porterhouse Steak is perfectly grilled medium-rare, served with roasted Vegetables and a tasty Sherry jus. Perfect! Rating: 5<br/><br/>We finish our meal with a Bombe Alaska. An enjoyable dinner and the friendly helpful service improves my overall rating to a perfect 5!

The atmosphere is nice, very old school and romantic.<br/><br/>I had the fresh oysters and pan seared scallops as entree. The oysters were fresh and the scallops were well cooked, the sauce is balanced very nicely too.<br/><br/>I had the ocean trout and a service of fries as main. The trout was cooked to perfection, very juicy and tender.<br/><br/>Service was very good.

The Walnut Restaurant is found within the historical Royal on the Park Hotel overlooking the Botanical Gardens. In a lovely location opposite the Botanic Gardens both hotel and restaurant are steeped in tradition. The Walnut Restaurant Brisbane offers Brisbane's best fine dining experience that other Brisbane city restaurants simply cannot compare to. Elegance returns with shimmering Egyptian crystal chandeliers, polished Walnut wood paneling with gold trimmings and leather seating. With our exquisite a la carte menu and only the very best of service, we offer a charming and relaxed atmosphere for our diners. In addition a series of special functions are held - our chefs design a weekly degustation menu, available every Saturday with paired wines chosen by our Sommelier to provide the ultimate dining experience

We came here and had the natural and kilpatrick oysters, seafood share plate, beetroot risotto and steak. <br/>The service was amazing and the meals were fresh and tasty! I will be coming back

Who can say no the dining in luxury at half the cost... definitely not me :PSo when First Table asked for me to try out their booking system I jumped on it, looked for a place I've never been before and ate heaps... while leaving my wallet a little more full :) Here we go!. So first up we had to get a little of everything so what better way, than the Seafood plate

Noticed a sign with regards to coffee as I was passing by on the way to the gardens. Coffee was espresso di manfredi a favorite of mine , turned out to be a little lack lustre with too much foam. The charming waiter rectified it for me. Very relaxing ambiance with a good bar complete with piano & interesting china.

End of the week and mum didn't feel like cooking dinner (yet again). Being the good daughter I am, I offered to take them out for dinner. Making a reservation online, it was only a quick walk over to Alice street from work. Arriving at my arranged time, I was very pleased at the very warm and friendly reception that I was greeted with. Without any prompting, staff were already able to welcome me by name when I mentioned I had a reservation, a level of attention to detail that I found to be highly impressive, as was the level of service throughout the evening.

We ordered – Warm sourdough, <br/>Classic Caeser Salad, The Royal 220g Wagyu porterhouse, Forest mushroom ravioli, <br/>seasonal greens, Warm sticky date pudding and Trio of chocolate. This was <br/>shared between 2 and a half people - Myself and my two young nieces, 9 and 12. <br/>Everything was super tasty <br/>and delicious. We enjoyed everything, the service was great and super friendly.<br/>We had an early booking, so our food came out quick however it can take some <br/>time if the restaurant is semi-full.

When we first arrived it took some time before someone took us to our table. We ordered the grade 5 wagyu porterhouse and lamb special as well as the seafood platter and rustic fries. Unfortunately it took more than 40 minutes before our food arrived, however, we were offered a complementary entree which was a nice gesture. When the food did arrive, we were not disappointed- it was well worth the wait. The wagyu was succulent, juicy, flavoursome and fatty! The lamb was perfectly cooked and extremely tender! We thoroughly enjoyed the crispy rustic fries that were paired with a truffle aioli. The seafood platter was mediocre and we probably won’t order it in the future (small serving, overly fishy flavour). Overall, we enjoyed the food and although the service was slow, we would come back! If you go on the Dimmi deal, you can receive 50% off the full bill.

Top-notch service, great atmosphere and terrific food. Had scallops wrapped in jamon, eye fillet served with blue cheese soufflé and a side of duck fat kipfler potatoes. Everything was very fresh and simply delicious. Steak cooked to medium was juicy and tender, scallops were perfectly seared and nicely complemented by jamon, potatoes were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside and not greasy at all. Blue cheese soufflé is something out of this world - like a light cloud of airy omelette infused with rich cheesy flavor. Do yourself a favor - come here, splurge and experience the beautiful food this place offers.

