Ninety-six dishes. One charcoal fire. Zero shortcuts.
The winter carte reads like a tour of Queensland — Darling Downs beef dry-aged in-house, Moreton Bay bugs landed overnight, granite from the Granite Belt in the glass. Everything below is served in the dining room, on the terrace and at the gaming tables until 01:00.
The dish explorer
Twenty plates, read them like a sommelier
Pick a course, then flip through the dishes — each card carries the full story, the price and the pour we'd put beside it.
Starters · 01
Oysters Rockefeller
Six Sydney rock oysters under a spinach-and-bacon gratin finished on the charcoal grill. The smoke does the talking; the champagne vinegar does the rest.
$28
Pour: house sparkling, $14 — the acidity cuts the gratin clean.
Reserve to taste
Starters · 02
Kingfish Crudo
Line-caught kingfish, dressed in finger lime and macadamia oil with native mint. Fifteen seconds of heat, then straight onto ice — the fish stays the colour of the reef it came from.
$26
Pour: Granite Belt riesling — green apple against the chilli oil.
Reserve to taste
Starters · 03
Charred Broccolini
Blanched, then thrown straight onto the ironbark coals for the char. White miso butter, toasted sesame, a squeeze of yuzu. The side that regulars order twice.
$18
Pour: dry sake or a pilsner — both love the miso.
Reserve to taste
Starters · 04
Beef Tartare, Smoked Yolk
Hand-cut rump from the same dry-age cabinet as the ribeye, folded with smoked egg yolk, mustard and rye rusks. We cut it to order — never before service.
$24
Pour: the Croupier's Spritz — bitter orange lifts the yolk.
Reserve to taste
From the grill · 05
45-Day Dry-Aged Ribeye
The dish the house is built on. 800 grams of Darling Downs beef aged 45 days in our cabinet, grilled over ironbark and carved tableside with bone-marrow jus. Feeds two, or one very good night.
$118
Pour: Granite Belt shiraz, $72 — big enough to stand next to the crust.
Reserve to taste
From the grill · 06
Darling Downs Wagyu Rump
Marble score 4+ rump, seared hard and rested twice. Red wine jus, charred shallot, watercress. The rump is the sommelier's cut — more flavour than fillet, half the theatre.
$86
Pour: cabernet sauvignon, Margaret Hill — structured, dusty, perfect.
Reserve to taste
From the grill · 07
Ironbark-Grilled Lamb Rack
Three-cornered lamb from the Scenic Rim, crusted with native pepperberry and grilled over ironbark until the fat crackles. Mint jus, smoked eggplant.
$72
Pour: grenache — red fruit against the pepper crust.
Reserve to taste
From the grill · 08
Brick-Pressed Half Chicken
Corn-fed bird pressed under a brick on the flat grill until the skin turns to lacquer. Preserved lemon, charred spring onion, pan juices poured at the table.
$46
Pour: chardonnay, lightly oaked — matches the lemon.
Reserve to taste
From the sea · 09
Grilled Moreton Bay Bugs
Split and grilled in the shell with garlic-bisque butter, named for the bay twenty kilometres from our door. Landed overnight, on the ice by six, on your plate by eight.
$64
Pour: house sparkling — the classic call, for a reason.
Reserve to taste
From the sea · 10
Whole Baked Snapper
Whole fish baked in salt with burnt lemon and salsa verde, carved at the table. Feeds two comfortably — order it with the broccolini and thank us later.
$78
Pour: vermentino — saline, bright, built for fish.
Reserve to taste
From the sea · 11
Charcoal Tiger Prawns
Six tiger prawns over hard coals, glazed with bisque butter and finished with finger lime. Head on, shell on — the flavour lives there.
$42
Pour: a cold lager. Trust the kitchen.
Reserve to taste
From the sea · 12
Seared Scallop Skewers
Three skewers of Hervey Bay scallops, seared ninety seconds a side, painted with roe butter and hit with finger lime. The starter that sells out first.
$34
Pour: chablis-style chardonnay — steel and citrus.
Reserve to taste
Mains · 13
Black Truffle Agnolotti
Hand-folded parcels of smoked ricotta in parmesan brodo, shaved with black truffle at the pass. The vegetarian dish that meat-eaters refuse to share.
$38
Pour: aged pinot noir — earth meets earth.
Reserve to taste
Mains · 14
Duck à l'Orange, Dry-Aged
Breast aged five days for a deeper, almost steak-like flavour, roasted pink and glazed with bitter-orange caramel. Charred endive, toasted farro.
$58
Pour: pinot noir from the Granite Belt — cherry and forest floor.
Reserve to tasteMains · 15
Mushroom & Chestnut Wellington
Butter pastry over a duxelles of field mushrooms and roasted chestnuts, made to order for the whole table. Madeira gravy, glazed roots.
$42
Pour: a full-bodied shiraz — the gravy asks for it.
Reserve to taste
Mains · 16
The Billy Burger
The offcut blend from our dry-age cabinet — brisket, rump and trim — smoked cheddar, house pickles, bone-marrow mayo on a milk bun. Served with beef-fat chips.
$32
Pour: the house pale ale, or a shiraz if the night is long.
Reserve to taste
Desserts · 17
Pavlova Noir
Charcoal meringue, whipped vanilla cream, macadamia praline and winter berries. It looks like midnight and eats like a Queensland summer.
$22
Pour: muscat — sticky, apricot, unapologetic.
