Hotels List

Apollonian Hotel

19 Laguna St, Boreen Point

The Apollonian Hotel feels less like a pub you arrive at and more like one you discover. Set in the lakeside village of Boreen Point, surrounded by trees, wide lawns and the quiet pull of Lake Cootharaba, it holds a rare place in Greater Noosa’s food story. It is historic, relaxed, musical and unmistakably country, with deep roots and a personality that has survived every move, decade and change around it.
Its story begins far from Boreen Point, in the goldfields of Gympie. First licensed in 1868, the Apollonian is one of Queensland’s great surviving hotel stories: a timber music hall hotel built in the nineteenth century and later moved to Boreen Point in the 1980s. The building was transported in sections and reassembled, giving it a second life beside the lake. That history is still felt in the verandahs, timber, generous proportions and old-world ease of the place.

The Apollonian’s name carries its own sense of theatre. Apollo was the god of music and performance, and the hotel has long lived up to that spirit. Music, locals, travellers and weekend visitors all seem to belong here. It is the kind of place where a meal can stretch into an afternoon, where someone may arrive for lunch and stay for the music, the shade, the lawn or the pleasure of being somewhere that still feels genuine. Food at the Apollonian is grounded in country hospitality. The menu has a hearty, generous quality, with a paddock-to-plate sensibility and the comfort of food made for sharing. It is not about delicate formality. It is about flavour, ease and appetite: the kind of cooking that suits a family day out, a drive through the hinterland, a gathering with friends or a relaxed meal after time on the lake. The hotel’s famous Melt in your Mouth Slow Roasted Smoked Meats captures that spirit beautifully. Few things speak more clearly of regional hospitality than meat cooking slowly, smoke in the air, people gathering under trees and plates carried back to tables in the beer garden. The appeal lies in its simplicity: good food, open space, live music, families on the lawn and a sense that everyone is welcome. Boreen Point gives the hotel much of its character. This is a quieter edge of Noosa, shaped by Lake Cootharaba, sailing, kayaking, camping, birdlife and the gateway to the Noosa Everglades. The Apollonian reflects that slower rhythm. It is close enough to the coast to be part of the wider Noosa experience, yet far enough away to feel like an escape. The journey there matters. Roads narrow, traffic softens, the lake appears, and the mood changes. The Apollonian is built for real use: children on the lawn, dogs resting in the shade, sailors calling in after time on the lake, campers looking for a proper meal, and locals settling in for a drink that turns into dinner. Its generous grounds give people room to spread out, while the old timber building gathers everyone back into the same story. For locals, the Apollonian is more than a historic building. It is a meeting place, a music venue, a family lawn, a Sunday ritual and a reminder that some of the region’s most memorable food experiences happen away from the obvious tourist paths. For visitors, it offers a glimpse of Greater Noosa that is earthy, generous and deeply communal.

Matso's

85 Memorial Dr, Eumundi

Matso’s Eumundi brings a burst of Broome colour, Sunshine Coast ease and country-pub generosity to the heart of the hinterland. Set on Memorial Drive, in the much-loved former Joe’s Waterhole site, it has taken one of Eumundi’s historic gathering places and given it new life as a brewery, distillery, restaurant and all-day meeting place.