My mum and I came to The Walnut Restaurant with a big group (around 15) people after a conference, I had called the day before to see if the chef could make up a vegan meal for me and they kindly said yes. I was quite excited. <br/><br/>The interior is amazing, super comfy chairs and really lovely lights. Very fancy schmancy. <br/><br/>When we arrived we told the very helpful waiter that I was the vegan and he informed me that I would be served a pasta dish. I love pasta!! My pasta was made fresh and had lovely olives, cooked cherry tomatoes, onions and lots of seasoning in it!! I haven't had pasta for so long and it was divine. The person opposite me had the mushroom ravioli (vegetarian), I asked them how it was and they said it was "absolutely amazing"!! Good sign for the vegos. <br/>My mum ordered the spatchcock dish, it was nicely presented and my mum said she really enjoyed it. <br/>We also ordered a side of chips and greens which were damn good as well. All the other people at the table really enjoyed their meals, the lady beside me had the lamb main and she definitely loved that. <br/>For dessert, my mum ordered the bomb alaska. It was so cool (pun unintended), the waiter lit the dish up right in front of us. Although there are no vegan options for dessert, I was offered a nice plate of fruit which was lovely! <br/><br/>Overall, really, really great service. The waiters are very kind and are willing to help out with any dietary requirements. The food is delicious as well. The one thing that wasn't a plus was that there was a bit of a wait, although it was worth it in the end.

Walnut is the primary restaurant and bar situated in the gracefully aging Royal on the Park Hotel. A family gathering was required with a weekday dinner booked. Walking into the restaurant, you have sense of traveling back in time with dark wooden panels throughout, moody lights, old school chandeliers, thick leather chairs & appropriately dressed waiters (suite & tie). First impression, very classy! <br/><br/>We were kindly greeted by our waiter and taken to our window view table. After reviewing their well laid out menu, our group of five ordered: dozen oyster & pan seared scallops as entrees. Eye filet steaks, lamb cutlets & mushroom ravioli as mains. Desert: Bombe Alaska and trio of chocolate to conclude our meal.<br/><br/>Whilst waiting for our meal, the young one became hungry so we ordered a server of sourdough bread. The bread came warm with butter and olive oil dips. Half way through her first piece, we realized the back of the bread was charcoal black…a replacement was swiftly made with the order removed from our bill. <br/><br/>20min from ordering, the oysters arrived. We ordered a mixed dozen with half natural and half Kilpatrick. The natural oysters were skilfully shackled to order with a touch of vinegar cured salmon roe. First taste and you will be blown away by the oyster’s freshness. A minor downside was the overly sour salmon roe. 4/5<br/><br/>The Kilpatrick oysters displayed an almost artificial red glow when arrived at the table. The still raw oyster was overpowered by the salty, supermarket grade sauce with cold shredded bacon. A disappoint it was. 2/5<br/><br/>The seared scallops arrived shortly after, presented with celeriac purée, salsa verde & baby herbs. The puree was skilfully cooked with balanced celery, potato & onion tastes. Salsa verde had a stronger presence with bold capers, parsley and garlic flavours. The scallops on the other hand were dry, flavourless & overcooked. Being the main ingredient, it was outshined by the puree. What a shame. 3/5<br/><br/>With the entrees concluded, the mains made a swift appearance. First up, Eye filet steak with blue cheese soufflé, spinach & cherry tomatoes all topped with port jus. The steak was perfectly cooked to medium rare with soft buttery texture. The lack of character and flavour from the meat however was a big disappointment. The soufflé on the other hand was soft & delicate with mild blue cheese taste. All elements of this dish worked well together and the balance of flavour was spot on. If only the steak was better quality. 3.5/5<br/><br/>Lamb cutlets with watermelon, feta, onion, olive & mint yoghurt was next on the agenda. The yoghurt paired perfectly with the lamb cutlets with balanced flavour and an elegant fresh mint fragrant. The salads add a unique character to this dish with the salty feta mellowed down by the sweet watermelon cubes. The lamb cutlets on the other hand were overcooked and chewy at time (again, what a shame). 3/5<br/><br/>The last main of the evening was the ravioli with mixed wild mushrooms, diced asparagus, truffle paste and toasted almonds. The strong truffle scent was a delight and lifted my spirits high. A taste of the ravioli, my mood started crushing down. The tough, thick ravioli skin houses a tasteless small mushroom based filling. The sautéed mushroom lacks flavour and seasoning and was overpowered by the truffle paste. The overall balance of this dish was towards the oily and flavourless side. 2.5/5<br/><br/>Bombe Alaska served tableside made a welcoming appearance after the “interesting” mains. The waitress skilfully lit up a spoonful of rum and poured over the Bombe Alaska. The blue flames were entertaining to view and made our 4yo giggle for a few minutes (I should be worried…). Flavour wise you get burnt vanilla, rum & raspberry. The contents within the Bombe Alaska were solidly frozen and hard to get to. After a quarter of the way in, everyone lost interest. 2.5/5<br/><br/>The trio of chocolate was the last dish to conclude our dinner. The well plated dish contains a dark chocolate tart topped with chocolate mousse & scoop of chocolate ice cream. Flavour wise, it’s just simply chocolate served three ways with linear flavour profile. 3/5<br/><br/>Overall service was absolutely brilliant. Waiters were attentive, polite, thoughtful and knowledgeable with menu items. 5/5<br/><br/>Full price for the entire meal was just shy of $300 (not including drinks). For the level of service it’s totally worth it. For the quality of food it’s hard to justify. <br/><br/>Hint: Their old school cocktails are quite brilliant. Kid’s fish n chips quality is a 4/5.

