Adelaide – The best food and wine venues

Adelaide has always been a great place for food and wine. We have been enjoying the food and wine of this southern city for almost 40 years, so have seen interesting developments and exciting places in which to eat and drink during that time.

Adelaide has also been a well-spring for young chefs who have honed their skills with great mentors and then moved on to greater things. It is also the gateway to a rich and diverse wine region providing everything from huge Shiraz-based reds to complex, woody Chardonnays and, more recently, to delicious, exciting natural wines from a group of forward-thinking pioneers clustered around the hills that overlook the city.

Adelaide – Summary of restaurants and bars

There have been many changes in the restaurant and bar scene in Adelaide over the past three years.

We have recently spent an enjoyable time eating and drinking our way around the city and nearby towns, including the ever-popular Adelaide Hills and the southern town of Willunga.

This was our first visit to Jake Kellie’s very popular Arkhé which serves as both an exciting restaurant and a walk-in bar. We first experienced his cooking during a long lunch at Burnt Ends where he was Head Chef to owner Dave Pynt, who was also cooking there at the time. We very much enjoyed our meal at Arkhé and have included a story about it on this site here. You can also book for dinner here.

We also chose to hang out at another place that is becoming a must-visit venue for hospitality staff and those seeking interesting natural wines and perfectly cooked food. It very much reminds us of other eating and drinking places that we love (or have loved) to visit such as Public Wine Bar and Bar Liberty in Melbourne, Lucinda in Hobart, Aux Deux Amis in Paris, P Franco in London, Le Cercle Rouge in Angers, Bistrot des Claquets in Arbois, Winestand Waltz in Tokyo, Wines of While in Perth and 10 William St in Sydney just to name a few. OK, the name of the place in Adelaide is LOC Bottle Bar and you can read our story here.

We have written about Leigh Street venue Shōbōsho before, but on our most recent visit we decided to eat in the Yakitori Bar in the front at street level. We had a delightful meal, with every morsel cooked perfectly.

There is another gem of a restaurant in the eastern end of the CBD called Hey Jupiter which provides a menu of traditional French dishes that are cooked very well. We find comfort in such food and a lunch thta we had there on our most recent trip was very comforting.

Close to Adelaide

There is a hidden gem you must visit south of Adelaide, but well-worth the drive. the name of the restaurant in Muni and the food there is amazing. We loved every single morsel of what we were served at our meal there and will be returning on future visits to Adelaide for this wonderfully relaxing and interesting experience.

You are also strongly advised to hire a car and drive to the hills overlooking Adelaide as there are some very interesting venues there including the very popular Summertown Aristologist that will be closing at the end of the year so if you get to Adelaide this should be on your visiting list.

There is also a bakery here called Brid Coffee Shop which is also an excellent bakery with very good tea and coffee selections. You can eat inside or dine on the sunny terrace. We have written a story about this venue here.

Another venue in the hills is Angler which has a very strong ethical focus regarding the fish that they serve here, given that so many species are in danger. We had an excellent lunch here with a plate of fish and chips being one of the best we have had in quite some time!

Adelaide – Coffee

There is a strong coffee focus in Adelaide and our favourite place is Elementary Coffee in Young St, which is reasonably central. They have a small selection of pastries and savoury snacks for breakfast (such as granola with yoghurt and fruit) as well as a rotating selection of coffees including those which have been naturally processed.