Great steak. Great choice of sides and sauces. The oyster shots are phenomenal! Spicy and good! An absolute must! read more

See all

I won't necessarily say that this is a great pub, but the thing is that it is located in what is essentially a gorgeous building. In fact as a pub it is quite large, has a number of bars, and an awesome beer garden. Yet, despite all of this, if really didn't have a huge range of beers on tap. In fact the selection was rather limited, and generally the ones that I really don't like all that much. Still, it is a decent pub, if only for the beer garden. read more

See all

Having had my first ever steak at The Norman Hotel, I can say it is almost like the newer looking Breaky Creek Hotel. The baked potato comes with bacon but no sour cream, the salad is generous and has yummy dressing, the steaks look quite deliyum (my word for delicious and yum) when you order. Booked to 120 people + 100 walk ins every day of the week, either get in before 6pm or book well in advance I would have to say. The steak I ordered was a large rib fillet at the price of $35 and it came out a little more well done than I would have liked my medium to be. The steak (in my opinion) wasn't as good as Breaky Creek, but everything else was fresh, tasted good and came out without having to wait forever. I haven't had the garlic pizza or the pork ribs, but my guess is, stick to the steak as it's what they are rated highly for. Lots of people go for the $40 rib on the bone, and the eye fillet wrapped with bacon but to me, a steak is a steak and a well cooked steak makes all the difference. They also run Master BBQ classes here if you are at all inclined to learn how to BBQ the perfect piece of meat. Was clean, impressive for the location and I can see why it gets packed. read more

See all

Years ago I went here and it was average at best. Last week I did again and still I don't see what the fuss is about. I ordered the wagyu rib fillet for $49 so I expected something special. A baked potato and caterers coleslaw, plus a prepackaged bread roll were the sides. When I say prepackaged bread roll I mean it was in a plastic wrapper that you have to tear open like a packet of chips. I don't know what all that would cost the restaurant but I'm gonna say it's less than a few bucks. So very average sides and sadly the steak wasn't much better. I ordered medium rare but I have a preference for rare to medium rare. Mine was blue. That's OK, I can deal, but it wasn't what I ordered. The worst part was the gristle. A $50 wagyu steak and I'm pulling loads of gristle out of my mouth. Add to that, the steak itself had a really weird flavour. It really wasn't very good. Seriously disappointing, not to mention a waste of cash. read more

Norman Hotel is great. Famous for it's steaks and rightly so! On the weekends this place gets rather busy, so finding parking in the designated parking area at the back can get frustrating. However, there are streets that run along side the Norman Hotel, so patrons can park there also. The line up for the restaurant is usually out the door on weekends as plenty of Brisbanites have come to learn of it's delicious steaks. As you wait in line you are usually assigned a table number, then order at the counter and pay. The beautiful slabs of steak are laid out for you to see. You don't get to pick the actual steak you want, but it is helpful to know the cuts so you can visualise what type you feel like eating. Each steak comes with a side of garden salad, baked potato with bacon bits, sauce and a bread roll. Recently I ordered the Filet Mignon. It was very tasty. A little on the salty side, but still very very good. I ordered Medium, which is how it arrived. For about $35, it was a little steep considering it is no longer table service and we had to collect it ourselves. But, it's still good to indulge at a place like this from time to time. The dining area is great. It has an industrial feel with open roof, rustic thick wooden tables and exposed brick work. It really suits this upmarket pub. This is an excellent venue to hang out at for dinner. Great atmosphere and fantastic food. read more

See all

First review in Australia and Can I just say DE-LISH and AMMMAAAZZIINNG??? This place is definitely on my top 10 places to eat in Brisbane since being here for only a few short weeks, and I'm sure glad I got a taste of this on week 2! The restaurant is really nice and set up with a very open floor plan where there a nice wooden verandas and modern furniture to really liven up the space -- it reminded me of a lounge. I will say though that the entrance was kind of confusing especially for it being my first time as I was meeting another friend there who recommended this place for dinner. Before you order, you and your party have to get a table first and make note of whatever number that is; afterwards, you go in line and order from their delicious menu! I ordered the MIdi Eye Fillet cooked medium rare, and I was amazed with how succulent and rich the steak was. I'm always craving red meat, and this dish really hit the spot. They have an extensive selection of different meats and cuts, so if you're a meat eater, be ready for something 'orgasmic'. Australia is already expensive to begin with but at Norman Hotel be ready to spend minimum $30 on dinner. It's a little more outside my budget than i would've liked but definitely a place to take out a special someone or just to impress. read more