The result feels immediately at home. Eumundi has always known how to gather people. Market mornings, live music, artists, makers, locals, travellers and long lunches are part of the town’s rhythm. Matso’s fits naturally into that world, offering somewhere relaxed and generous to eat, drink and stay a little longer. The name carries its own legend. Matso’s began in Broome and became famous for bringing a tropical sense of fun to Australian brewing, especially through its iconic alcoholic ginger beer and mango beer. Those flavours still sit at the heart of the brand: bright, refreshing, a little unexpected and made for warm weather. In Eumundi, that spirit has been expanded into a Sunshine Coast home where brewing and distilling are part of the experience. As a distillery and brewery, Matso’s is not quiet about what it does. The drinks are part of the personality of the place. Ginger beer, mango beer, lagers, pale ales, cocktails and spirit-based creations all speak to the same idea: flavour should be enjoyable, approachable and made for sharing. There is craft here, but not the kind that pushes people away. Matso’s understands that good drinks should start conversations, not require a lecture. That same ease carries into the food. Matso’s Eumundi is not simply a place to stop for a drink after the markets, though it does that beautifully. It is also a genuinely appealing place to eat, with a menu that suits the venue’s broad, lively character. The food is generous, relaxed and designed for the way people actually gather: families with children, friends sharing plates, couples lingering over cocktails, travellers making a day of Eumundi, and locals dropping in because it already feels familiar. The kitchen leans into the pleasures of modern pub dining without losing its Sunshine Coast identity. There are the satisfying classics, shareable plates, fresh seafood touches, burgers, steaks, salads and bright flavours that pair naturally with a cold ginger beer or tropical cocktail. It is food with broad appeal, but it is not careless. A great regional venue has to know how to feed many different appetites at once, and Matso’s does that with confidence. Part of its strength lies in the spaces themselves: the comfort of the bar, the energy of the restaurant, the openness of the beer garden, the family-friendly ease of the playground and the casual pleasure of a place where different groups can settle in without feeling out of place. It can be a quick lunch, a long afternoon, a drink after market shopping, a family meal, a birthday, a Sunday session or the first stop on a hinterland drive. Eumundi is no longer just a market town people pass through on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It is becoming a serious food and drink destination in its own right, with venues that give visitors a reason to return outside market hours. Matso’s adds weight to that story. It brings scale, character and a sense of occasion while still respecting the relaxed, creative spirit that makes Eumundi special.

Kin Kin Hotel

69 Main Street, Kin Kin

The Kin Kin Hotel carries the warmth of a country pub and the ambition of a new regional dining destination. Set in the heart of Kin Kin, surrounded by rolling hills, farms and forested roads, it has become one of the most memorable stops in the Noosa hinterland: a place where heritage, hospitality and local food culture meet with genuine ease.

For generations, country hotels have been gathering places. They are where farmers, families, travellers and locals cross paths, where stories are exchanged at the bar and where the character of a town can be felt almost immediately. The Kin Kin Hotel holds that spirit closely. Its restoration has given the building new life without stripping away its sense of history. There is polish here, but not pretence; style, but still the welcome of a village pub. Food is central to this renewed identity. The hotel’s offering moves between relaxed pub classics, seasonal dishes, baked goods, shared meals and the more considered destination experience of The Woodshed. Together, they give Kin Kin a dining address that feels both accessible and special. Guests can come for coffee and something simple, settle in for a long lunch, or make the drive for a meal that places the hinterland at the centre of the table. The hotel’s bakery adds another layer of charm and craft. Breads are baked daily in Kin Kin using heritage grains and Richard’s 6.5-year-old sourdough starter. The slow fermentation process creates naturally low-gluten sourdough: bread as it used to be, and bread as it should be: healthy, easy to digest and full of flavour. Kirsty’s pastries are full of personality, with the guava cake already earning the kind of devotion that divides life into two moments: before and after you have tried it. All breads, cakes and pastries are available from 8am Thursday to Sunday, with takeaway options for those wise enough to arrive early. Special-occasion cakes and indulgent afternoon teas can also be arranged directly with the hotel. What gives the hotel its particular strength is the landscape around it. Kin Kin sits within one of the region’s richest food bowls, close to cattle farms, vegetable growers, orchards, mushroom producers, small-scale makers and passionate home gardeners. The best cooking here does not need to be showy. It needs to understand the soil, the seasons and the people who grow food nearby. For visitors, the journey is part of the pleasure. The road into Kin Kin slows the pace before the meal has even begun, opening into green country and wide skies. For locals, the hotel offers something equally important: a restored meeting place with pride, purpose and a reason to gather. The Kin Kin Hotel reminds us that regional dining is not only found by the beach. It lives inland too, in restored pubs, working villages and small towns where hospitality is personal, produce is close, and the meal carries the unmistakable flavour of place, memory and community.