Flavour-packed produce and impeccable technique flow endlessly at the best restaurants in Noosa.

Waterfront dining has long been synonymous with a sun-soaked Noosa escape. But while I love gazing endlessly over Main Beach, especially from one of Hastings Street’s best eateries, an impressive crop of sans-sand Noosa restaurants is making waves. From vibey Mexican and lawn bowls paired with firecracker flavours, to a seven-course degustation in a refurbished shed, the best restaurants in Noosa just keep getting better. I’ve rounded up your holiday’s hottest spots for unbeatable feasting.

The shortlist

Hottest new opening: The Woodshed Restaurant
Family-friendly spot: Somedays Pizza
Great for special occasions: Sails Restaurant Noosa
Most Instagrammable: Mariella Mexicantina
Hidden gem: Crackerjack

1. The Woodshed Restaurant

Unlike any other Noosa dining experience, The Woodshed Restaurant builds upon the Sunshine Coast hinterland’s relentless foodie ambitions. A hidden powerhouse inside the Kin Kin Hotel, about 30 minutes’ drive from Hastings Street, the fine diner whips up a seven-course degustation driven by seasonal flavours. I was rather content with the old pub’s already impressive bistro menu, so this elevated wood-fired offering inside a former agricultural shed, unveiled in June 2025, offers indulgence in every sense. The menu is forever evolving but expect whole-animal carvery, European-inspired touches, and farm-to-fork dedication as dishes like yabby with corn and curry leaf, and a crossbred wagyu and jersey sirloin paired with lion’s mane mushroom and onion, spark salivation.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$$

Atmosphere: Special occasion

Address: 69 Main St, Kin Kin

2. Lucio’s Marina

Everything about Lucio’s Marina reflects the kitchen team’s fastidious attention to detail when it comes to sourcing premium produce. Only the best of the best make the menu, with fresh catches stored in dry-ageing cabinets at the entrance, ensuring a memorable seafood experience every time. I love the melt-in-your-mouth Walkers tuna atop wafer-thin house-made tartlets, house-made spaghetti topped with panko and tiger abalone from Port Fairy, and line-caught fish with simple Northern Italian sensibilities – think the likes of tomato extraction, broad bean and basil puree. Meanwhile, the green Taglioni with Fraser Isle spanner crab is a nod to the cult dish at legacy diner, Lucio’s, in Paddington, Sydney (closed in 2021 after 38 years). Following in his restaurateur father’s footsteps, Matteo Galletto made the move north to Noosa from Sydney with his family and has cultivated an elevated seafood trattoria experience in the most surprising of locations – Noosa Marina in Tewantin. Build it and they will come, and so they did, with neighbouring Peli’s (see below) jumping onboard the next-gen train for this burgeoning dining destination, just five minutes’ drive from Noosaville. Staff are attentive and quick to recommend excellent wine matches with a relaxed ease that reflects the laidback Noosa lifestyle.

Cuisine: Italian coastal

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Refined

Address: 3/2 Parkyn Ct, Tewantin

3. Peli’s

If you’ve eaten at Sum Yung Guys, you’ll know Masterchef runner-up (2016) Matt Sinclair and his buddies, Michael Rickard and Jeremiah Jones, have a way with South East Asian flavours. Their second restaurant, however, is a surprising departure in the most delicious of ways. Celebrating its waterfront locale, Peli’s dazzles me with sun-drenched flavours of the Med like a very memorable taramasalata topped with Yarra Valley caviar and a slow-roasted lamb shoulder that sings alongside greens and minted cream. Experience it all with the Just Feed Me menu, but prepare to feel very indulged. Hovering over the water at Noosa Marina, it’s a spot I’d never ventured much into but was quickly browsing real estate on the opposite Noosa North Shore.

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Classy yet fun

Address: 1A, 2 Parkyn Ct, Tewantin

4. Lanai Noosa

With renowned Noosa chef Ryan Fitzpatrick at the helm of Lanai Noosa, each plate is like a little work of art to be enjoyed with all your senses. With an onus on sustainably sourced seafood and native ingredients, each share plate sings, which makes it hard to get past snacks like the Mooloolaba prawn sanga and ricotta-stuffed zucchini flowers dressed in buttermilk. Whatever you order, don’t miss chasing it with the Fairy Bread Donuts with vanilla custard, native Davidson plum syrup, and sprinkles. Occupying a prime corner in Noosaville, across the road from the water, this Noosa restaurant moved into the space formerly known as Thomas Corner Eatery in early 2023.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Sophisticated al fresco

Address: 1/201 Gympie Terrace, Noosaville

5. El Capitano Pizzeria & Bar

It’s a simple recipe for success yet tough to truly nail: 72-hour fermented sourdough, house-made pasta, and minimal intervention wine. At El Capitano Pizzeria & Bar, they’ve been doing it and more since 2015 but in late 2024, new digs were unveiled in the same Hastings Street spot. I start with nibbles from the extensive Snack and Antipasti selections – the beetroot-cured kingfish crudo is wonderful – then tuck into one of the excellent pizzas, with gluten-free bases and vegan cheese available. If you’ve got the kids, head there for a Bambino Special from 4pm until 4:45pm daily, which sees a free kids’ pizza dished up with every full-sized pizza ordered.

