Cicada Cafe/ Restaurant/ Bar

We were encouraged by the wait staff to try the *char grilled* chicken burger. Unfortunately both burgers when they arrived at the table weren’t char grilled, they were virtually cremated. The taste of the burned chicken breast permeated the entire burger and left an after taste that haunted us for the rest of the day. The cashier promised to relay the feedback to the kitchen but made no effort to put things right. Chances are we would have got a tastier lunch at the 7 Eleven across the road for a fraction of the cost. Other experiences may vary, but ours said don’t come back.

Yummmmmmmmmmm
I am loving this place only 4 stars because some of the staff can be a touch on the snotty side for my liking.
Last time I was there I ordered a chicken skewer, and some vegetables which was great.
And they had a bowl of various little pumpkins for decorations which I thought was adorable!

Wednesday 20 dollar steak special. Suppose given it’s a special you can’t expect much. Mine was Ok however a mates steak was cold and the other had hair in their fish. Upon returning the fish to the kitchen the second round came back uncooked. One chef texted his mates for a good twenty minutes. It was dead and service was terrible. Not one smiled and all walked around looking like zombies. Won’t go back.

My fav place for coffee/​brekky in the morning at the moment! love it here. Nice atmosphere, great staff, great breakfast options

After 3 years of living in bris and 2 months before I move to the states, I discover the awesomeness of cicada.
Everything was awesome.
Will be coming back as much as possible before I leave.

6.30 for large coffee and banana bread. That’s a pretty fantastic deal if I’ve ever seen one.
I’ve been kind of hooked on their Single Origin coffee as well. It’s one of a few coffees that I can drink completely black and not have any concerns about a bitter aftertaste.
The service here is kind of poor since most of the waiters and baristas ignore you until you make them feel uncomfortable but the coffee and banana bread definitely make up for it.

Cicada is a café, restaurant and bar, which places it amongst one of Brisbane’s many jacks of all trades that fail to master any individual one. I’ve only had breakfast at Cicada, so I’m only reviewing the café third of the establishment.
My breakfast choice was the Spanish eggs. These have become a very common item on breakfast and brunch menus. Spanish eggs (huevos a la flamenca in Spain) are a varied dish consisting of whatever vegetable is plentiful and cheap (say, spinach), ham or bacon, a tomato sauce, and eggs baked in a clay pot. These are then usually served in the same clay pot. The Spanish eggs at Cicada were nothing like these. Really, there was nothing Spanish about this dish at all. Instead, what I got was a plate of spinach and fried bacon, with a few stalks of asparagus, topped with two fried eggs. On asking the waitress about this, she replied that the pots they were baking the eggs in tended to imbue the dish with a strange taste, so they gave up on their huevos. Interesting that this choice is not reflected in the menu.
The confusion about Spanish or not eggs, the meal itself is relatively ordinary. There was little flavour in the dish, mostly because the majority of the dish was a pile of spinach which was in no way reduced or altered by cooking or spice. The eggs, while excellently executed with nicely runny yolks, could have done with the addition of some herbs or even salt to enhance their flavour. The tomato chutney in the dish was too strong in its curry notes and sweetness, easily overpowering whatever it was paired with. Not really what I expected from a dish labelled as Spanish. Overall, the menu tends to veer on the pricey side.
The coffee at Cicada consists of the standard espresso-​based coffees. Though their long black is well made with no bitterness or coffee grindings in the aftertaste, their latte had a thick layer of foam uncharacteristic of a standard latte. The coffee – like their food – is somewhat overpriced given these misgivings.
The wait service were very attentive, though a little confused, bringing a coffee but not clearing old cups. Aesthetically, there is nothing particular about Cicada. It has a rather sterile corporate feel, though the noise levels are pretty good given it’s proximity to Adelaide Street. That is, unless City Hall bells are a ringin’.

Cicada can be found at the corner of George and Adelaide Streets in Brisbane’s CBD, right next to the Telstra building.
The place is open early from 6.30am and offers a brekkie, lunch and dinner menu. The dinner menu is ok — fairly simple and nothing too fancy but you’ll still find a comprehensive set of dishes ranging from salads (smoked chicken, greek and caesar salads) to seafood (barramundi, tassie salmon, calamari and prawns) to meat and chicken (wagyu beef fillet, the Gippsland rib fillet and the traditional favourite chicken schnitzel). They also offer a few risotto/​pasta choices with focus being on parpadelle.
Beer and wine are mainly on the drink menu. You can expect to fork out at least $ 20 for a main, with steaks being more along the high $ 20s range.
If you are taking a girl out on a date, I reckon Cicada is a pretty good option with its dim lights, relaxed and laid back ambience.

Excellent service. Food great. Good value too.

The first time I came across this place was late on a week night when my partner and I were starving after work and couldn’t find anywhere decent with their kitchen still open. After that first experience I knew I would be coming back many many times.
We were fortunate enough to wander in when they were doing a $ 20(ish?) steak deal which serendipitously was exactly what we were both craving! The steak came out quite quickly and it was fantastic, served up with some lovely greens and oven roasted tomatoes and potatoes which were equally as nice. We also had some salt & pepper squid with aioli which was melt in your mouth tender and left us wanting more.
I love the atmosphere in Cicada its nothing over the top, its not loud its simply comfortable and chilled while still being lively enough if you are there for a few drinks or a function. The leather couches and chairs against the Adelaide street wall (inside) are the best seats in the house in my opinion.
The service is great and the food is even better — Do it.

Awesome food! Great sit down or on the run menu. I’ve used for both sit down meals and lunchtime takeaway and the food has always been great and the service is really good to.