In his Travel Playbook, Maxwell shows us what’s brimming underneath Brissie’s quiet demeanour, sharing some of the city’s most underrated creative hangouts.

QUIVR

Bar
5D Winn St, Fortitude Valley QLD 4006
QUIVR

"QUIVR is a queer-owned DJ booth and school, and they've just become a bar as well. When they opened, it was a little room with decks, and you could hire it out. Then they started giving lessons, and I started teaching production. It's such a great place. Now everyone is DJing, and it's such a large community."

Maxwell BYRNE

Cafe O-Mai

Cafe
15 Cracknell Rd, Annerley QLD 4103
Cafe O-Mai

"Cafe O-Mai is this Vietnamese lunch café owned by a mom and daughter. It's one of those local spots that is always so busy. They're really lovely and remember everyone's name, and the food's really good. I tend to go there if I have someone over at my studio and we do a session — we'll go get bánh mì or a Vietnamese iced coffee."

Maxwell BYRNE

echo & bounce

Record Store
596 Stanley St, Woolloongabba QLD 4101
echo & bounce

"Echo & bounce is a venue with three different spots in the same building. They also opened a café — you can get a coffee and choose a record, and there's listening booths. It's my favorite place to see shows, because sometimes they'll have all three stages going at the same time, or it'll be like a courtyard block party. Each time you go, it's something different."

Maxwell BYRNE

Coco’s

Grocery Store
310 Ipswich Rd, Annerley QLD 4103
Coco’s

"Coco's is an independent grocery store. It's open 24 hours, which is very rare for Brisbane. They have a very large selection of international food. And they have really good fresh produce that is more locaI. It's a nice place to be on the weekend when all the Coles and Woollies are closed — go to Coco's and get ice cream at midnight."

Maxwell BYRNE

Christian Jacques

Bakery
8 Baildon St, Kangaroo Point QLD 4169
Christian Jacques

"Christian Jacques is a croissant bakery in Kangaroo Point. I love croissants and I've tried almost every place in Brisbane, and this is definitely the best place, by a long shot. There's always a big line underneath the Story Bridge. It's so good. It's some of the best croissants I've ever had."

Maxwell BYRNE

Playbooks