Sitting on the point overlooking Queensland's Stradbroke Island and the South Pacific Ocean, the Lighthouse Restaurant usually offers idyllic water views.
But the Cleveland venue faces the threat of Tropical Cyclone Alfred's category two wrath with heavy rain, flash flooding, destructive winds and storm surges forecast.
Standing on the deck beside the restaurant the ocean and sky were similar shades of grey with the howling wind beginning and rainfall increasing instead of the usual blue skies and turquoise water.
Manager Tim Varitimos looked out to the eerie scene, saying he was very worried about damage to the restaurant when Alfred makes landfall on Thursday night or Friday morning.
"It is pretty calm on the water at the moment but as soon as the wind turns northerly that makes us quite vulnerable," he told AAP while boarding up the front wooden doors.
Mr Varitimos has sandbagged the ocean-facing doors, tied down sections of the roof and boarded up doors in anticipation of the weather system.
The restaurant flooded in 2011 causing extensive damage but Mr Varitimos is uncertain how much damage a category two cyclone could cause.
"We've got a fair idea about flooding but we've never had a cyclone hit us directly so this will be interesting," he said.
Alfred remains east of the Queensland coast but is slowly moving toward land, causing severe winds and sporadic downpours.
If the system hits early on Friday morning it may coincide with high tide leading to a storm surge and more risk of flooding for coastal communities.
Mr Varitimos will close the restaurant for the next two days but it will cost the business tens of thousands of dollars.
"That's not even considering any damage from the cyclone," he said.
Police were doorknocking homes and businesses in high-risk areas across Brisbane to warn of the risk a storm surge could bring.
About 20,000 properties are expected to be impacted by flooding in the city.
