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 The gourmet pizzeria Wild Pepper is one of the recent success stories of the Brisbane dining scene.
Owner Margie Cummins – known to many members of the GLBT community as a proud supporter of a number of events – was thrilled when Wild Pepper recently won a Community Choice award for ‘best restaurant’.
The night we dined-in was mid-week but the restaurant was still very busy. Staff seated us very efficiently and the dark wooden fixtures, combined with the mood lighting, helped us to relax and prepare for a delicious dining experience.
Your date is sure to be impressed by the extensive pizza menu, consisting of more than 32 pizzas, divided into meat, seafood and vegetarian options. Those on gluten-free diets and vegans are also catered for.
We started with a basic salad, including rocket/baby spinach, tomato, red onion, capsicum and fresh herbs. For our mains, we ordered a Farmer Pizza, which featured a range of fresh local vegetables and feta cheese, and a Pesto Lamb Pizza, which my date described as one of the best pizzas she had ever eaten.
We then shared a dessert pizza with banana, chocolate and ice cream, a perfect combination.
Margie Cummins told us that Wild Pepper has become a popular date destination and we could certainly see why. The menu is innovative, caters for a variety of dietary requirements and relies on fresh produce. The mood is created by candlelight, tasteful local art and attentive but not intrusive staff is very conducive to romance.
Wild Pepper shows that the Brisbane restaurant scene is vibrant and equal to – if not superior to – Sydney and Melbourne. So find that date and enjoy some romance – you know you deserve it!
Wild Pepper
75 Hardgrave Rd
West End
(07) 3844 1262
BYO. Open Tues – Sun from 5.30pm.
 TOP SHELF - Sean Hodge
Shirleene Robinson
This month, Queensland’s Pride’s ongoing quest to find the best bartenders working at our GLBT venues took me to the Wickham Hotel. Management at the Wickham told me that Sean Hodge is one of their most popular bartenders and I had a chat with him to find out the secrets behind his success.
Sean has been working at the Wickham for about 12 months now but has around five years experience in the hospitality industry. Those of us who have been to the Wickham on a weekend would be well-aware of how packed the bar can get at times but Sean says that even those big nights are fun as the crowd is always friendly and full of energy.
He told us that his approach of “smiling his way through” always gets him through even the most hectic of evenings.
Sean’s popularity shows that a friendly personality and a great attitude always impress patrons. Even though the job can be demanding at times, Sean said that he really does enjoy what he does and that the other staff at the Wickham help him to see the humour and fun in most parts of his job, “even the cleaning at 5.30 in the morning when all the customers have gone home!”
Sean told us that there is “always something happening at the Wickham and it’s never a dull place to work.” He told us that the variety and fun, along with the people he works with and gets to meet, make his job a great one.
He also said that one of the highlights so far has been his selection by Queensland Pride as one of the best bartenders working at a GLBT venue. Watching Sean expertly pour drinks for customers though, we’re sure this recognition won’t be the last he’ll get for his bartending.
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