Reserve to taste
Desserts · 18
Burnt Honey & Macadamia Tart
Burnt honey custard in a blind-baked shell, topped with candied macadamias from the Glass House Mountains. Served warm, with cultured cream.
$19
Pour: tokaji or a short black — both work.
Reserve to taste
Bar · 19
Billy Tea Old Fashioned
Bourbon stirred with smoked billy-tea syrup and native orange bitters, over one big rock. The signature pour at the gaming bar since 2014.
$24
With: the ribeye, obviously. Or a slow night at the blackjack table.
Reserve to tasteBar · 20
The Croupier's Spritz
Blood orange, prosecco and a whisper of native rivermint, named for the dealers who drink it after the last hand. Bright, bitter, dangerously easy.
$19
With: the scallop skewers or the crudo.
Reserve to tasteThe centrepiece
One ribeye, every angle
45 days in the cabinet, 12 minutes over ironbark, 8 minutes resting under a cloth. Drag the stage to see the crust our cameras can't quite do justice to — then come and do the same with your fork.
- Cut
- Darling Downs ribeye, 800g
- Age
- 45 days, in-house cabinet
- Fire
- Ironbark, 400°C
- Rest
- 8 minutes, always
Anatomy of the plate
What's actually on the fork
The crust
Ironbark coals at 400°C, turned every ninety seconds. No butter, no basting — salt, smoke and patience until the crust cracks like lacquer.
The rest
Eight minutes under a loose foil tent, no exceptions. It's why the juice lands on the plate, not the board.
The jus
Roast bones simmered for twelve hours with native pepperberry, finished with a spoon of the aging-room butter. Nothing else touches the steak.
Tolerances we hold: medium-rare means 52°C at the bone, chips leave the fryer at 190°C, and every steak rests exactly as long as it cooked. The kitchen runs to the gram, not the guess.
Tasting flights
Short menus for long nights
Flight 01
Land & Sea
Scallop, bug, ribeye — the coast and the paddock in five courses.
$129 /guest
Flight 02
The Garden Path
Five vegetarian courses from the Scenic Rim, truffle included. Omnivores welcome.
$109 /guest
Flight 03
Full Tide
Six courses of nothing but Queensland seafood, from crudo to the grill.
$149 /guest
Flight 04
Afternoon at the Cage
High tea with a side of history — three tiers, bottomless tea, optional table after.
$55 /guest
Every table welcome
Dietary needs, mapped before you sit
| Requirement | Tasting menu | À la carte | Buffet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gluten-free | Full twin menu | Marked carte | Dedicated station |
| Dairy-free | Full twin menu | Marked carte | Chef-manned station |
| Vegan | Five-course garden flight | Marked carte | Full section |
| Nut allergies | Nut-free kitchen protocol | Flagged dishes | Separated service |
| Halal | On request, 24h notice | Certified suppliers | Arranged per sitting |
Tell us when you book and the kitchen maps every course individually — no "one option fits all". Severe allergies are handled by a separate prep board; mention it in your booking notes or call +61 7 3221 4455.
House standards
The standards behind the carte
The rules the brigade works to, posted where the guests can read them — because a menu is only as honest as its kitchen.
Sourcing
90% of produce travels less than 400km. Beef is dry-aged on site; seafood is bought whole at the Brisbane markets at 5am.
Fire
One grill, one fuel. Ironbark only — no gas on the line, no shortcuts in the smoke.
Temperature
Every protein cooked to the degree and rested to the minute. If your steak isn't right, it goes back on the fire — not on the bill.
Allergens
Every dish carries a full allergen map. Separate prep, separate pans, no "may contain" surprises on the pass.
Kitchen charter · rev 2026.02
$ billytea kitchen --standards --strict
→ ironbark only · no gas on the grill
→ dry-age cabinet: 45 days, checked daily
→ allergen map: printed, per dish, per service
✓ 96 dishes · 0 shortcuts · status 200 OK
The cellar call
What we'd pour with it
Every dish card carries our pour — here are the three most-asked-for bottles this winter. The full 180-label list lives at the bar.
Granite Belt Shiraz 2021
$72
Margaret River Cabernet 2020
$96
House Sparkling, Hunter Valley
$58
Cellar door · mezzanine
Taste the flight before you book the night
Sommelier-led flights run Friday and Saturday from 17:00. Five pours, one hour, no homework.
Plated, not posed
The pass, as it looked last Saturday
No styling, no re-shoots — the camera walked the pass during service. What you see is what lands on the cloth.
Photography updated with every seasonal menu — the current set is from June 2026 service.
Book a table to taste itMenu FAQs
Before you order
The full question register — gaming, privacy, vouchers — lives on the main FAQ page.
Four times a year with the seasons. The ribeye, the snapper and the pavlova noir never leave — everything else follows the markets. This page is the winter 2026 carte.
Yes — gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, vegan and halal paths run through the whole menu. Tell us when you book and every course arrives with its own plan.
The lounge menu runs the full carte until midnight, then a late grill list until 01:00. Your table number is your order point — the floor team brings everything to your seat.
Always — the bar and terrace keep seats for walk-ins every night. Weekends after 19:00 we recommend booking; the wait rarely passes twenty minutes, but the ribeye deserves better planning.
Hungry yet?
The carte is read. The fire is lit. Your table is the only thing missing.
Book in two minutes — the maître d' confirms your seating, your courses and your pour in one reply.