Adelaide LGBTIQ+ bar My Lover Cindi to close as SA hospitality crisis claims another victim

The owners of a beloved Adelaide LGBTIQ+ bar have shared their “heartbreak and frustration” after revealing the cost-of-living crisis has forced them to close the venue.

The owners of a beloved Adelaide LGBTIQ+ bar have shared their “heartbreak and frustration” after revealing the cost-of-living crisis has forced them to close venue.

My Lover Cindi, on Pirie St, will host a farewell weekend on May 31 and June 1, with its owner-operators Rachel Hosking and Kate Toone saying the “exorbitant costs” of running a nightclub left them with no other choice but to pull the pin.

“All good things must come to an end. The simple answer is that maintaining the exorbitant costs of a night-time venue has been near impossible for the whole three years and finally at this point we can no longer continue,” they said in a social media post.

“We (and you all) have done everything possible to keep this place running but we are joining an ever-growing list of venues that just cannot function with the ‘post’-covid cost of living crisis.”

My Lover Cindi is the latest victim of SA’s hospitality crisis as soaring operational costs cripple businesses around the state.

A series of cafes and restaurants, plus a host of nightclubs and bars have been closed down in recent months by struggling small-to-medium owners unable to pay the bills.

Owner Rachel Hosking at My Lover Cindi. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

In an emotional Facebook post, Hosking and Toone also shared their fears over the lack of accessible queer venues in Adelaide following the closure of their popular nightspot.

“We are filled with mixed emotions … heartbreak at the thought of not seeing your faces every weekend, concern at the hole this leaves in accessible queer options left on Kaurna Land, hope that one of you will pick up the baton and begin a new journey inspired by ours, elation thinking about the times we have shared and the meaning we have made of this life, and pride at the resilience, the joy and the solidarity that the Cindi’s community has showed over the last three years,” the pair wrote.

“We love you all so very very much (more than you will ever know) and our lives will be forever changed by every interaction you’ve shared with us over this bar.”

In March, Hosking and Toone warned My Lover Cindi was facing an uncertain future

“We are taking a moment to be vulnerable,” the pair wrote online.

“A huge spike in operational costs along with the cost-of-living crisis means that the future of Cindi’s is uncertain.

“Over the past few months, more than seven well-established CBD venues have closed, and we are close to sharing their fate.”

Andrew Taylor at Cafe Komodo in Prospect SA. Picture: Ben Clark

My Lover Cindi opened on Flinders Street about three years ago before moving to a space on Pirie Street, previously home to late-night club Shotz, in 2023.

Adelaide nightclubs that have announced their permanent closure in recent months include Enigma Bar, Confession at Port Adelaide, Edinburgh Castle, Fat Controller and Super California.

Other hospitality venues that have shut down or revealed plans to close include Cafe Komodo on Prospect Road, the dob on King William St, Italian restaurant Martini on the Parade in Norwood, Terroir Auburn in the Clare Valley, highly-rated Adelaide restaurant Umaii, and Cheffy Chelby’s breakfast burger bars.

Japanese restaurant Kosho in North Adelaide and Foam Coffee in Rundle Place both closed after falling into liquidation.