Every time I see this gratuitously meaty steak joint's tagline "Brisbane's worst vegetarian restaurant" I have a little chuckle to myself. Not exactly lol-worthy but clever marketing nonetheless. I went here once on the company purse of an old job and had pretty high expectations, which I'm happy to say were met. Along with the Breakfast Creek Hotel these guys do one of the better steaks in town in a vibrant pub atmosphere, and nothing goes better with a steak than a beer. Conscious of the fact that lunch was being paid for I allowed myself certain liberties when it came to choosing a steak from the cold cabinet (kind of like pointing out a lobster at a fancy restaurant but a little less cold-blooded). It's not like I chose the MOST expensive steak or anything... I opted for the second most expensive -- the rib on the bone -- which is a whole 40 cents cheaper than the most expensive, the big Norman rump ($40.90). The work party settled in and enjoyed a beer while we waited for our meals, which came out quite promptly considering the considerable lunch-time crowd. My medium-rare steak was just that, and considering how thick the piece of meat was they did well to cook it through without overly charring the outside. The potato with bacon sauce was also delicous, with chunks of bacon throughout -- similar to the potatoes at the Brekky Creek. Though I am conscious of the principle of "everything tastes good when it's free" I really enjoyed the meal and would definitely head back for my next steak fix. read more

Amazing steak...great venue and wonderful service from the best hostess ever - Denise you have done your management proud!!! read more

See all

It had been years since my wife and I dined at the Norman, and in not eating that much steak these days, I couldn't wait to have a great lunch there once again. Unfortunately it was not a great experience from the moment we arrived. We were literally instructed on the 'ordering rules' which we were quite familiar with i.e. needing a table number. I can only imagine the person had previously worked in the armed forces as a mess Sergeant due to the zealousness of their orders. We were also hurried up to decide even though it was far from busy and no one waiting behind us. Okay, a first world issue, sure, but it would be nice to not be treated as civilian Grunts when eating out. This aside, we couldn't wait for our fabulous steaks to arrive! What a major bummer then when they turned out to be THE most average $40 steak we've ever had. It was cooked a treat yet it was completely tasteless. My arteries where hardening at the table due to the amount of salt and pepper I had to add. I know! The pepper sauce will save it! Nup! I learnt years ago to always get sauce on the side as a crap sauce can easily ruin a beautiful piece of meat. I proved my policy once again on this occasion. The sauce had limited pepper and was very sweet. Pepper sauce must be robust and punchy, certainly not bloody sweet! In the end I gave up and decided to take the remainder home to our dog whom I was confident would not be as discerning. I'm sure he would provide a much more positive review if he could just touch type. Sincerely, we weren't going to say anything and just be polite and smile and nod sycophantically when our plates were collected (couldn't even eat the salad with the crap dressing slathered all over the greens). However I decided in the end to respond honestly when we were asked the standard 'so how was your lunch?' question and I guessed by the response the staff member had never dealt with such a strange/real response. My wife and I are parents to young kids and we are lucky if we eat out just as partners once a year. We also cannot afford $40 steaks on a regular basis. I had to stop reminding myself that we could buy two full rumps which would garner approximately 20 plus steaks for the same price. We never sought recompense but wanted to provide our feedback to management to give them the courtesy due to such a long established restaurant which up to that point we had always loved. Alas, while the manager attempted to be polite he ended up making a bit of a dick of himself when he actually suggested "perhaps rump isn't for you." FFS! I'm 45 years old man, it's not my first ride on a piece of rump*!!! After finally establishing that if we had of brought our disappointment to the manager's attention sooner "say after two bites" he would've been able to provide new steaks. He failed to see my point that it was redundant replacing like for like (or shite for shite). Anywho, he offered us a round of drinks for our trouble which we politely declined as I need to keep my drivers license. Unfortunately, we will not be doing a Gen MacArthur to the Norman. My dog however is still a huge fan and wants to have his 21st there. Thankfully he can't count. read more

