Mica Express
While we’ll readily travel great distances for artisanal breads, pastries and cakes, we love it when they’re easily within our reach. Good news for Brisbane City-based folk who often daydream about the flaky goodness at Mica Brasserie – the heralded dispenser of baked goods is opening a satellite location next week. Mica Express is the bite-sized sibling of the beloved Breakfast Creek-based patisserie, bar and bistro, which opened a year ago in a primo promenade space at the base of the Breakfast Creek Lifestyle Precinct. Mica Brasserie was always just one stage of a multifaceted master plan – Shannon Kellam and his wife Clare have envisioned a cluster of Mica Express locations, miniature grab-and-go outlets designed to give greater access to the sweet and savoury items made at state-of-the-art pastry kitchen The Kneadery. On Wednesday April 14, the first Mica Express location at MacArthur Central will open right near the Apple Store, showcasing a huge array of familiar Mica treats plus some items exclusive to the inner-city location. A range of artisanal breads, viennoiserie, tartlets, cakes and lunch items will feature – we’re talking handmade chocolate bonbons, caramelised peanut cruffins, chocolate-and-raspberry pain au chocolat (with dough made out of chocolate and filled with raspberry jam), strawberries-and-cream eclairs, lemon-meringue tarts, freshly made sandwiches, pies, pasties and quiches. Croissants will be proved and baked on site every 30 minutes, meaning every croissant purchased is as fresh as you’re likely to get in Brisbane. Bear Bones Coffee will be supplying two blends – one robust and one mild option – for the caffeine-deprived crowd, with beans also available to purchase.
Birria Boy
Tacos have been a popular staple of Brisbane’s dining scene for yonks, but the famed birria taco – braised meat and melty cheese stuffed inside a tortilla that is then pan-fried and served with dipping broth – is fast becoming a must-try foodie item. As of this moment, only a few spots in Brisbane are slinging this trending morsel, but soon that number will increase when the crew at Mac From Way Back launches its birria-centric pop-up concept Birria Boy. On Monday April 19, the MFWB headquarters in Woolloongabba will set aside its usual selection of smash burgers and gooey mac ‘n’ cheese in favour of a temporary menu consisting of beef or chicken birria tacos, beef birria noodle cups and fries loaded with beef birria. As the pop-up evolves, expect forthcoming menus to include burritos as well. We hear that the Birria Boy concept could score a permanent site of its own down the line, until then make sure you get in on the ground floor when the pop-up officially launches later this month. Be sure to follow Birria Boy’s Instagram account for more details in the coming weeks.
Cathedral Square Markets
Here’s some more good news for our city-dwelling denizens – the Brisbane City Markets’ weekly Cathedral Square market is set to return on Thursday April 22. Known as a heaving lunchtime hub, the market is looking to relaunch bigger and better than ever in 2021, with an assortment of vendors hawking all manner of morsels from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. If you’re keen to ditch the al-desko lunch in favour of charcoal grilled meats, Thai eats, mouth-watering Mexican morsels and vegan delights, or enhance it with some farm-fresh produce and artisanal small goods, this is the place to go. The Cathedral Square market will also host stalls from local businesses selling plants, candles and gifts – so you can even get a spot of shopping done in your lunch break, if desired. Be sure to keep an eye one the Brisbane City Markets Instagram page for weather updates in the lead-up.
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