Sign in

Register

Forgotten your Password?

Enter your email address below and we'll send instructions and a link to reset your password

 

Unlock Adelaide's hidden gems

All the latest and greatest places to eat, drink, stay and play in your city.

 
By signing up, you agree to periodic email marketing from Sitchu to the email address you provided. Terms and Conditions. Privacy Policy.

The Restaurants in Adelaide CBD to Add to Your Dining Hit List in 2024

You haven't lived (or eaten properly) until you've tasted your way around the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD.

Press Wine

Adelaide CBD's culinary scene is a multicultural melting pot, serving up everything from rich French fare to generously plated pastas, wonderfully fresh seafood and flavoursome dishes inspired by traditions all the way from Africa.

From casual classics for a fun catch up with friends to fine dining destinations fit for a romantic date night, the restaurants in Adelaide CBD cater to any occasion. And with new bars popping up every month, there's no shortage of options for your aperitif or post-dinner night cap, too. Here's our round-up of the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD that you simply must experience at least once.

Osteria Oggi

Osteria Oggi

Easily one of the most stylish Italian piazzas going around, Osteria Oggi is dripping in style, finesse and premium Italian food, making it one of the most popular and best restaurants in Adelaide. A cobblestoned floor paired with arches, arbours and ambient lighting make this sleek venue stand out, and intimate booths contribute to the chic atmosphere. As 'Oggi' means 'today' in Italian, the whimsical crew behind this restaurant aims to create sophisticated Italian food inspired by tradition, but with today's tastes and touches. If you're feeling a little fancier, book out their private cellar and be wined and dined the proper traditional Italian way.

76 Pirie Street, Adelaide

Icarus

Icarus

Food til late, wine til later; new food-led wine bar Icarus is fast becoming a Peel Street local with its offering of Southern-Mediterranean cuisine, extensive wine list, and cocktails to complement. Inspired by Greek mythology to bring an elevated experience to the drinking and dining scene, Icarus’ menu has been painstakingly considered, and wholly dependent on seasonality and led by producers. Think sharing plates cooked over charcoal, including wood-grilled octopus with nduja, saffron aioli and chickpeas, various steak options, and a pumpkin gnocchi with chestnut and fermented chilli.

Its sophisticated and welcoming setting is perfect for your next romantic dinner, work knock offs, or those simply wanting a great foodie experience without the pretension.

Ground Floor, 23 Peel Street, Adelaide

Press* Food & Wine

Press* Food & Wine

We’re pleased to report that Press* Food & Wine really has it all. The interiors create an intimate mood, with plush booths and rattan seating mixed with exposed wooden beams and raw brick to give an overall loft-style feel to the restaurant. Their menu is designed seasonally around fresh South Australian produce, representing the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD with chargrilling as an integral part of their cooking style. Choose between the set menu or an inventive la cart offering that could include anything from a choux bun of chicken liver parfait to steak tartare and market fish. We're sure you'll be hard-pressed to find a meal this good anywhere else.

40 Waymouth Street, Adelaide

Akimitsu

Akimitsu

In the mood for some deep-fried goodness? Akimitsu is the only place you ever need to go to in order to fill your Japanese cravings. Serving up the best tempura in Adelaide, you can choose from a range of tempura and tendon dishes, which is tempura served over rice. While Akimitsu is a worldwide chain, this particular one is the first to enter Australian shores - and we couldn't be more thankful that it's in Adelaide.

Shop 2/62-68 Hindley St, Adelaide

Fugazzi

Fugazzi

Dine in a romantic and decadent style at Fugazzi on Adelaide’s ever-popular Leigh Street. Immerse yourself in their furnishings of velvet, leather and marble, with a buzzing atmosphere to match. The good news is there is no rush for you to cut the night short and potentially ruin the mood, with the restaurant open late all seven nights of the week. Cosy up in the booth seating, share a bottle of excellent wine and start with oysters, the famed food choice for romance. Follow this with a few creative small plates to share, or reinvent your very own lady and the tramp moment with Fugazzi’s contemporary Italian hand rolled taglierini with blue swimmer crab.

