I was very disappointed when the One Eleven Bistro in Eagle Street (Brisbane) shut down. In its place George Gregan has opened a Bar & Bistro in the same place.

Having had a couple of coffees there over the last week and finding the prices a bit steep for comparable coffees close by I was a bit hesitant when I was invited there for lunch today.

To say I was pleasantly surprised was an understatement. The menu was very much a bistro menu and without the pretension and exorbitant pricing that had killed its predecessor. I shared the chorizo and haloumi entrees with my lunch inviter and found them both to be excellent and just enough to wet the palate for the lunch to come without leaving me full.

Main course was the wagyu burger which, at $20, is not only very well priced but is also very tasty.

The staff are friendly and knowledgable and the service swift. To go with the pricing, this speed of service makes this an excellent lunch venue in my view that I would recommend to anyone down at the Eagle Street end of the city.

One of the negatives of the predecessor restaurant was that it was attempting to be a high class establishment in a space that was open and in a lobby of an office building. It had the feel of the food court about it. That feel remains but recast as a bistro with reasonably priced food it works albeit if you do not like all and sundry walking past the restaurant to know you are there this may not be the restaurant for you.

Food: 9 out of 10

Service:9 out of 10

Ambience: 7 out of 10

Final Word: George’s Bar & Bistro is definitely a place I would recommend for a quick lunch catch up without pretension and with haste. Get around it.