According to the airport operator, the new restaurant is a premier destination for nationally acclaimed chefs and emerging local talents to showcase their signature dishes and experiment with new flavours over a seasonal varied period residency. The restaurant is a partnership between Airport Retail Enterprises (ARE) and Brisbane Airport. Its inaugural headliner will be Australian chef and restaurateur Luke Mangan, known for his distinctive French-Asian brasserie-style cuisine.
“Brisbane Airport is investing A$7.8m [£6.1m] as part of the Southern Terminal retail redevelopment – including new and refreshed dining experiences – and we are delighted to welcome The Independent as one of this precinct’s crowning jewels,” said Martin Ryan, Brisbane Airport executive general manager of commercial.
"This venue is more than a restaurant; it really is about reimagining the dining scene for travellers and that doesn’t just begin when you get to your holiday destination. A large part of the travel and culinary experience begins when you arrive at the airport,” he added.
The new venue will also have Brisbane Airport’s most extensive beverage offering, offering more than 50 local spirits predominately featuring the Queensland market.
ARE national operations manager Corey Law described the Airport Retail Enterprises team as ‘excited to bring the dynamic new concept and revolving roster of incredible chefs’ to Brisbane. He added: “The Independent is one of our most ambitious Australian airport projects and we are honoured to debut the latest fresh concept as part of Brisbane Airport’s multi-million-dollar redevelopment.”
The new restaurant joins recently opened outlets LOCAL and Motto Motto at Brisbane Airport’s Domestic Terminal, with more new retail brands opening in 2024. The upgrade of the Domestic Terminal is part of the $5bn (£3.9bn) Brisbane Airport is investing in the Future BNE transformation.
