Best of the best: SA delicious.100 restaurant award winners for 2022
We listed the finest restaurants in SA – now we reveal the best of the best. From the top Italian to most impressive vegetarian food, here are the delicious.100 award winners.
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We unearthed the top 100 restaurants in South Australia – now we reveal the crème de la crème.
These are our SA delicious.100 award winners for 2022. From the Best Italian restaurant in Adelaide, to the most impressive vegetarian fare and our pick for a date night splurge, this is your guide to the ultimate dining experiences in SA.
BEST BREAD
The Lane Vineyard
5 Ravenswood Lane, Hahndorf | 8388 1250 | thelane.com.au
Because bread can be so much more than simple carbs to mop up sauce. Sure, there’s a place for Wonder White (we’re looking at you, Africola chicken skin sandwich), but housemade bread can be a thing of beauty in and of itself. Such is the case at winery restaurant The Lane, where the sourdough is a labour of love. It starts with a 10-year-old motherdough starter, which is combined with 35 per cent wholemeal Laucke flour and given a 24-hour ferment to produce a heavenly bake. It’s made daily. “There are always small alterations being made, from resting time to hydration level, ensuring we keep a consistent product throughout changing conditions of the kitchen and the weather up here in the Adelaide Hills,” senior sous chef Cameron Ahl says. Attention to detail is also given to the accompaniments, the housedmade butter whipped with confit garlic and preserved lemon, served alongside fennel salt.
BEST SERVICE
Georges on Waymouth
20 Waymouth St, Adelaide | 8211 6960 | georgesonwaymouth.com.au
Georges is George’s (George Kasimatis) by any measure. It’s not just that he is and always has been a near-constant presence in his CBD restaurant but also that the hospitable, personable spirit of the place is an almost perfect reflection of the man himself. Georges has evolved gradually, carefully over the past 20 years. The classic brasserie styling still looks sharp and relevant. The cooking, meanwhile, has expanded from a focus on Italy to a wider view of the Mediterranean, as interpreted by the succession of different chefs who have taken charge in the kitchen. That role now belongs to Cameron Coutts (Jolley’s Boathouse, Chianti) who seems to share Georges’/George’s ethos that approachable food should still be made with quality ingredients and no shortcuts.
BEST VEGETARIAN
Africola
4 East Tce, Adelaide | 8223 3885 | africola.com.au
Still one of Adelaide’s coolest places to hang out, Africola fizzes with creative energy and mischievous intent. Over the years founding chef Duncan Welgemoed has put an emphasis onhighlighting veg as flavour powerhouses. Crisp-shelled kohlrabi cake with tofu cream is surprisingly delicate, while the mushrooms with white bean and chilli crisp are rich and robust – you just want more. A roasted cauliflower quarter has a tinge of sweetness, while the cabbage and whey is subtle, creamy and provides a good reason to tear into your bread and sop up the sauce. Yes, you can still get the signature crispy skin chicken sandwich and peri peri chicken, but it’s the veg that will truly delight and keep you wanting more. Check out his new venture, Africola Canteen – an up-market salad bar in Norwood.
BEST DESIGN
Fugazzi
27 Leigh St, Adelaide | 7089 0350 | fugazzi.com.au
From the curved joinery of the doorways and booths, to the rows of Fornasetti wall plates, to the handpainted toilets, triple-decker pendant light fittings and fire-engine red wine cabinet, the design from Simon Kardachi and his regular collaborators at studio-gram is all drop-dead gorgeous. Throw in black-aproned waiters possessing enough chutzpah and a soundtrack with plenty of big-band brass and this is not Rome or Milan, but New York in full movie-set glamour mode. Is that George Clooney sipping martinis in the corner? Could be.
BEST VALUE
New Local Eatery
120 Port Rd, Hindmarsh | 8340 4915 | newlocaleatery.com.au
Perhaps it’s the name. Or the location, hidden away in an unremarkable shopfront on Port Road. Whatever the reason, New Local Eatery has never developed the profile it deserves. For the price of a pub meal, owner/chef Daniel Blencowe turns out dishes that are intelligent and incredibly generous, reflecting his travels across the globe but avoiding the cliches. Whether it is Italian gnocchi, Scandi beetroot or Japanese-style ocean trout, nothing on his menu costs more than $28. And that’s for the larger dinner plates. At lunch, a Sri Lankan curry, made with fillets of Coorong mullet, plenty of cardamom and curry leaves, is a crazy $18. And, while NLE might not be in the running for too many design awards, the dining space is warm and welcoming, with tables spread around a central bar and eye-catching art on the walls.
