Sora restaurant and bar on Pirie Street among 11 new Adelaide restaurants to try this summer
It’s taken three years to create and now Adelaide’s newest sky-high bar and restaurant is only a matter of weeks from opening. Take a look.
Food & Wine
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Take a look inside one of the city’s most anticipated new dining destinations, plus 10 other fresh restaurant recommendations to try this summer.
SORA
89 Pirie St, Adelaide
Cuisine: Modern Asian
Almost three years in the making, Sora, a two-level rooftop restaurant, bar and entertainment complex on Pirie Street, will launch in coming weeks.
Workers are busy putting the finishing touches on the multimillion-dollar project, which will feature a modern Asian restaurant from acclaimed chef Adam Liston.
The high-end food offering is just one aspect of the European-style venue, which can cater for up to 400 guests, and includes a chic bar, dancefloor and entertainment area.
Sora’s focal point is a 150-person restaurant with a menu created by Liston, the man behind top eateries overseas and interstate, as well as local hotspots Shobosho, ShoSho and Mozza.
“I love the ambition of this project, it’s so unique. There’s no other place like this in Adelaide,” Liston said.
The cuisine is a mix of Japanese, Korean and Chinese, combined with western influences, Liston said. Raw fish and charcoal cooking will feature strongly on the menu.
“It’s just focusing on high-quality produce handled with a lot of respect and delivered in a way that’s not showy,” he said.
“I like to call it the humble approach, just raw and simple but with lots of layers behind every dish.”
The complex, located at 89 Pirie St, is designed for guests to enjoy dinner and stay on for drinks and dancing well into the night.
Dining will be available right up until close, which is expected to be around 2.45am.
The venue will host a VIP preview dinner on Monday, along with various functions through December before it officially opens to the public on January 17.
NIÑA
38 Rosina St, Adelaide
Cuisine: Modern Spanish
His cheesecakes took Adelaide by storm during the pandemic, and now Brazilian-born chef Leonardo Loureiro has launched his own restaurant – and it’s creating a similar buzz around the city.
Nina, located in Rosina St behind the Sofitel Adelaide, is a tapas-style Spanish restaurant with a twist, combining traditional and modern flavours into one charming venue.
An executive chef for more than 10 years, Loureiro trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Sydney and worked for Matt Moran at his famed Aria restaurant before moving to Adelaide.
He’s teamed up with partner Brenda Loveday, a marketing guru who runs a food blog called Freaky Feeds, and venue manager Jessica Purcell, who has worked at Africola and Leigh St Wine Room, for the venture.
Among the menu highlights include the Basque cheesecake (of course), Patatas Bravas a La Niña – their spin on the classic patatas dish – plus the charred octopus and brussels sprouts with valdivieso manchego, which perhaps surprisingly is their most popular dish at the moment.
THANKS TO THEO
6 East Terrace, Adelaide
Cuisine: Greek
From politician to restaurateur, Nick Xenophon has embarked on a new career (sort of) with a little help from hospitality couple Andrew Ferrara and partner Alessandra.
Thanks to Theo is a new eatery in the former Karen’s Diner space on East Terrace, with the name an ode to Xenophon’s father Theo, who owned the building and passed away in October.
“We have dedicated the restaurant name after him,” says Alessandra, who’s longtime family friends with the former SA senator.
The trio are now business partners with chef Ferrara taking care of the Greek-style menu while Alessandra looks after front-of-house duties.
Among the highlights are the savoury lukoumades, anchovy, shallot, chicken souvlaki, grilled flat bread, banana peppers and roasted garlic tzatziki, and their signature dish, slow cooked lamb shoulder with braised eggplant, tomato and onion. Delish.
STOREHOUSE FLINDERS EAST
260 Flinders St, Adelaide
Cuisine: Modern Australian
After two-and-a-half years away from Adelaide, former George’s head chef Brent Potuszynski has returned home to take control of Storehouse Flinders East, on the ground level of the new Vibe Hotel.
Focusing on regionally-sourced produce, Potuszynski’s new menu includes dishes such as seared South Australian kangaroo loin, paired with black garlic aioli, pickled grapes, toasted pumpkin seed and saltbush, and Spencer Gulf prawn linguine.
“We want to evoke a feeling of comfort, familiarity, with authentic and wholesome hospitality,” said Potuszynski, who has previously worked at Mimasu and London’s Michelin Starred restaurant like Pied à Terre.
“We are 100 per cent focused on using quality, seasonal SA ingredients, while remaining relaxed and contemporary for the everyday diner.”
The 76-seat eatery’s sleek fit out features high communal tables, Australian blackbutt floors and large bi-fold windows that open to a courtyard filled with Australian natives.
TUNKI
Lakes Hotel, 141 Brebner Dr, West Lakes
Cuisine: Nikkei
Located in the former Crusoe’s Restaurant site comes a unique new venue from Krish Dutt, who was once a private chef for the Jordanian royal family.
Dutt’s new eatery showcases Nikkei cuisine – a fusion of Japanese and Peruvian flavours – with a menu of ceviche, sashimi, fresh seafood and meat options, including spatchcock, lamb cutlets and wagyu, cooked on their woodfire grill.
“I just want to create a dining experience that makes people’s tastebuds dance with excitement,” said Dutt, also formerly of Madame Hanoi.