We made the mistake of going here on a Friday- the order line was literally out the door. I recommend going on a week night if you want a relaxing meal- though it surprisingly only took 25 minutes to get to the order window. The steaks were well worth the wait, the rump and t-bone are recommended. Plenty of food, not necessary to order sides. Great value for your money. And their reputation as Brisbane's worst vegetarian restaurant was confirmed by our token-veg who said the one and only veg option, veg gnocchi, was piss poor. Glad I am not a veg:) read more

Upfront you should know that it is always a good idea to book. This place gets busy and busy for reasons which you will not even be able to guess - like fathers doing anti-natal classes over steak and beer. Book in advance and your home free. Also, the line up to order food often ends up out the door - so figuring out what you would like quickly is also adventagious. Staff will also pop round now and then to take drink orders direct from your table, but sometimes are a little too busy to keep up. As for the food, its really great to see more Gluten free options and more grass-fed steaks. We ordered 3 starters - oysters Kilpatrick, which were lovely, salt and pepper calamari, also nicely cooked and quite tasty, and soy chicken wings, which again were tasty but could have been cooked longer to render the fat. All in all they were nice and filling with potential to be great. Our meals - eye fillet steaks with chips, salad and Diane sauce were lovely! Cooked to our order, although we did ask for extra sauce as they were a little stingey, but they were more than happy to oblige. I have given them a 3, not a 4 out of 5, only because they are a little pricey. And for what we paid, I'd expect just that bit more. I will go back as the steak was great and so was the service, but I'm hardly raving about them. read more

Norman Hotel - Eye fillet, cut in half for the pregnant woman who HAS to eat well-done. With diane sauce and chips and salad. V. Nice - Steakhouses Near Me - Woolloongabba, QLD

My partner and I tried the Norman Hotel on Saturday night for the first time. It was crazy busy and we had to wait for a little while to get a table. The menu is what you would expect, a variety of steak options plus other traditional pub meals. We ordered a steak which was delicious and cooked well and lamb cutlets which were also pretty good. The biggest letdown though was the service. For the prices you pay one would expect table service but unfortunately that was not the case. You had to line up to place your order, then line up somewhere else to order drinks and then go and collect the meals yourself once the buzzer when off! Given the food isn't outstanding to compensate for the service you can definitely get better value for money at some of the other steak houses around Brisbane. read more

This is a great hotel sraff are very friendly prices are good and food is great highly recommend this place for a meal .

The Norman Hotel has been the location for many lads' steak nights over the years. Thankfully this time it was my cousin's 21st birthday and picking up the bill was someone else's responsibility. Not that I'm the biggest cheapskate in the world but I do appreciate a free feed now and again. If you really love your slabs of meat then you can't go past an eye fillet cooked blue. They'll give you the best steak they have because they'll only be searing it each side. It's my grandpa's secret theory; the best cuts go to those willing to eat it the best way. Just like some of their famous billboards say, "Brisbane's Worst Vegetarian Restaurant." read more

Only attend due to family catch up. I am not a steak fan so I ordered the chicken Parmigiana. The food looked filling on the plate, unfortunately the chicken was very dull & dry, no napoli sauce if any, hardly any coleslaw just a lot of chips. I was not satisfy with my meal and had a large amount of food wasted. My husband had the pork spare ribs! OMG amazing! There is plenty of parking at the back of hotel & on the side. No table service, I would suggest having a bar tab & paying just before you leave due to card fees etc. staff are friendly & prompt making sure our table was always clean. I found the seating squashy, to close to other diners. Definitely try look around for better seating tables & away if you want private. read more

Not impressed. Serving size was small, the strip loin was very chewy, not what we expected. This was our first and last time for the Norman. The drink service was good despite a large crowd. read more

Awful service, rude staff. So-so steak, was really overcooked. The beers available on tap are fairly ordinary and overpriced for the varieties available. Overall a very average experience, won't be returning. read more