I recently ended up at the Walnut Restaurant and Lounge Bar by a circuitous route, but I am happy to have experienced this lovely gem near the City Botanic Gardens.<br/><br/>The Lounge Room's dark wood paneling and attentive, knowledgeable service are a throwback to days of old...The kind of place where you could drink an afternoon away.<br/><br/>The Side Car was very nice (4 out of 5), though it was served in a martini glass.<br/><br/>The Taleggio and Parmesan Arancini were served over truffled aioli and were average at best (3 out of 5).<br/><br/>For dessert we enjoyed the Royal Mess, a hazelnut meringue with vanilla cream and fresh seasonal berries. The mulberries were the largest I've ever seen and were delicious. The overall dish was a bit too sweet, but very enjoyable (4 out of 5).<br/><br/>I'm a sucker for great service and ambiance, so rounded up to a rating of 4 - I expect we'll be back.

⚫️review updated Feb 2019⚫️<br/>I assume there is a new management team in this restaurant, the manager and chef are different than 3 years ago.<br/>▶️This place used to be my favorite in Brisbane- but not anymore✖️<br/>We ordered the duck leg and eye fillet for main dishes, the steak were extremely dry, same as the duck leg.<br/>No more to mention their dessert- it used to be my favorite creme brûlée in town which was served with frame on the top. But now the presentation is totally different and no more to mention the taste. This is not creme brûlée,it is just a flavored custard with crispy sugar on the top-even worse than those creme brûlée from a normal cafe.<br/>As well, it takes forever for the waitress to clean the tables.<br/>The only thing tasty is the entree duck breast salad.<br/>I’m very disappointed with their new chef.

The food here is consistently amazing! The duck entree is so delicious and the lamb rack carved table side is cooked perfectly and adds a real sense of occasion to a meal. I cannot recommend this place enough. We had our wedding reception here and will keep coming back every year.

We came as a group for the Degustation menu. The food, service, presentation and ambience were world-class. I have eaten in Michelin star restaurants that weren't as good. A number of us chose the wine matching option and we were not disappointed. The explanation of each course and wine was low-key, friendly and informative. (sometimes it can feel like a droning lecture (insert Aria here). There were 8 courses and in intermission sorbet which were all perfect. The venison striploin and blueberry jus was a triumph and the truffled purple congo potato was a beautiful surprise. In addition, Chef Frederick seems to always try to come and greet and ask for feedback from the guests which is rare. We will be back!

The food and service matched this restaurant's mature decor. The duck and quail entres were delicious as was the striploin for two which was cooked perfectly to order. We both enjoyed our stay and dinner at The Royal on the Park.

We went there for the first time to celebrate Valentine's Day. The ambiance was nice, service was impeccable and the food was delicious! We will definitely go there again for our next special occasion.

First class food and service. We stayed in the hotel (HIGHLY recommend!!) and ate downstairs because we were tired. Fantastic surprise to have such great service and amazingly fabulous food way beyond our expectations. The duck was so wonderful - cooked to perfection! Lo and behold, the interested chef actually came out to see how we liked it! It was such a pleasure to be able to congratulate him on its perfection. <br/><br/>The service was also faultless. Police, respectful and knowledgeable. It doesn't get better than this. <br/><br/>We also had breakfast in the Walnut the next morning. Amazing selection and quality. <br/><br/>Stay in the wonderful hotel and give yourself a real treat!!

Definitely worth more than one visit. The service was excellent as was the setting, and our food arrived just when we began to feel ready for the next course. As this was a few months ago, the menu has since changed but at the time the scallops were perfectly cooked and the roast spatchcock was melt in your mouth with just the right amount on the plate. Definitely worth going back to try the new menu.

Degustation a Winner!. We chose the degustation menu ! - and left the selection to Frederick Marechak - the Chef-A la Carte at the Walnut Resturant Royal on the Park. So glad we did - we were overwhelmed with the qulaity of the different plates and thoroughly enjoyed each of the 6 courses. The experience was perfect with great service and matched wines. Thank you Royal on the Park! <br/>Can highly recommend.

Poor quality, slow service. Dined with a group of people and the food was overall a huge disappointment - overall the food came in very small sizes, poor quality and poor value for money. For example the butter chicken was the worst curry we had ever tasted - dry, flavourless and tiny! The only dish that someone said they liked was the steak and even then there wasn't much on the plate. Don't waste your time with this place, it's honestly far from worth it.

The 3 tier seafood platter is to die for, great service will definitely be back.

