The Doonan — Restaurant in Sunshine Coast Regional

Avoid at All Costs – A Deeply Disappointing and Dangerous Experience I don’t usually write reviews, but after a horrifying experience at The Doonan that landed me in hospital with food poisoning, I feel a responsibility to warn others. This wasn’t just a bad night out — it’s had a real and lasting impact on my health and life. It was a Friday night for a friend’s birthday. I ordered the Moreton Bay Bug Spaghetti, a share bread with olive oil, and a few non-alcoholic drinks, spending over $100 just for myself — and I still can’t believe what I got for that price. Things went wrong immediately. My glass had mould around the rim, and at the water station, I had to sort through clean and dirty cups — something no customer should be doing. The share bread came out raw in the middle, clearly undercooked. Then the spaghetti arrived less than 3 minutes after ordering via QR code, despite the restaurant being packed. Though it looked hot, it was actually cold pasta and bug meat, with a warm, tasteless sauce. It felt like a reheated dish that had been sitting around. The Moreton Bay Bug had no flavour, the sauce was bland, and the whole dish was incredibly disappointing. Still, I ate it — mainly because I’d just paid $40 for it and knew a refund wasn’t likely. Another friend at the table had the salmon, and after one bite, said it made her stomach turn. She told the staff and was offered a dessert in exchange — but again, no apology and no refund. Another friend ordered a pizza and had to spit it out into a napkin — it was that bad. By that night, I was violently ill and ended up in hospital with food poisoning. And I’m still sick now. Even though I’m out of hospital, I’ve been bedbound for days, unable to care for my daughter — something I normally do full-time. Thankfully, my parents have stepped in to help, but it’s been an incredibly difficult and distressing experience. After posting a warning on my personal Instagram, around 30 people messaged me sharing their own bad experiences at The Doonan — with many saying they’d never had a good meal there, and that it’s overpriced for the poor quality. The overwhelming response was: “We won’t be going back.” The venue might look beautiful, but that’s where the positives end. Behind the facade is a restaurant with serious hygiene issues, questionable food handling, poor quality meals, and no customer accountability. I wouldn’t wish this experience on anyone. Please — don’t risk your health or your money here. Avoid The Doonan at all costs. If I could give 0 stars I would.

I have since emailed the email given twice and not received any email back to my...

Beautiful venue, absolutely shocking experience.

We spent over $150 here and walked away feeling completely ripped off and genuinely upset by how badly the night went. I don’t usually write reviews, but this was hands down one of the most disappointing hospitality experiences I’ve ever had, and it deserves to be said.

We arrived slightly early for our booking and were told our table wasn’t ready. That would’ve been fine, except the venue was maybe 20% full. There were dozens of empty tables, yet we were made to wait over 30 minutes, only to later be told we could’ve just chosen any other table.

During the wait, we went to grab drinks at the bar. We stood there for over 10 minutes before anyone acknowledged us. When we were finally served, the bartender was cold, rude, and looked us up and down like we were an inconvenience. It then took another 15 minutes for our two cocktails to be made.

Once seated, no one explained how ordering worked, offered us table water, or asked if we needed anything. It was clear we were sharing food, but we weren’t given side plates until we went and asked. Staff were completely disengaged, we constantly had to get up and ask for things. At one point, we counted 5–6 staff standing around doing nothing while guests were waiting for service.

The food itself? Incredibly underwhelming. Our bread with the hummus entrée was burnt. The $45 steak was tiny and badly overcooked, not remotely worth the price. We were also left waiting for fries that never came until after we’d finished eating, and only because we reminded them.

Worst of all, we could see kitchen staff plating food with their bare hands. No gloves, no utensils. Completely unhygienic.

This place is a textbook example of what happens when a venue focuses on aesthetic over experience. It’s a beautiful location with so much potential, but the service was rude, chaotic, and careless. We left frustrated, disappointed, and honestly, a little grossed out.

I would never recommend this place to anyone. There are too many incredible spots on the Sunshine Coast to waste your time and money here. I hope management seriously reconsiders how they’re running things, because this was...

FOOD OVERPRICED , PIZZA - DON'T BOTHER - VEGEMITE SANDWICH WOULD BE BETTER .

First visit for myself , my friend and son , third visit for sons friend . Sons friend had been once during the day with someone who is very involved in hospitality , they weren't impressed . Being night time the atmosphere was lovely, ambient lighting ,not very busy so not too noisy . Service was good , very friendly staff .Herb gardens were a delight to wonder around . Where we were let down were the meals . Myself & friend shared a Bufalina Pizza , which was a Magurita with the addition of Buffalo Mozzarella & ???? Pepper 🤔 We added the Prosciutto. I removed the Prosciutto from my pieces (as I'm vegetarian and we were sharing ). My friend commented that the Prosciutto was very chewy and not pleasant. Pepper ??? What Pepper !!! And the Mozzarella pieces were placed on the pizza in huge lumps .There were a total of 3 basil leaves. Barely any tomato sauce on the base and no additional cheese ( as listed ) except the "lumps" of mozzarella. So by the time I took the Prosciutto off I was left with the thinnest base , barely any sauce and a great lump of Mozzarella. We'd been looking forward to a pizza all day . My son and friends meal , a huge rib eye on the bone , was meant to take 45 minutes to cook . It ended up taking approximately an hour and a 1/4 ( after ....we asked a wait staff member to check on the progress of their meal they were told it would be a further 39 minutes , it had already been an hour at least ) the two side dishes not arriving for another 5 minutes . Their meat was done to order medium/ rare so should have been shorter cooking time . They were happy with the meal once it eventually arrived . Overall not tempted to return . Sons friend has been twice during the day prior and said it doesn't look anything special in the daylight hours . Drinks were Lemon , lime & bitters ......what bitters . Will we go back , no . Plenty of other choices in our area . At least we can say...