Found this place on a lark on our first visit to Brisbane from America. Made a reservation so we were seated right away. You line up to order from a beautiful display of various cuts of beef, which are then cooked to order in front of you on a large grill. The grill master, while busy cooking order after order of steak, was happy to chat with us while cooking. Once done, you pick up your finished steak with choice of sauce (Diane is to die for) on a tray complete with salad, baked potato, and bread. The steak was perfectly cooked and delicious (spring for the Wagyu) and service was great. I consider myself an expert on steakhouses and this one was on par with some of the best, although with a fun, laid back atmosphere not typically found in high end American steak houses. The prices were extremely reasonable for the amount and quality of food. A must-go for anyone in the Brisbane area. read more

If you want a hearty pub meal, especially a steak, The Norman is your place. There are other things on the menu like chicken and fish, but the signature dish here is really the steak. Depending on the cut, you'll pay somewhere between $32 to $41 so it's not a cheap meal, but if you go with the view to getting your iron intake for the week, it's not too bad. I would personally rather spend $30 or $40 on a meal that I wouldn't/couldn't cook at home, like good Japanese or French cuisine, but if a big fat piece of meat is what you're hankering, the Norman puts on a good fare in a nice, relaxed pub setting. read more

As the tag line says - worst vegetarian restaurant in Brisbane and they most certainly live up to that reputation. A fabulous outside eating area probably best enjoyed in the cooler months. Steaks here are the order of the day and I don't think you could pick a bad one to be honest. One of the best pubs in Brisbane for sure. read more

Went here for dinner on a Tuesday night. We didn't book a table thinking its Brisbane, and it's Tuesday night, but it seemed to be busy. This was confirmed we when went to line up for ages to place our meal order, that's right you have to line up to order a $50 steak! No table service here! The ordering process is a little frustrating, e.g. they need ur table number, surname, but then they give you a buzzer to come and collect your meal. Boy these steaks must be good if I have to do everything except cook it! Anyway about 20 mins later the buzzer goes off and we go collect our steaks from counter. All seemed fine but I ordered a med rare steak and what came out was well done. The only thing they really have to do is to cook the steak to order and they couldn't even do that? I went back to the counter and they recovered well by offering a re cook or money back. read more

Had the sad experience of ordering a steak sandwich - you'd think a pub could sort out the basics! But sadly disappointed ... the results cold chips, flavourless meal with raw meat. Seriously don't go you will be disappointed read more

After not being to the Norman for quite some time we agreed to have a pre-game dinner there. I phoned, and made a reservation, I was told the kitchen opened at 4.30pm. We met there right on 4.30pm. The queue for ordering was already out the door and into the carpark. ALL food and drink is counter service. When you place your meal order they request your table number, your surname AND give you a vibrating alarm. So that you can then come back up and pick up your meal. They have maintained this outdated concept for at least 20yrs. They have a refrigerated steak display cabinet too, how quaint. Then they have the gall to charge you 15% surcharge on a public holiday!! The place is packed; there is NO table service - I think they are just taking the piss. We queue for 1/2 hr to order, then one of the two cashiers took 5 minutes to process another order...so infuriating. Again the concept of collecting your meal on those plastic wooden trays, is so out dated. Our buzzer went off, I went to collect our meals only to find the topper for my steak and the boys wings were not ready...then why were we beeped??? My companions had to go and ask for their gravy - which they had paid $2 for as a side for their $7 bowl of chips. We think I got their extra sauce for my steak, 'cos of course that's what we would have wanted the sauce/gravy for. I think the only reason this place has any patronage is it's proximity to the Gabba football grounds. It's kinda sad and this used to be one of the better steak restaurants in Brisbane, now...I don't think we'll ever go back. read more

I am so pleased I went. I was at The Norman on a Saturday afternoon with more than a dozen or so fellas and the service was outstanding (they knew their stuff), the food was delicious and we just had to ask what the dressing was on the salad. (they were generous enough to give us a some hints of what was in it and we suggested they bottle and sell it!). The group were seated in the Longhorn Room and I had Filet Mignon. (hadn't had it in years). It was memorable, cooked to perfection and I have told anyone who will listen about it. Great selection of wines and the bar staff were knowledgeable and thankfully had some personality. The whole table left full and totally satisfied. Fantastic experience will be back again soon. read more