CHEFS TO WATCH
Mug Chen and Chia Wu
Muni, 2/3 High St, Willunga | 7516 5958 | munirestaurant.com.au
Owners Mug Chen and Chia Wu are quietly spoken and don’t come across as giving much thought to self-promotion. Both raised and trained in Taiwan, they met in Melbourne while working at Vue de Monde. After moving to Adelaide and stints at the Salopian Inn and d’Arenberg Cube respectively, they took the plunge and leased a small property at the bottom of Willunga’s famed hill. The detail they put into every plate is extraordinary. Leeks are poached in beetroot juice for two hours and re-rolled into uniform little batons, then piped with “liquid brioche” and sprinkled with beetroot powder. Even a simple grilled cube of sublime wagyu sirloin is enhanced with cherry vinegar gel, beetroot chips and onions pickled in the juice used for the leeks. Muni is a small but perfectly formed restaurant with two chefs who are stars of the future.
BEST WINE LIST
Fishbank
2 King William St, city | 8310 0120 | fishbankadl.com.au
With 330 wines by the bottle and 25 by the glass, there’s bound to be a drop for all tastes at Adelaide seafood establishment, Fishbank. Situated within a grand bank building on one of the city’s most prominent corners, the setting is worthy of occasion and the wine offering has been curated to suit. Head sommelier Henry Bampton is inspired by “our incredible local producers and our friends and makers across the globe”.
“We showcase some uber classics and some lesser-known varietals, right through to the downright kooky,” he says.
BEST DATE NIGHT
Hardy’s Verandah
Mount Lofty House, 1 Mawson Drive, Crafers | 8130 9292 | hardysverandah.com.au
If it’s a big celebration, Hardy’s Verandah Restaurant has the grand setting to fit the occasion, with picturesque wviews over Piccadilly Valley. On the table, chef Jin Choi delivers with poise and elegance. There’s sublime savouriness in raw Wagyu beef wrapped around a core of enoki mushrooms with a ponzu sauce, and pleasing spikes of Sichuan pepper in rich plum sauce to accompany lean duck breast smoked with oolong tea. In the four years since he arrived at HVR, Choi has found great balance throughout a la carte four-course meals and 8-course degustations. However, the cost for such luxury, presented in an enclosed verandah of Mt Lofty House, is steep – up to $650 a couple for the full feast with matching wines. Thankfully, every aspect shines.
MOST SUSTAINABLE
Watervale Hotel
37 Main North Rd, Watervale | 8843 0229 | watervalehotel.com.au
Forget the limp lettuce and pallid tomato of a standard pub salad. What they serve at the Watervale is a joy to behold. A ceramic bowl is filled with leaves and stems of lettuces, cabbages and other greens; slices of beetroot, cucumber and squash; apple, radish and a mix of petals and blooms. It’s like frolicking through a magical cottage garden, which isn’t far from the truth. Because as splendid as the transformation of this historic Clare Valley hotel is, it only tells part of the story. Equally important is what is happening up the road at Penobscot Farm, where the produce from biodynamic gardens and orchards is integral to what they offer. So are the relationships they have developed with nearby farmers to supply lambs and chickens. It all translates to a dining experience that is commendably down to earth.