Cuisine: Italian

Average price: $$

Atmosphere: House party on the Amalfi

Address: 52 Hastings St, Noosa Heads

6. Mariella Mexicantina

The Traditional Mexican “antojitos" (little cravings) are the star of Mariella Mexicantina, a casual yet staggeringly stylish spot with cosy booths and a mezcal-laden bar. The tuna ceviche tostadas are a worthy starter while the tacos really steal the show – carnivores shouldn’t skip the birria, stuffed with slow-cooked brisket and dipped into a broth, while the “Black Magic Mushroom" tacos are a taste bud revelation with smoked cashew crema balancing the chargrilled Oaxacan chilli shrooms. Occupying a quiet corner in the surfside village of Peregian Beach, this cantina is in good company with great boutiques, a wine bar and gelato shop all within cooee.

Cuisine: Mexican street food

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Relaxed – sit at the bar to feel like you’ve escaped to Oaxaca

Address: Unit 4/2 Kingfisher Dr, Peregian Beach

7. Crackerjack

Chinese restaurants and bowls clubs have always made a handsome match in Oz but the former Your Mates Bowls Pub in Cooroy took things up a notch, bringing in Executive Chef Jake Pregnell and his pedigree from top-notch kitchens like Rick Shores, Hôntô, and Spirit House. They had a spruce up and relaunched with an all-new menu as Crackerjack in late 2024, championing the likes of cheeseburger spring rolls, salt and pepper tofu with coconut satay, and a beer battered bug roti taco, best enjoyed in one hand with a cold Your Mates brew in the other as my hubby and I wholeheartedly obliged. Large plates span a charcoal whole snapper to a Chinese pork bolognese with XO sauce, nduja, and crispy shallots, and if you can’t decide, there are two banquet options. If you’re more of a fan of the classics, never fear, you can still get a mean fish and chips while Kids Happy Boxes provide a mix and match of options, including everyone’s favourite fortune cookie. You’ll find the Banquet House replete with kids’ playground, beer garden, and bowling green right in town in Cooroy, 25 minutes’ drive from Hastings Street.

Cuisine: Asian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Not your grandad’s bowls club

Address: 5 Opal St, Cooroy

8. Somedays Pizza

Two-day fermented organic dough is lovingly kneaded and woodfired into some of the best pizza in Noosa at Somedays Pizza, confirmed entirely by the mountains of takeaway boxes I spy flying out of the kitchen during a recent visit. I struggled to choose from a red or white base at this Noosa restaurant, both lashed generously with toppings artfully buddied up for maximum flavour. The 13-inch ‘Somedays’ had me at free-range pork and fennel sausage, while the wagyu bresaola and crushed potato also stood out. And that all-important base? A chubby, blistery curve gives way to a thinner centre slapped with just the right number of toppings without it all falling into a heap on my lap. Smack-bang in buzzy Noosa Junction, there are plenty of people-watching opportunities, so I recommend grabbing an al fresco table to catch it all.

Cuisine: Pizza

Average price: $$

Atmosphere: Like you’re at a mate’s place

Address: Shop 2/3 Sunshine Beach Rd, Noosa Heads

9. The Doonan

Catering to families, large groups and travellers on their way into Noosa proper, The Doonan is a slicked-up pub just outside of town. I draw instant comparisons to The Grounds in Sydney due to the space’s sheer extent which stretches out over two sunny acres. Its restaurant is The Doonan’s beating heart, serving up delicious share plates, pub classics prepared with care and flair, grilled meats and a generous scattering of seafood. The pizzeria across the other end of the main complex is obviously full Italian, serving up fluffy bases loaded with locally sourced ingredients and gelato. You’re about a 15 to 20-minute drive from Hastings Street so if you’re craving a change of scenery away from the coast, this is the perfect option.

