Gourmet Traveller 2009 Restaurant Guide Awards

The Gourmet Traveller 2009 Restaurant Guide Awards were held last night (even though the rest of us are still in 2008).

The great news for Brisbane is that The Bowery won the award for the best bar in Australia. I love The Bowery, so it's fantastic to see it being recognised with an Australia-wide award (hopefully it doesn't get overrun with tourists now). You can read my post about The Bowery here.

These are the winners of each of the major categories:

Restaurant of the Year - Quay (Sydney)

Best New Talent - Elvis Abrahanowicz and Ben Milgate, Bodega (Sydney)

Best New Restaurant - Bistro Guillaume (Melbourne)

Outstanding Contribution to the Industry - Donlevy Fitzpatrick

Sommelier of the Year - James Erskine, Auge (Adelaide)

Bar of the Year - The Bowery (Brisbane)

Maitres d' of the Year - Liz Carey & Paul Guiney, Universal (Sydney)

Regional Restaurant of the Year - Royal Mail Hotel (Dunkeld, Victoria)

Wine List of the Year - Balthazar (Perth)

I've been lucky enough to eat at Quay and it is still the best dinner I've had anywhere in Australia. I had this amazing dish of abalone and pork belly that I just wished would never end. There aren't too many restaurants in the world that can compete with the view at Quay either. The night I was there, we sat in the tower, with panoramic views over Sydney harbour, the harbour bridge and the opera house. Pretty much the perfect night out if you ask me.

I haven't been able to track down the top 10 list of Queensland restaurants yet, but I'll put another post up when my September edition of Gourmet Traveller arrives.