Great Dining. This place served us a nice overall experience with great food and customer service. We enjoyed our meals everytime and always look forward to next time coming back. I rate it 7/10

Made us feel special. We dined here recently and at the time of booking we had indicated it was a special occassion - our secret elopment. There were only five of us and the staff and Damien made us feel very special and well looked after, and made me very glad that I had selected this restaurant to celebrate our occassion. The room and table setting for us was beautiful. The meal was fantastic and we were all impressed with the venue and staff.<br/>I look forward to returning again soon.

Efficient elegance. Partner and I had a late dinner here on Saturday night. The decor is plush and formal creating a hushed relaxing atmosphere. The maitre d was very professional and friendly.<br/><br/>We had entrees of quail and mushroom rotolo. Both were tasty and the quail was served on the most magnificent plate we had ever seen.<br/><br/>Mains were fillet steak with scallops and chilli rubbed pork loin. Again, both delicious with steak cooked perfectly. <br/><br/>We dined at the same time there was a function for 300 about to be served, so the maitre d ensured our food came out first rather than have to wait 40 mins.<br/><br/>The French chef has created an elegant menu and with mains around the $40 mark, I'd recommend this place next time you want to treat yourself.

I recently organised to have a high tea there paying for 14 of my close family and friends as it was a special occasion for me. I was so embarrassed at the quality of the food, lack of service and lack of ambience provided. I can't honestly think of anything positive to say about my experience. There was no elegance or class to the high tea with food served on what looked like blackboards! The food was terrible with the sandwiches very dry and the sweets very average! I had to continually get up from my seat to find a waiter to order anything. No one checked to see if we were happy. I had ordered a specific meal which I confirmed the day before to make sure it was definitely organised. As the host of the party I never received that meal after requesting it again on the day and waiting over an hour ! I then re-ordered basic sandwiches and didn't receive them either. Staff were very unhelpful. Seriously the worst experience and the worst high tea I have ever been to. I will never return or recommend to anyone :( very disappointed!

Awesome Meal. On my latest visit to this restaurant I found the best coffee in Brisbane. Tommy makes the coffee and it was fantastic. My husband and guests were served cocktails also made by Tommy after he patiently discribed the cocktail menu to my table. As a further delight he presented by underage daughter with a mocktail that nearly sent all our table tea tottle. Well done Tommy.<br/>Adam was our waiter for the night and put up with our table of 5's unconventional ordering from the menu. We ordered 7 entrees, 3 main course and 8 desserts. <br/>Why so many desserts? Chef Cobi know's her desserts and it shows. With so many delightful desserts to chose from, we just kept ordering and tasting. It was hard to find the cut off line.<br/>This is not our first visit to the Walnut and certainly won't be the last. The service was better and the food coming out faster, this is all a huge plus for the Walnut.<br/>I will be coming back and bring more guests with me in the future.<br/>To the Walnut team, keep up your wonderful work and be proud of your restaurant.

Wonderful food, awful service. Have previously awarded this place the best meal I have had in Brisbane, so was keen to try it again. There were a large group of us in a private dining room and we had a set menu with alternate plate drop, so we only tried two choices from each section of the menu. I enjoyed a rabbit fricasse, very flavoursome and interesting, a delicous steak but was a little underwhelmed by my chocolate mousse (though the sorbet with it was wonderful) So a very nice meal - but quite marred by the service. Wines were left on a table in the corner - we had to go over and serve ourselves, and the delay between getting the whole table the same course out at the same time was disappointing. My daughter and I swapped meals (an alternate drop, remember and it confused the waiter totally he went along our side of the table and adjusted everyone's plates to correct the order - very amusing, but not good service. The quality of the food would encourage me to return but if the service is no better, I would cross it off my list. A shame.

Nice experience, great food, a Good Place. Nice evening tonight at the Walnut Restaurant. Rudy (maitre d) is personable, knowledgeable, and the wait staff are understated and understanding. The restoration of the restaurant is just beautiful, in a class that only a Sultan would demand. The food is excellent, not a taste out of place, and yet the peripherals are a bit adventurous (try the cucumber and lime sorbet). Chef obviously top of his/her game. And the whole experience is nicely mid-priced. For us, it's one of those places on Brisbane's very good-to-best list.<br/>PS Little things count for us... we'd noted that it was a birthday, and sweet array with candle came from nowhere. That makes a difference.

Dining Delight. It was a brilliant evening for 8 of us to relax and enjoy a quality dinner with quality wine and top class service in a private dining room. The menu is fantastic and excels in all expectations. I will most certainly reccomend this to friends, and will be visiting when I next return to Brisbane.

Great Food. When you walk into the Walnut, it is a wonderful experience from the start -friendly, capable staff to seafood that is fresh, and above all great to eat. Well above expectations, an exceptional eating venue.