BEST FRENCH
Bistro Francais
144a King William Rd, Hyde Park | 7001 9210
Bistro Francais doesn’t care for revisionist gastronomy. Rather this is a tour de force of French classics – soupe a l’onion, boeuf bourguignon, crème brulee – that shows recipes like these are timeless when cooked with respect. For Parisian chef and co-owner Fabien Streit there can be no shortcuts or half measures: what he presents on the plate is a reflection of himself and his heritage. Streit and co-owner Nazzareno Falaschetti have taken over a narrow space in Hyde Park, previously run as a cafe/gin bar, and touched it with a little Gallic charm. A charcuterie board sets the standard early, particularly the silken luxury of chicken liver pate and a duck and pork rillette, that with baguette and exceptional butter could easily be a meal on its own. Niçoise salad is elevated from tres ordinaire to something special by the delectable chunks of yellowfin tuna poached confit-style in olive oil. Duck legs get their own confit treatment, before being finished under a hot grill to ensure the now melting dark meat is capped by a fine sheet of crisped skin. Shredded into a lentil ragout, this is the epitome of bistro comfort food.
BEST ITALIAN
Fugazzi
27 Leigh St, Adelaide | 7089 0350 | fugazzi.com.au
Co-owner/chef Max Sharrad brings this American/Italian theme up to contemporary speed, where a wood grill and vegetables figure prominently, and wakame oil doesn’t feel entirely out of place. Golden strands of egg taglierni are tossed with hand-picked blue swimmer crab, salmon roe pearls, fermented chilli and crustacean butter for a pasta dish that is luxury with a backing of heavy metal. Also maxing out the flavour volume is flat iron steak grilled over a wood fire and rested in the smoke, before serving with fries, anchovy butter and a splash of jus. Capsicum is roasted, marinated and roasted again until it becomes an intense vegetable toffee offset by a vibrant green pool of thyme oil. To finish, a sheep milk yoghurt gelato comes with a lid of milk skin, honey drizzle and the native flavours of a davidson plum dust and melaleuca oil. Fugazzi tops our 11 best Italian restaurants in SA.
BEST REGIONAL
Maxwell Wines
19 Olivers Rd, McLaren Vale | 8323 8200 | maxwellwines.com.au
A pair of waffles, brushed with beef fat, arrive on a folded napkin, ready to swipe through the glossy puddle of sauce at the base of a block of grilled wagyu. This final savoury course is Exhibit A of the sensible sophistication and egalitarian appeal that has taken Maxwell to a place among the very best of the state’s winery restaurants. Chef Fabian Lehmann has created a tasting menu of 10 courses, starting with a sequence of bite-sized snacks. Delicate strips of poached abalone are stuck to the base of a shell with Jerusalem artichoke, while the case of a chicken tart is formed from a layer of crisp skin. After the wagyu, finish with a dessert that has multiple links with the winery – caramelised oak chip ice-cream, malt crumble, mead sabayon and mead jellies.
BEST SOUTH EAST ASIAN
The Little Rickshaw
24 Old Coach Rd, Aldinga | 0403784568 | thelittlerickshaw.com.au
If “shanty chic” were a thing, this would be it: a former blacksmith’s workshop-turned-diner, with a welcoming mix of corrugated iron, exposed stone and timber beams, rugs underfoot and hanging bulbs overhead. What started as a weekend market operation is now a considered procession of exceptional South East Asian bites and share-style dishes. The Feed Me option might start with a tartare of whiting caught in local waters yesterday, barely bound by kelp oil, ponzu and fresh wasabi sitting atop a tiny piece of rice paper. A perfectly pleated pork and shiitake mushroom dumpling, in a puddle of black vinegar dashi sauce, is the stuff of dumpling dreams. Heartier highlights include hand-pulled noodles dressed in a lipsmacking garlic chilli oil (keep your drink handy), and fall-of-the-bone wagyu rib with a sticky chilli infused honey. TLR is now a not-so-hidden gem in Aldinga, so be sure to book ahead.
BEST COCKTAILS
Anchovy Bandit
96 Prospect Rd, Prospect | 0401 188 845 | anchovybandit.com
The antipasti and contemporary pizzas are a highlight of this suburban favourite, food which lends itself so well to friendly gatherings and celebrations worthy of a cocktail (or three). Their list covers all the classics, from spritzs to sours, as well house favourites. Head chef Shane Wilson’s pick of margherita features Koch el Mezcal, mandarin and lime, while the Fernet Fling has Bulleit Rye, sweet vermouth and Fernet Branca. There’s also an espresso martini featuring Averna Amaro Siciliano; a Molto Bizzaro Sour featuring native thyme and much more.
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