Cuisine: Elevated pub grub

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Garden party

Address: 6 Beddington Rd, Doonan

10. Rickys River Bar & Restaurant

I love this place so much I almost got married there (eloping proved too alluring in the end). Hands down one of the best restaurants in Noosa for so many reasons, Rickys River Bar & Restaurant’s position on the Noosa River is spectacular and never fails to wow. Given all ingredients are sourced fresh and direct from wide-reaching Australian shores, Rickys offers a unique culinary adventure on every plate. If you’re seafood obsessed like me, don’t go past the Mooloolaba prawns with nduja butter, or the North Queensland rock lobster roulade with salsa verde. Meanwhile, the cocktails are more-is-more magnificent, and the seasonal desserts are all too irresistible to overlook.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Refined

Address: 2 Quamby Pl, Noosa Heads

11. Light Years

I can’t decide what I like more at Light Years in Noosa (I’m a big fan of the Gold Coast’s outpost, too): their famed flavour-bomb plates or the punchy local artworks and wallpapers that set an unrivalled goodtime vibe. Whatever it is, I don’t leave without an order of the kingfish ceviche seasoned with coconut, chilli and kaffir lime, and when I’m craving an extra kick, I love the mee goreng spiced firecracker chicken, slathered with a signature sauce and topped with crushed peanuts and Thai basil. There’s also vegan and gluten-free options, such as wild truffled mushroom dumplings, miso caramel eggplant, cumin-spiced cauliflower and more. Outside of Noosa and the Glitter Strip, these guys also nail it in NSW’s Byron Bay and Newcastle, plus Perth.

Cuisine: Asian Fusion

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Date night

Address: 1 Sunshine Beach Rd, Noosa Heads

12. Bang Bang Noosa

The incredible menu at Bang Bang Noosa is bursting with fresh and vibrant flavours as I’m immersed in a darkened mishmash of chandeliers, candles and distressed plaster walls. The atmosphere at Bang Bang is instantly electric. I highly recommend digging into one of their Thai-style curries as well as a ‘Big Bang’ meat and a fish course to soak up the team’s Asian fusion wizardry in all its brilliance, while the ‘Little Bang’ light plates offer king-hit bites, too. If you just can’t decide, go for the ‘Bang-quet’ or ‘The Big Bang’ where crowd pleasers roll out much to the envy of onlookers. The flavour combos are all uniquely genius at Bang Bang plus you’re in the thick of Hastings Street, so rolling the good times onto its kicking bar scene is a total cinch.

Cuisine: South-East Asian

Average price: $$$

Atmosphere: Trendy

Address: 6/32 Hastings St, Noosa Heads

13. Bistro C

For the most iconic Noosa dining experience to write home about, I’m sending you down the Main Beach boardwalk to Bistro C. There are few places on Australia’s coast where you can enjoy a well-put-together meal and a glass of good wine just steps away from the surf and if the exclamation-inducing location isn’t enough, this Noosa restaurant’s chic interiors will instantly calm you. But the food is all-out wonderful. Think Mod Oz with fresh seafood the star, spanning salmon sashimi with salmon crackling, a Fraser Isle crab spaghetti with lemon, chilli, and capers, and a wagyu rump with Paris mash. Plus, the kids’ menu has its own mocktail list. A killer spot for weddings and functions, Bistro C is right on the beach offering uninterrupted views and day-to-night party atmosphere.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Peak Noosa

Address: 49 Hastings St, Noosa Heads

14. Locale

Whipping up authentic Italian fare using the region’s finest produce and ingredients, Locale is a standout Noosa restaurant surrounded by beautiful tropical gardens. Handmade pasta, in-house focaccia, classic antipasto and a traditional raw selection can all be found on the menu, with favourites including a hand-spun burrata with pistachio cream, a spanner crab tagliatelle, and a slow roasted White Pyrenees lamb shoulder for two. The food is knock-out no matter your choice, paired perfectly with an expertly curated wine list, plus you’re metres from Main Beach.

Cuisine: Elevated Italian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Elegant and low-lit

Address: 62 Hastings St, Noosa Heads

15. Sails Restaurant Noosa

Consistently superb, Sails is one of the best restaurants in Noosa year after year. Highlighting the country’s finest seafood, Head Chef Paul Leete works with the seasons to draw in the best produce on offer. Expect an Italian caviar on blinis with crème fraiche, just-shucked oysters, a Fraser Coast prawn linguine, a Moreton Bay bug with a Caesar salad, a coral trout from North Queensland, and the Kinross Station lamp rump with smoked carrot puree and greens. It’s all total perfection every visit. Also, how do 180-degree views of Laguna Bay sound? Sails is situated in the corner of the boardwalk along Main Beach, so its vantage point alone is gorgeous, to put it mildly.

Cuisine: Modern Australian

Average price: $$$$

Atmosphere: Like you’re on an endless holiday

Address: 75 Hastings St, Noosa Heads