The Top 10 Local Restaurants In Adelaide Australia

Adelaide’s proximity to the ocean and ivory sands of Australia’s Southern coast lends the city an easygoing serenity, a quality found in its many culinary establishments. Nestled in among the sprawling grid of the city’s layout are some truly excellent dining spots where both Adelaidean and wayward travelers can indulge in Australian fare. Here are 10 unmissable Adelaide restaurants.

1. Orana

Bar, Restaurant, Australian

The Orana restaurant offers the distilled flavor of Australia, vibrantly expressing the country and its culture through its sumptuous cuisine. This dual-level restaurant houses a boisterous bar (Street-ADL) with an informal menu downstairs. Upstairs, the Orana sports an idiosyncratic decor including attractive timber furniture and street-art murals on its walls. The array of dishes on Orana’s menu combine tradition and innovation; superlative Australian ingredients are tossed together with freshly foraged indigenous flora all served in balanced combinations with flamboyant flavors.

2. Parwana Afghan Kitchen

Restaurant, Middle Eastern, Vegetarian

Small family-run restaurant Parwana Afghan Kitchen is devoted to the rustic flavors of authentic Afghan cuisine. In Afghanistan, meals are ritualistic and are a hallowed temporal period in which family, friends and culture mingle. Parwana’s menu reflects this original spirit of generosity and hospitality. Among the abundant dishes are plentiful platters of long-grain rice dishes, traditional dumplings or spiced meat delicacies. For a modest corkage fee, Parwana encourages customers to bring their own bottle of wine to enjoy with their Afghan fare.

3. Press Food & Wine

Restaurant, Wine Bar, Australian, Wine

Press Food & Wine sits in a pre-19th century building in central Adelaide. The restaurant is laid out over two levels, each with its own unique character but sharing the same menu; downstairs, laid back and calming with long communal tables with industrial chic decor – or upstairs, elegant with cozy vintage padded booths. Chef Andrew Davies’ ‘from farm to plate’ philosophy is key to the restaurant’s menu; fresh, local, organic and home-grown ingredients make for a creative and seasonal series of dishes. Chew with abandon on the hereford pepper rump steak served with confit onion.

4. Bistro Dom

Bistro, European

Serving a melange of classic and casual European cuisine constructed bistro-style with a contemporary flair, Adelaide’s Bistro Dom is well-loved local institution. Chef Duncan Welgemoed’s French-inspired menu utilises the best produce of South Australia and evolves every few days, offering unique and exciting breakfast and lunch options. The wine list features classic European varieties including rarely quaffed wines from often-sidelined viti-cultural areas. Bistro Dom abuts Adelaide Town Hall, and prides itself on celebrating food and art; adorning its walls are multitudinous artworks by local creatives, adding to the sui generis quality of the dining experience.

5. Georges on Waymouth

Restaurant, Mediterranean, Contemporary

George and Voula Kasimatis first established Georges on Waymouth in Adelaide in November of 2002. The restaurant is styled with a European theme and utilises the best seasonal produce to construct its lip-smacking Mediterranean menu. Try the confit pork belly served with piquant granny smith apples, mustard, morcilla, and fondant potatoes. The decor is minimalist; crisp white cloths cloak every table and the high ceilings lend the dining space a majestic quality.

6. Parlamento

Restaurant, Italian

Emulating the authentic bustling charm of inner-city Italian bistros, Adelaidean restaurant Parlamento has been served reliably luscious cuisine since it opened in 1988. The dinner menu sports a multiplicity of pasta dishes like the conchiglioni farciti; large oven-baked pasta shells served with ricotta, baby spinach and shavings of parmesan all accompanied by a tomato and cream salsa.

7. Peel Street

Peel Street

Peel Street’s head chefs Jordan Theodoros and Martin Corcoran strive to serve customers generous, abundant and robust dishes. Their philosophy is straightforward and effective; every idea has to be simple, fresh and delicious. The menu sports palpable Asian and Middle Eastern influences and uses these to shake up traditional Australian delicacies, always prepared with fresh and seasonally apposite produce. With an exposed brick interior and bare beams, Peel Street’s industrial chic style and casual atmosphere make it a sought-after sanctuary.
Peel Street, 9 Peel Street, Adelaide, Australia, +61 8 8231 8887

8. The Apothecary 1878

The Apothecary 1878

‘Dining and imbibing’ is the raison d’être of Adelaidean hot-spot The Apothecary 1878. Opened in 2002, this locale is nestled in a grand heritage-listed building in the bustling center of the West End precinct. The Apothecary 1878 has modelled itself on European wine bars and as such exudes continental elegance. Many dishes on the menu have been devised from South Australian produce; try the divine pumpkin and caraway labne, served with fresh pepita and coriander.
The Apothecary, 118 Hindley St, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, + 61 8 8212 9099

9. The Playford Restaurant

Restaurant, Australian, Contemporary, Vegetarian

If innovative South Australian cuisine and boutique wines are your bent then stride over to The Playford Restaurant. Part of The Playford Hotel complex, this award-winning establishment serves both breakfast and dinner. Health-conscious, this restaurant uses organic, bio-dynamic and free-range produce as much as is feasibly possible, eschewing genetically modified foods. The menu is replete with tantalizing fare. Sup on some sumptuous South Australian oysters served with limoncello sorbet and finger lime.

10. Udaberri

Bar, Restaurant, Spanish

Effortlessly chic Adelaide restaurant Udaberri exudes the charm and grace of North Spain; revelers can enjoy a glass of something heady at the bar or hunker down under the ambient lights for some delicious cuisine. Peruse the diverse menu whilst sampling the daily changing pintxos – a tapas-like Basque delicacy. Sample one of the sumptuous share plates like the crottin de chèvre baked in red wine with crunchy walnuts.

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