There’s a certain art to doing Brisbane Festival properly. You need the show tickets, obviously. You need a vague plan for where you’re going afterwards. And, crucially, you need to eat before you head to your show.

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Luckily, South Bank has the dinner part sorted.

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From 4 to 26 September, a bunch of South Bank favourites offering exclusive dining deals designed to turn your pre-show meal into part of the night. Think banquets with friends, family feasts before an early show, or a quick schnitty and drink when you’ve left dinner planning until the last minute.

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There’s just one thing you need to know before you start making reservations: these offers are exclusive to Brisfest Dining Card holders. Download your card here, show it to staff when you arrive to redeem your offer.

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For the Group That Always Orders Everything
If your group chat has a tendency to turn “let’s grab dinner” into a three-hour affair, lean into it.

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Harajuku Gyoza’s $88 Bottomless Banquet was practically made for the occasion. There’s Tasmanian lamb ribs, harumaki spring rolls, pork, vegetable and prawn gyoza, chicken karaage, tempura eggplant, seasonal greens and steamed rice, followed by 90 minutes of premium cocktails, beer, wine and non-alcoholic drinks.

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Over at Ma Pa Me, the $85 Celebration Banquet takes a Southeast Asian route, bringing sashimi tartlets, spring rolls, fried chicken, coconut chicken salad, phanaeng lamb curry and prawn and cashew nut stir-fry to the table, with 90 minutes of premium cocktails, tap beer, wine and non-alcoholic drinks included.

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Both are firmly in the “arrive hungry and don't make other plans immediately afterwards” category.

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Harajuku Gyoza: available 4 to 26 September.

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Ma Pa Me: available 4 to 26 September.

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For the Table-Covered-in-Food Crowd
Some dinners are about ordering one dish and calling it a night. These are not those dinners.

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At Baba Ganouj, the $50pp Baba's Big Banquet brings 11 dishes of Lebanese fare to the table, spanning dips, salads, sambousek, skewers and fresh saj bread, with a complimentary shared dessert to finish.

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If you’re after something equally generous but with a distinctly Argentinean accent, Cálida’s $55 Signature Banquet brings together three courses and eight dishes. Think oysters, empanadas, tiger prawns and crispy pork belly before arriving at the main event: 300g of CUADRIL DE WAGYU. Finish with Cálida’s iconic alfajores and you’ve got a feast worthy of a festival night.

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Both are generous, shareable feasts that give you plenty of reason to arrive early and make dinner part of the night.

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Baba Ganouj: available daily from 4 to 26 September.

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Cálida: available daily from 4 to 26 September, 11am to 6pm.

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For the Family Festival Mission
Festival dining with kids requires strategy. You want something everyone will eat, enough food to keep complaints at bay.

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Calida, Olé, Poca Madre and Vici have all added a little something extra for families, with one complimentary kids’ meal included for every banquet menu purchased.

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At Olé, the $55 Signature Banquet is a particularly ambitious pre-show spread, with beef empanadas, Pacific oysters, tiger prawns in spicy nduja butter, confit pork belly and 300g Sanchoku Pure Wagyu rump, followed by fries, salad and dulce de leche alfajores.

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Poca Madre brings the Mexican option, with its $55 banquet moving from toopos and guacamole to prawn cutlets, elotes and carne asada before finishing with chocolate lava cake, vanilla ice cream and piloncillo caramel.

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And Vici keeps things firmly in the comfort-food camp, with whipped ricotta, prosciutto, arancini and king prawns followed by beef sirloin, mashed potatoes and truffle fries. Homemade cannoli takes care of dessert.

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Suddenly, getting the whole family out the door for dinner doesn't sound so difficult.

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Olé, Poca Madre and Vici: available daily from 4 to 26 September, 11am to 6pm.

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For the “We Have a Show in an Hour” Crowd
Not every festival dinner needs to be an event in itself. Sometimes you just need something delicious, filling and relatively fuss-free before you make a dash for your seats.

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That’s where Ahmet’s comes in, with 15% off main courses and pides throughout Brisbane Festival.

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Or there’s Brooklyn Depot, where $30 gets you a chicken schnitzel and a drink, with your choice of a small house wine, schooner of beer or soft drink.

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Sometimes a schnitty is exactly what a festival night requires.

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Ahmet’s and Brooklyn Depot: available 4 to 26 September.

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Remember, you’ll need to download the Brisfest Dining Card here and show it to staff when you arrive to redeem these offers.

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