“For me, it’s all about bringing together the flawless combination of aromas and the
creative spectacle of cooking over an open fire.”
The new space allows guests to immerse themselves in the dining experience, with the open kitchen, chef’s table and a ceviche bar, coupled with stunning lake views.
HEY JUJ
150 Main Road, McLaren Vale
Cuisine: Brunch and wine
A café by day, wine bar by night, Hey Juj is the brainchild of McLaren Vale local, Elliott Brown.
After a stint at Port Willunga eatery Star of Greece, Brown, 22, moved to the city where he worked at Leigh St hotspot Shobosho, Joe’s Henley Beach and Asian-fusion restaurant Paper Tiger.
Now he’s opened Juj, named after his grandmother, which will showcase world-class food and wine from the area.
The kitchen is led by head chef Kelly-Jayne Grech, formerly of Shobosho, d’Arenberg Cube and Maxwell Wines.
Serving everything from breakfast bao buns to acai bowls, poké bowls and their signature ‘sando of the day’, the venue transitions into a wine bar at night, with wine, beer and spirits from the local region plus some top international beverages.
OLIVE
86 Pirie St, Adelaide
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Callum Hann and Themis Chryssidis’s new Mediterranean eatery on Pirie St opened to rave reviews earlier this month.
Formerly the site of Sashi Cheliah’s Gaja by Sashi, the venue has a completely new fit out and a fun new menu, showcasing the cuisine that former MasterChef star Hann and Chryssidis love to “cook and eat”.
“It’s food you want to share with your friends and family,” said Chryssidis, managing director of Sprout Food Group.
“South Australia has a Mediterranean climate and food culture with our wine regions, alfresco dining and commitment to quality, so it made sense for the food we love to be in the street we love, in the city we love.”
There’s a mix of snacks, small items and larger dishes including spiced eggplant with pomegranate, a slow roast lamb shoulder, and rainbow trout.
AMMŌS GREEK BISTRO
22 O’Connell St, North Adelaide
Cuisine: Greek
Authentic Greek and Cypriot flavours are at the heart of Ammos, a new eatery from owner-operators (and twin brothers) Savvas and Sotiri Vassiliou.
Their menu combines the traditional with contemporary, from the mains on the grill, including kontosouvli lamb and bifteki, to smaller bites keftedakia (Greek meatballs) and YiaYia’s dolmathes, plus their range of dips served with pita bread.
And for those that enjoy an ouzo, there’s also a special underground bar, Mitilini, a hidden gem which only adds to the dining experience.
EAST END CELLARS NORWOOD
88 Magill Rd, Norwood
Cuisine: Modern Australian
Chances are you’ve enjoyed a drink at Vardon Avenue favourites Mother Vine or East East Cellars.
Now the team behind those venues have expanded to the eastern suburbs, with a food-focused eatery and bar in the Norwood Green development on Magill Rd.
Bringing the same East End Cellars vibes but showcasing a more extensive menu described as “approachable bistro food”, there’s everything from sandwiches to shared platters, large dishes and desserts on offer from executive chef Josh Lansley.
Co-owner Mathieu Smeysters said: “The intention is to make our Norwood venue as much of a dining and night-out destination as a wine destination”.
Highlights include cumin lamb focaccia, crispy potato mille-feuille with raw beef and Murray codcaviar, steak frites and roasted Boston Bay porchetta.
EEC Norwood is also the state’s first Krug Champagne Embassy, with Krug by the glass available at all times.
LONGPLAY BISTRO
131 Pirie St, Adelaide
Cuisine: Modern European
The team behind popular laneway bars Clever Little Tailor and Pink Moon Saloon are turning their attention to food, with a new restaurant in the CBD.
Longplay Bistro on Pirie St in the city will focus on modern European cuisine, delivering classic dishes in a stylish yet casual setting.
Former Summertown Aristologist chefs Calum Horn and Jude Hughes have created the menu, which includes fresh pasta dishes, steak and fries, and seafood plates, among others, which is paired with top-quality wine.
Located below comedy venue Rhino Room, the eatery is the brainchild of Marshall King, Henry Holland and Dana Whyte.
King said Longplay will be an “extension” of the CLT, which was one of Adelaide’s first small bars when it launched in 2013.
“We’ve been trying to broaden the experience … bringing food into the picture is a big part of that for us. We’ve wanted to work with food for a long time, it’s a passion of ours,” he said.
“We’re looking to take care of people with the finer things, you can come in and feel a little bit special, and enjoy a special bottle of wine as well.”
CHIANTI RISTORANTE & BAR
160 Hutt St, Adelaide
Cuisine: Italian
Not strictly a new venue, of course, but rather a “revitalisation” of an old one, this classic Italian eatery has undergone a major facelift this year.
Along with the new name and significant renovations to the inside of the restaurant, there’s also a fresh menu from executive chef Joshua Cooke who trained under British chef Rick Stein and worked alongside Jock Zonfrillo at former Rundle Street institution, Orana.
Cooke says the new menu has a stronger focus on “acknowledging traditional Italian flavours but not being bound by them”.
“Our food will be guided by what is best throughout the year, working closely with fisherman and farmers to create a seasonal menu that showcases the best of Australian ingredients, with Italian roots, that aligns with Chianti’s core values,” said Mr Cooke.
This includes homemade pasta dishes and produce cooked over Sangiovese vines.
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