We’re always asking chefs where they eat, but it’s a harder question than you think. Most chefs work gruelling hospo hours, which means they only have a handful of chances a week to get out there and try the newest additions to the local scene. If a chef chooses to spend their precious time off at a venue, you know it must be for a pretty exceptional dish.

Here are the best dishes of 2025, according to seven local chefs.

Lasagne pesto alla Genovese, Ramona Trattoria, Camp Hill

One of the best things we’ve had the pleasure of eating this year was the lasagne pesto alla Genovese at Ramona in Camp Hill. Ash’s quiet skill is taking simple, comforting dishes and absolutely dialling them up to levels that make you realise that every other pasta dish you’ve eaten previously has just been a massive waste of time. 

From what we can gather, Ash gently pan-fries an enormous slice of the lasagne, with all of its random folds lathered in a rich pesto sauce and potato so that all sides are lightly crisp and chewy. It’s then topped with Parmigiano and blanketed with the lightest bechamel. – Leaham Claydon & Jianne Jeong, Snug

Duck pie, Marlowe, South Brisbane

Two words: duck pie. From the moment this beautifully caramelised pastry hits the table, you know you’re in for a good time. The perfectly clean bone stands proud, shooting through the top crust like a flag saying, “This is no joke”. The filling is indulgently rich and the whole experience is made even more luscious by the downright drinkable jus that the pie is served swimming in. Ten points to Ollie and the Marlowe team. I’ll have five more, thank you. – Jamie Fleming, Spill Wine

Pizza baciata, Fellini’s Trattoria, Brisbane City

My favourite dish I have eaten recently was the pizza baciata with roast porchetta, scamorza and Urban Valley mixed mushrooms at Fellini’s Trattoria.

It was the best bite I have eaten in a long time! There is only one thing better than a pizza and that’s a pizza sandwich stuffed with porchetta, cheese and local mushrooms. It’s become a Sunday ritual to go for a bike ride with my daughter then stop off at Fellini’s on the way home to share a pizza baciata!

Everything else on the menu is great, especially chef Carmine [Guarino]’s pasta, but the pizza baciata was really memorable. – Louis Tikaram, Stanley & Stan’s

Goat birria taco, Birria Boy, Woolloongabba

I would probably say the goat taco at Birria Boy is the closest match to traditional tacos I’ve had in Mexico. – Brad Cooper, August

Keema pau with cornbread, Cafe Disco, West End

A killer dish I had this year? I’d have to go with the keema pau with cornbread at Cafe Disco in West End. It’s a spiced, aromatic lamb mince “bolognaise” served on house-made cornbread. For its austere look, the amount of flavour packed into it is riveting. 

The dish draws on the Bangladeshi heritage of Tas [Hassan, the owner], and it really captures what I love about Brisbane’s food scene: independently owned, creative venues, with amazing vibes, and a genuine grassroots following. – Gerald Ong, The Fifty Six

Pastries, Time & Temp, Albion

Time & Temp opened in August this year. It’s a tiny hole-in-the-wall bakery tucked behind a roller door in a quiet Albion strip. It’s the work of former Melburnians (like myself!) Manning Young (previously of Proud Mary Roasters) and Palita Cai (ex-Falco Bakery). They specialise in pastries, with a menu that shifts weekly, and Palita’s flavour combinations are always extremely inventive. She really knows her way around pastry and I find myself going back just to see what she’s dreamt up next.

One standout is the Saison Small Goods ’nduja scroll with roasted onion, fennel seeds and a drizzle of Bowman Family Honey from Stradbroke Island. (We use Saison at Bar Miette, too, and I truly think they’re world-class.) I also love their black sesame kouign-amann with black sesame sugar, black tahini mascarpone and a black sesame brittle. – Jason Barratt, Supernormal & Bar Miette 

The Best of 2025 is proudly presented by Square, Kia, NAB and Four Pillars. The dishes in this article were selected independently.