Scrumptious Reads

Brisbane’s one and only gourmet book store! I can always find what I want to buy, what I needed or even just a random birthday gift shopping. Also a knowledgeable place, I can always ask my questions about food & drinks here. Scrumptious Reads also organise regular event and they are fun!!!

What can I say? If you love to cook, love to browse, and love a good book then be prepared my friend… your credit card is about to start smoking!
Scrumptious reads is a gorgeous little bookshop that specialises in all things food and booze related. I particularly loved their range of classics, well complemented by a range of cookbooks published from all around the world. There are books on food history, ingredients, cooking and cutting techniques, food cultures and spices. Hitting upon newly printed Elizabeth David classic hardbacks had my head spinning in delight… how could I choose what to buy?
Couple this range with foodie journals, books all things mixology & brewing, and food themed diaries, cards & nick nacks and it’s easy to see how I almost needed a trolley on departure.
Whilst you can surely find the books cheaper online what you don’t get on the inter web is the awesome service, the ability to browse to your hearts content or someone prepared to hunt down that obscure book that you’ve been looking for forever.
If you’re a foodie in Brisbane you need to treat yourself and head over to scrumptious reads for an hour or too… and don’t forget to bring your wallet!

Scrumptious Reads is an absolutely fabulous store. Situated in the laneway past Bucci, across from Gerard’s Bistro and Sugar Jar, the shop’s glass walls provide you with ample bibliophilian temptation well before you enter the sanctum (I don’t know when that got creepy but anyway…). Despite its proximity to bustling James St, Scrumptious Reads still seems to command the silence so often associated with books but, rather than being enforced by some stern librarian, it is mostly likely a consequence of the sheer dumbfoundedness of the customers, usually a stream of silent «Who knew there was a book about THAT?!“s. Do not be fooled by its size: you could very easily spend a whole afternoon here, slowly working your way along the packed bookshelves, stopping often to flick through (OK, become completely engrossed in) a book you’ve never heard of but which you instantly love. If there’s something specific that you’re after, just ask Julie and she will probably be able to get it for you (but if you ask for Jamie Oliver, I WILL FIND YOU AND SLAP YOU).
This is an absolute nerdy foodie heaven, and also incredibly dangerous for cookbook addicts, so take a friend so you can pretend you’re buying books for them.

This is a dangerous place for a cookbook addict. But also a wonderful place!
Filled with so many cookbook titles, mostly less mainstream cookbooks and also a wide range of periodicals that seems to grow each time I visit.
If there is something in particular that you’re looking for the staff are so helpful and can let you know if they can order it in for you as well.
Perfect shop to go to for foodie gifts (hint hint) and they have gift certificates.

Anyone with a keen appetite for whipping up culinary storms in the kitchen needs to check this place out. Or a general fascination with take away coffee cups. From wall to ceiling there are take away coffee cups acting as wallpaper, chandeliers and bench tops. Precariously perched on top of these cups is an assortment of cookery books. Authors range from the well-​known, cavity-​inducing Adriano Zumbo, Neil Perry and Lucy and Greg Malouf, through to a slew of books featuring cuisines from everywhere from Korea to Morocco. There are also eating guides for restaurants and cafes around Brisbane as well as culinary notebooks. All of these books are just begging to be leafed through and I can guarantee you will spend a great deal of time in here. Walking out of the shop with just limiting myself to one book was a struggle, so I’ll definitely be back for seconds.

The 2000-​and-​teens is the ‘pop-​up’ decade. The pop-​up gig, the pop-​up shop… well now I can’t think of any more.
It’s a cool concept these guys are plying in the high-​rent South Bank district. The layout is probably the most appealing aspect of what is essentially a food-​related shop (think cook books, kitchen utensils and paraphernalia). The cleverly utilised takeaway coffee cups create all the interior design. They make the benches, the light fittings and all other display elements. They almost seem to overshadow the real purpose of the shop, diffusing its essence in a way I’m not sure is good for business.
You might walk out thinking «That was cool, but what do they do?», but by the same token you might find just what you want.
They are also on– sellers for Noritake China — a popular Japanese crockery company.

I am one of those people who have trouble turning the gas oven on,
let alone being able to combine food stuffs to resemble a home cooked meal.
…Needless to say me and cookbooks don’t get along.
The ones I grew up with were always to damn smarmy for their own good.
(«By now your Cherry Fondant should resemble MY photoshopped one on page 3.»)
Thankfully Scrumptious Reads is here to tempt me out of my food hibernation.
This concept store in Southbank has already turned a few heads with its
beautiful and unique shop display.
The whole store is constructed with brown paper cups,
but don’t let the fragility fool you these shelves hold almighty tomes of foodie heaven.
This is the perfect space to peruse all manner of cookbooks from Heston to Momofuku,
the owner Julie is lovely and more than able to recommend the perfect book for any occasion.
This concept store will last a while,
but be sure to check them out before their move to more permanent Southbank lodgings.