Last days in Burleigh

We've found it enjoyable over the last week to keep to our beach holiday routine of walking, swimming, relaxing, coffeeing, wining and dining each day. The weather, up until today, has been beautiful so why not just enjoy the warmth and the sea air and all the good things on offer while we can?

We've had one or two outings outside Burleigh ...... last Tuesday we drove to Pacific Fair, parked the car and then caught the new (to us) light rail to Cavill Avenue in Surfers Paradise.

The light rail service was impeccable: clean, quick and easy to navigate. But we were a bit shocked by the Cavill Avenue area. Decades ago it was known for its classy shops and restaurants, but now it is all surf shops, fast food eateries and tattoo parlours (just waiting for a schoolies week invasion I guess). And the buildings are so tall ... they cast long shadows over these iconic beaches in the late afternoon.  Manly in Sydney is positively laid back in comparison....

Our second outing was much quieter, southwards to Kingscliff Beach, where we made a return visit to the Kingscliff Hotel for a late lunch (and an early g & t for me!)

There's always great pride taken in the meals served at this Pub. I had baked figs (YUM!) and Rob had a whole barramundi - a beautiful lunch!

And aside from our two outings this week we've continued with wine o'clock on the balcony each evening, around sunset ..........

Complete with the super bright "pink moon" rising on Tuesday night ..........

and morning coffees after our long walks. The Commune Cafe and the Paddock Bakery are our faves...........

while admiring the lush plantings everywhere - so different to Canberra gardens. This Strelitzia (Bird of Paradise) grows like a weed here (and only available at specialist florists in Canberra).

We have continued to eat well here too. Burleigh has a very diverse and quite interesting food scene for its size. "Red Hot Cod" was a great choice one night - and prompted me to consider serving baked salmon in a Balinese style satay sauce (gado dado style) when we get back to Canberra!!

And tonight we tried Oi Izakaya, an unassuming Japanese bar/restaurant in one of the laneways off James Street serving the kind of food that goes down well with their great selection of (Japanese) whiskies and sake. We opted for the sake set tonight, trying citrus, umami and floral flavoured varieties with a selection of delicacies that made us very nostalgic for all the wonderful times and great food we've eaten in Japan!!

That Wagyu in the centre of the table, on the hot rock, is still flaming, but Rob is not dousing it with his umami sake! ..........

I was very relieved that Matcha icecream was on the dessert menu - but somewhat overpowered by that death by chocolate soufflé served with it ........

Today we watched the set up being completed for the weekend's "Gold Coast Open" Surfing Championship, over the road from our apartment. We'll have an excellent view from our balcony - but it probably means it will be pretty hectic around here while it's on so maybe it's just as well we'll heading back home on Sunday, after our fabulous two week break.

Hopefully we'll be back to Burleigh some time - it has so much to recommend it!!