George Banks Rooftop Bar & Bistro — Restaurant in Queensland

Please don't think this is a trolling review. I'm genuinely wanting to give helpful feedback. The two stars are for the friendly staff who were very welcoming and the great venue.

The difficulties we encountered included problems with the drinks (2 beers & 1 wine unavailable, a third bottle of sparkling water provided without first asking if we wanted it and one mistaken drink order). We were given 2 orders of the side potatoes but only ordered 1. The saving grace was that these were all comp'd (and thank you for that as it was a very generous thing to do).

Drinks orders weren't taken until the meal order was taken, so we weren't served drinks till about 20 minutes after we arrived. This meant we didn't have the opportunity of a pre-dinner drink and then to choose wines to have with our meals.

Two of the products (fish and brisket) were also not available. Just a suggestion but maybe you could buy something locally and offer it as an alternate special.

You probably know already but your toilet signs are around the wrong way (accessible toilet labled as ambulant unisex). There was no hand towel and the top was broken off the soap dispenser. The lock on the accessible toilet was broken and couldn't lock.

You might suggest to the Chef too that they are on show and can be heard. He was a bit short with one of the commis about a dressing he'd made and was a bit loud and abrupt in addressing him about it.

All of the above by themselves would have passed without comment and you were generous with the complimented drinks. But combind, they did significantly detract from the experience.

Just some suggestions.

Don't worry about napping the napkins. Rather than doing a pass at silver service, just position yourselves as a funky upbeat venue with really friendly staff. You've got a great place to do it and great staff.

Your beer selection is a bit pedestrian, with only mainstream brewers. With the really good microBs about (e.g. Crankshaft, Balter or even your local 4 Brothers) you could spice it up.

With the wines, there's some good new varietals coming up now, like Albariño and Vermentino, and these could add some variety to the selection.

All in all we enjoyed ourselves. The food was ok, although I might throw some potatoe into the dumplings and call them gnocchi (people may expect Asian style dumplings) and a couple more vegetable sides would be good (like grilled zucchini with caramelized balsamic drizzle and crumbled feta).

As I said at the start, I'm not looking to be a troll and just hammer the things I didn't like. I was disappointed, but I want to help and not just tear you down. I can see what you want to achieve and with a great venue and good, genuine people working for you, you've got a great opportunity to make it all come together.

I sincerely wish you the...

Phil Coory, the owner of George Banks, seems to be doing well enough to open a function centre on the ground floor of the bank building, which is commendable. However, the bar itself had a lacklustre crowd for a Saturday afternoon. By lacklustre, I mean there was just one other group besides our own—a disappointing turnout for a venue with such potential.

We had a couple of drinks, which were okay, but I was disappointed to find they’ve removed Little Creatures from the menu. That beer was the main reason I frequented George Banks, and its absence makes the drink selection less appealing.

The atmosphere could use some serious improvement. There are still no speakers outside, and the indoor speakers aren’t loud enough to make the music enjoyable. A rooftop bar should have energy and vibes, but George Banks fell flat.

As for the food, we tried the calamari and chips with aioli as a snack with our beers. Unfortunately, it was overpriced and underwhelming, much like the rest of the experience.

The outdoor area of the rooftop bar—arguably the most important part—has unfortunately downgraded itself. The previous bench seats with white cushioning, which were comfortable and stylish, have been replaced with crammed-in black steel chairs that are both uncomfortable and unattractive. On top of this, branded bright red umbrellas have been added, clashing with the aesthetic and obscuring the sun’s shining rays. Part of the charm of being outdoors in the summer is feeling the warmth of the sun on your skin, but that joy has been taken away. Boo-hoo, bad move, Phil Coory.

It’s also worth noting that there’s speculation about how the function centre on the ground floor is being funded. It’s possible that Phil Collins, the owner of the bank building, is footing the bill for the fit-out, while Phil Coory might be taking advantage of the situation. There’s also talk that the three Lebanese old money families of Toowoomba might have a stake in the bank building. Certainly, Precision Accounting seems to be in on the game as well.

What’s more concerning is that turning the bank building into a flash-in-the-pan Lebanese pub show doesn’t stand with the tradition and honour of John Collins and Killea Investments’ commercial perspectives. It runs contrary to the historic value of the bank building, which deserves to be treated with the respect and vision that its legacy commands.

George Banks deserves better than what Phil Coory is currently offering. This venue has so much potential, and it’s a shame to see it underutilized and mismanaged. Maybe someday, someone will take over and turn it into the exceptional spot it...

This rooftop bistro has so much potential, but on the night we went, we were disappointed.

The umbrella chandelier was cute, and there some small Poppins photos on the wall so we got the idea where the name came from, but it was subtle. I was expecting a rooftop bar vibe, but it felt more like a regular restaurant.

We started with cocktails (Negroni and French Martini), which were conventional and good, and haloumi chips which were nothing to shout about. The main course was the biggest disappointment. I was looking forward to some amazing local steak cooked to perfection. Requested rare, got med-rare to medium, and the presentation was like it had been thrown onto the plate. It looked nothing like the food pictures I'd seen on the internet attributed to this venue. My dining partner chose the lamb rack, which was over cooked - not a sign of any pink in there you would expect. The wine was a fairly low level quality from the Oatley stables, had a fault (some fizziness). I spoke quietly to a man at the bar, who replaced it, but the next bottle was the same, so we didn't get another. They offered us another round of cocktails as an apology, including their special new coconut chilli margarita, and insisted we have their lava cake desert - "you'll love it" I was told. I didn't like the margarita (maybe the chilli margs at Cru bar have spoiled me) but my partner graciously swapped with me. The lava cake was not special at all.

There seemed to be some kind of strange dynamic of staff going on, apart from the wait staff who were very keen, though probably not very experienced, there was a man and woman walking around, checking on everyone, including the woman going into the kitchen and apparently directing the kitchen staff on food and presentation and the man directing the otherwise capable bar staff. Watching it made me feel "I wouldn't like to be working here". I suspect left alone the staff all would have done a better job.

Given the trouble with the meals and drinks identified I would have expected that this would be reflected at billing time, but alas not.

All of these things may have been due to just a difficult night, and could be worked on. I hope so, and I hope that others have a different...