27 Leigh Street, Adelaide

Paper Tiger

Paper Tiger

The ever-changing food scene of Rundle Street is a regular haunt for enjoying some of best restaurants in Adelaide CBD. Asian fusion restaurant Paper Tiger lives up to this stellar reputation. Bringing a diverse range of Southeast Asian flavours and an electric atmosphere, they draw inspiration and merge flavours from Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. Paper Tiger’s Chin Chin inspired eatery serves up plates of succulent lemongrass lamb skewers, grilled scallops and chilli roast eggplant. Larger dishes of wagyu beef brisket, pork belly bao and crispy duck will leave you satisfied. Fundamental to the restaurant’s energy is the in-house curated soundtrack and Instagram-friendly interiors, which is a modern take on Hong Kong’s neon-lit night markets.

285 Rundle Street, Adelaide

The Meat & Wine Co

The Meat & Wine Co

One of Australia's best-known steakhouses, The Meat & Wine Co offers up a truly gastronomic experience right in the heart of Adelaide. The diverse menu features the finest cuts of meats prepared and grilled to perfection and curated international and local wines. Blending sophistication and warmth, it's a true CBD haven for steak aficionados.

39 Currie Street, Adelaide

Garcon Bleu

Garcon Bleu

Situated within the five star Adelaide Sofitel hotel, Garcon Bleu offers exceptional French fine dining. From food to interiors to overall experience, Garcon Bleu earns itself the title as one of the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD. The striking 1920s Art Deco interior is decked out with contemporary art, a cool blue palette and feature lighting that illuminates your table with a glow that truly sets the mood. The 90-seater restaurant also features fantastic views of the city, making it an impressive spot to bring guests who are visiting. Garcon Bleu's modern French menu heroes local produce, meat, and fish – think marron bisque, chateaubriand for two, bouillabaise, and a classic crème brûlée for dessert.

108 Currie Street, Adelaide

Bai Long Store

Bai Long Store

This modern Asian restaurant on Hutt Street mixes style and authenticity perfectly. Open for lunch Tuesday to Friday and dinner Tuesday to Saturday, Bai Long Store offers both small and big servings of its delicious dishes, with plenty of vegetarian and gluten free options available. We recommend sharing smaller plates of sashimi, dumplings and peking duck bao, and big plates of yakitori, king prawn and crispy tofu. Did we mention Bai Long is the only Asian restaurant in Adelaide CBD to have tea sourced exclusively by Master Foo, a Taiwanese tea master?

80 Hutt Street, Adelaide

Sôl Rooftop Bar

Sôl Rooftop Bar & Restaurant

One of the most exciting and best restaurants in Adelaide CBD can be found perched atop SkyCity. As soon as you step out of the elevator on the 9th floor, Sôl Rooftop Bar & Restaurant wows with a 180-degree view of the city skyline. You'll catch a glimpse of Adelaide Hills, the river Torrens and even Adelaide Oval. Sôl's menu is crafted with the freshest South Australian regional produce — think melt-in-your-mouth crayfish, premium cuts of wagyu, locally-sourced veggies and duck. The best part? This popular venue covers everything from boozy brunch to late night dining. Sôl's extensive wine and cocktail selection adds to the already charming character of the restaurant, with wine sourced from SkyCity's master cellar that's home to over 7500 bottles of wine.

Level 9, SkyCity, North Terrace, Adelaide

Fishbank Restaurant

Fishbank Restaurant

Serving up some of the freshest seafood from across Australia, Fishbank Restaurant is the perfect place to splash out for any special occasion. The contemporary, opulent décor compliments the venue’s open space and high ceilings, matched equally by the quality of the food and award-winning wine list. Fishbank's menu features premium grade seafood, from freshly shucked oysters, sashimi and caviar from the raw bar to moreish prawn toast, grilled Murray cod fillet and southern rock lobster. Make sure you flick through the 40-page drinks menu for a wide selection of wine recommendations curated by the house sommelier.

Ground Level, 2 King William Street, Adelaide

Koomo Restaurant & Bar

Koomo Restaurant & Bar

Set your sights sky-high with this restaurant in Adelaide CBD’s tallest building, the home of Japanese dining, Koomo. Everything in this stunning restaurant is inspired by Japan, from the light-filled space with warm timbers, floor to ceiling windows through to their decadent menu. Koomo's impressive food offering spans from breakfast to lunch and dinner. Our favourite dishes include the chef’s signature South Australian chilli salt squid, Koomo lobster rolls and duck breast confit, and a Japanese favourite of matcha mousse for dessert. But don't just take our word for it, book a table to experience it for yourself.

