Cruising on the Noosa River suits the taste of those who like to wine and dine and watch the tourist mecca float by.
According to TripAdvisor, Noosa Cruiser Restaurant and Bar based at Noosa Marina in Tewantin is the top restaurant choice of at the moment of its website users.
Restaurant owner Ron Van Hooff said bookings had bounced back strongly since the earlier COVID-19 shutdowns.
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“It slowly got back up but now we’re flat out,” Mr Van Hooff said.
“Every weekend is booked out at the moment.”
His a la carte cruises seat 36 taking in Lake Cooroibah’s sunset before heading back down towards Noosa Woods.
There are also lunch cruises to Makepeace Island and surrounds.
“It’s more relaxing on water and the scenery changes as you go along,” he said.
Mr Van Hooff said his customers were loving the dining choices of his chef, a French backpacker who knew how to make the most of local fresh ingredients.
That was why TripAdvisor had it at the top of its Noosa dining options.
All the others in the website’s top 10 received ratings between 4.5 to 5 out of 5.
1. Noosa Cruiser Restaurant and Bar, Noosa Marina at Tewantin
Review: This river cruise has that wow factor on water. The chef impressed with his ability to create amazing food on a moving boat. The seafood platter was to die for. The boat had a cosy and comfortable vibe with a 360 degree view from the deck above and brilliant views from below of either side of the river.
2. Little Humid Restaurant, Gympie Tce at Noosaville
Review: Highly rated for its “relaxed Aussie vibe with delicious food”. The menu was varied, with lots of yummy choices … like oysters, scallops for start with snapper for main and lemon meringue cheese cake for dessert. We couldn’t fault anything.
3. Noosa Waterfront & Bar, Gympie Tce, Noosaville
Review: This restaurant lives up to its excellent reviews and we couldn’t have been more impressed by the service and quality of food. Absolutely to die for. The gnocchi was soft and flavoursome and all bar and wait staff were extremely friendly.
4. Sumi Open Kitchen, The Pavilion, Sunshine Beach Rd, Noosa Juntion
Review: Sumi presents a “trust the chef” menu – that is, set courses, matched with sake and does not disappoint. The food was beautifully and thoughtfully presented. Trust this chef.
5. Esco, Gympie Tce, Noosaville
Review: Amazing food and service. We can recommend the salmon stack and also the corn flapjacks.
Beware though as the serves are large and you won’t want to stop eating.
6. Periwinkle Restaurant, Peregian Beach village
Review: Service and staff were wonderful, attentive and we didn’t have to wait for anything, drinks keep coming and our food order was timely. The meals were of the highest quality. Can’t recommend this restaurant highly enough.
7. Sushi Yah-Man, Sunshine Beach Rd, Noosa Junction
Review: As well as delicious sushi, we tried the ramen, wagu lettuce cups, scallop spoons and karaage chicken. The serving sizes are generous and the prices very reasonable. I can’t wait for our next trip to Noosa to go to this restaurant again.
8. Gusto, Gympie Tce, Noosaville
Review: This lovely restaurant is just down right brilliant, on every level and the service is all class and I must say to the chef, you are the best with the flavours. We enjoyed the salmon ceviche also the gnocchi.
9. Sum Yung Guys, Duke St, Sunshine Beach
Review: We had the set menu for $65 and the flavours were all different and delicious. The massaman curry was especially tasty. The roti rocks. Got to See Matt Sinclair working there which was a highlight for me.
10. Whisky Boy, Gympie Tce, Noosaville.
Review: The jovial atmosphere, combined with the innovative food blew us away. From the cocktails to the desserts, of which we had multiple, were amazing. The new menu has been a welcome change, the whisky selection was beyond amazing.