It’s time to leave your usual airport food expectations at home, because we’ve just found the most delicious (healthy) Greek feast at the International Terminal at Brisbane Airport!
Windmill & Co is a gorgeous restaurant and bar that you’d expect to see more on the city streets of Brisbane… not next to the departure gates at an airport! Just one look at the restaurant fit out and suddenly you have an ‘I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore’ moment… well, at least an ‘I don’t feel like I’m in an airport anymore’ moment.
But perhaps our usual idea of what an airport is supposed to look like is also changing as time moves forward. Airports are becoming comfortable, beautiful spaces to be in… so YES, you want to get checked in as early as possible, so you can enjoy the delights you’ll find at Windmill & Co, located after security.
Before we get into the food art we have to say how impressed we are with Windmill & Co’s passion for local produce. With their ‘Paddock to Gate’ philosophy, they’re using 85% local Queensland produce and keeping their dishes simple and fresh. Go team Windmill! PLUS the menu has a ridiculous amount of dishes that cover all dietary requirements: gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, vegetarian and vegan.
The boxes just keep getting ticked for us!
We were even more pleased to know that the menu for the evening was Greek themed. It’s like they intuitively knew the way to our hearts… via our bellies 😛 Our dad is Greek, which makes us half Greek and we LOVE Greek food. The flavours, the freshness, the simplicity.
Ok enough talk… your mouth must be watering. Let’s get into the menu that we sampled for the evening at Windmill & Co at the International Terminal at Brisbane Airport.
OCTOPUS WITH SPLIT PEA DIP
Before we sat down to eat our delicious meal (and yes, how pretty was the table… we love pink bougainvilleas… take us to Santorini!) we enjoyed several canapes. Our favourite was the amazing chargrilled octopus! It was tender and tasty. We sent photos of the food to our Dad and he specifically asked us ‘How’s the flavours?’ as Greek food is simple… BUT you can get the flavours somewhat ‘wrong’ and we are pleased to let you know that we messaged him back saying: ‘very authentic and very yum’ so there you go.
SCHULTZ FAMILY FARM PORK BELLY SOUVLAKI
We know, usually, pork belly would be our fave too and this was definitely a close second. Maybe it’s tied first?! Anyway… delicious, juicy pork belly served as souvlaki (on a stick, grilled). LOVE that it’s sourced from the Schultz Family Farm, which won the BEST pork in Australia last year.
And best of all gluten free, dairy free, and refined sugar free.
After we’d enjoyed this, we were thinking that maybe we needed to slow down a little on the canapes, as we knew we had a big shared dinner to keep room for. But then they brought out…
DOLMADES
OMGOSH dolmades! Seriously, we love dolmades. Pretty much dolmades are a mixture of rice, meat, spices, herbs all wrapped in a vine leaf. They have this distinct flavour because of all the Greek flavours wrapped up together in one teeny tasty package.
We love how Greek food uses loads of cloves and dill… such distinct flavours.
Gluten free, vegetarian, refined sugar free, with dairy free and vegan options!
TARAMASALATA
Because when is dip and pita not a good idea? The answer is never. They even made us a special gluten free pita bread! Aww you guys… we love you!
WHOLE ROASTED LAMB LEG
Once we were already full on canapes (oops!) it was time to sit down to the main meal. And yay! It was share style which is our all-time favourite way to eat. Either way, if you’re sitting next to us, we’re going to eat off your plate… our family and friends are used to this. It must be a Greek thing… or an Emma and Carla thing. Either way, it’s fun because you never have food envy.
The whole roasted lamb leg was always going to be the standout dish, as soon as we saw it on the menu – we knew it. It was perfectly cooked and served with crunchy, herby potatoes! UMMM… YUM! Seriously, why are potatoes so yum? Our Yiayia used to make the best potatoes for us and eating these potatoes took us right back to those memories.
Once again, gluten free, dairy free and refined sugar free!
PLAKI MOOLOOLABA KINGFISH
Oh hello fresh seafood! This dish had the best of everything, deliciously cooked white fish with chargrilled, colourful veggies that just gave it a real flavour kick! Don’t you love when you have moments like ‘wow, vegetables are so yum’. This was a moment like that.
It was a lighter meal, but oh so healthy with all that colour and music to our ears being gluten free, dairy free and refined sugar free.
VILLAGE SALAD
It wouldn’t be a Greek feast without a village salad! The tomatoes were amazing (they tasted like tomatoes, so obviously farm fresh… that might sound weird but sometimes tomatoes taste like nothing), the cucumber, the capsicum, the onion, the cheese, THE OLIVES! All of it dosed in SO. MUCH. OLIVE OIL! Which is literally the only dressing you ever need on a salad. Gosh we love olive oil. If you’re a bread kind of person we’d recommend ordering a side of sourdough so you can slop all that extra oil up.
GREEK SLAW
If you follow us on the socials you’d know that we have a herb garden and this Greek slaw reminded us that we need to make more salads using ALL of our herbs. It was so amazingly tasty and crunchy and fresh.
Both salads are gluten free, refined sugar free and can be made vegan.
GEMISTA
Basically: tomato stuffed with rice and flavours then baked to perfection. Yes… we know… YUM. Plus, how beautiful does that dill look? Gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free, and vegan.
FRESH AMAZING FRUIT
You may think fresh fruit sounds boring but take another look! This is like the best fruit salad on the planet! Fresh figs, apricots, raspberries, strawberries… YUM! Usually fruit salad is chock full of melon and don’t get us wrong, we love melons but when you’re presented a fruit salad with this much colour and this much exotic-ness, you can’t help but smile! And then eat it all.
10/10 FOR WINDMILL & CO
Overall we LOVE how they’re changing the way we think about airport food. They’re creating pleasant and tasty food experiences for us pre-travel.
All the staff were super friendly and helpful. And this could take it up to 12/10… good service makes the entire experience better… it might even make the food taste better?!
Be sure to check out Windmill & Co before departing on your next overseas trip out of Brisbane!
Where shall we go? Perhaps the Greek Islands are calling our names?!
Always merrymaking,
Emma + Carla
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