Level 10, Crowne Plaza, Adelaide

Leigh Street Wine Room

Leigh Street Wine Room

What once started as a humble dry cleaners' shop is now a wine bar like no other. Leigh Street Wine Room has a prodigious mix of tasty dishes served up nightly by head chef Nathan Sasi. The wine room's natural and eclectic design is complemented by arched ceilings, charming artwork and a library of wines. Offering a simple yet significant nod to their dry cleaners' past, Leigh Street Wine Room has a bold blue lightbox sign outside and stylish branded wine glasses. Feast on an elevated spread of dishes ranging from black truffle risotto, caramalised onion focaccia and Sicilian olives. Or, leave the decision making to the experts and order the chef’s selection of five plates to share from the kitchen.

9 Leigh Street, Adelaide

Sean's Kitchen

Sean's Kitchen

Helmed by one of Australia's most recognised chef's, Sean Connolly, Sean's Kitchen showcases the best locally sourced produce in a mouth-watering way. The restaurant's warm and welcoming surroundings make you feel like you're a million miles away from the CBD, offering the perfect respite after a busy day. Sean's Kitchen's menu is packed with indulgent meals, including Arbolhos Island scallops, Wagyu scotch fillet and a lamb shoulder for two. For culinary fanatics, we recommend booking the Chef's Table experience. You'll eat your meal in the middle of the bustling kitchen and have your food made right in front of you. This is certainly one to add to your foodie bucket list.

SkyCity, North Terrace, Adelaide

Golden Boy

Golden Boy

This gorgeous green botanic restaurant in Adelaide CBD on North Terrace oozes style and deliciousness. It's hard to miss - not that you'd want to. Golden Boy serves up contemporary Thai dining that pack a punch. Their fresh and flavourful menu serves up something for every palate, tailored perfectly to your taste. Start with their stand out dish, a kingfish sashimi served with coconut cream and kaffir lime, and finish with their roti with pandan custard. If you really want to be impressed, order Golden Boy's Tuk Tuk menu and let the staff feed you the proper, authentic Thai way. Just be sure to tell them your spice level before ordering, because the food gets very hot...

309 North Terrace, Adelaide

Peel St Restaurant

Peel St Restaurant

If you’re after fresh, simple and delicious food, Peel St Restaurant is the place for you - and is one of the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD. Sitting on the ever-popular food and bar haven of Peel Street, the industrial-chic eatery celebrates the building's original features through exposed red brick, complemented by modern wooden touches. Their menu is beautifully curated and bursting with flavour, with generous serves to satisfy your hunger pangs. Peel St Restaurant's ethos is simple: the head chef cooks what he'd love to be served. And what is that you ask? A menu that changes with the seasons, a sample of which includes baba hummus, burrata, grilled beef, fresh oysters and peanut butter parfait... yum!

9 Peel Street, Adelaide

Stem

Stem

This humble joint hidden in the West End of Adelaide's CBD intertwines a rustic yet chic design so effortlessly. Blurring the lines between restaurant and bar, Stem has an intriguing mix of concrete and greenery, paired perfectly with their simply fabulous menu. Stem's Mediterranean-inspired offering includes Cuca anchovy soldiers, mushroom ‘tartare’, and a range of pizza, pasta and larger dishes of meat and fish. We recommend the Chef’s lunch set menu or the Chef’s tasting menu, both of which are available to enjoy paired with wines.

188 Hindley Street, Adelaide

Africola

Africola

It’s not every day that you stumble across contemporary African cuisine in the heart of an Australian cosmopolitan city, and yet here is one of the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD that does just that. Africola is a unique and vibrant eatery that has secured itself on the Adelaide food map thanks to its creative menu of wholesome dishes, snacks and sweets drawing a regular crowd. Recipient of multiple awards, Africola is a must-try for any food lover looking for new and exciting flavours. 

4 East Terrace, Adelaide

Booked a table at all of the best restaurants in Adelaide CBD and ready to continue your foodie journey further afield? Discover your new favourite restaurant, whether that's sizzling Korean, inventive vegetarian or vegan dining that doesn’t compromise on flavour.

Stay in the loop

Subscribe
LOAD MORE ARTICLES