Local Guide: Top Adelaide Bars and Restaurants

In April 2023, Assembly Label opened its first store in Adelaide. We’ve long admired Adelaide’s design community, and since moving into our new brick and mortar home on Rundle Street we’ve also gained an appetite for the city’s food and wine scene. To celebrate the local neighbourhood, we’re sharing some of our favourite places to eat, snack and drink around the Adelaide CBD.

Leigh Street Wine Room

With its tall arched ceilings, narrow gallery and walls upon walls of wine, this ex-laundromat is redolent of a Parisian drinking den. That intimate European feel invites you to settle in and spend a few hours tasting and sipping your way through glasses of minimal intervention wine and dishes of simple, often wood-fired food that will have you smacking your lips and nodding in silent appreciation.

Fugazzi

Fugazzi Bar & Dining Room is Adelaide’s answer to the decadent Italian diners of New York, and the only thing you need to know is you should arrive very, very hungry. Fugazzi is where you go when you want a heart-warming (or heart-stopping) bowl of pasta. It’s where you go when you want to order several plates of fried bread and mop up every honey-soaked mouthful. And with a ‘Saucy Affogato Semi Freddo’ on the menu, you know dessert isn’t an option, it’s a must.

Peel St

Buzzing from the moment lunch service starts, Peel St is deliciously down to earth. The restaurant prides itself on taking a simple, fresh approach to food, but it’s also convivial, collaborative, robust and abundant in warmth and spirit. The menu is a testament to food as a binding cultural force, with Middle Eastern and Asian flavours celebrated in beautiful, unexpected ways that satisfy the senses all at once.

Press* Food & Wine

Looking for outstanding sustainable South Australian produce? You’ll find it on your plate at Press* Food & Wine. Adelaide restaurants are spoilt for choice when it comes to working with local farmers and makers, and it’s this relationship that guides everything Press does. As for the cellar, the wine list is an exciting representation of winemaking on a local and global scale. It’s also very long, so enlist the expertise of the sommelier to help you find the perfect bottle (or two).

Mascavado

When we opened Assembly Label Rundle Street we wanted to share our love of our new neighbourhood, and that meant serving pastries from Mascavado. The patisserie opened during the pandemic, which says a lot about the power of a coffee and buttery croissant. The pastries are imaginative, ingredients are locally sourced, the display counter is Instagram-worthy and the specials are so good it’s impossible to choose just one. Our advice? Try them all.

Hellbound Wine Bar

If it’s a glass of wine you’re after descend into Hellbound, which is suitably located in a heritage building basement that feels just like a wine cellar. These guys are passionate about their industry and the best part is they’re totally unpretentious and an evening spent here is great fun. Whether you’re staying for a glass or a bottle make sure to order the snacks, which are the perfect mix of salty, doughy, crispy and cheesy.

Shōbōsho

The Japanese word Shobosho translates to fire house, a word that inspires every detail of your experience at this Adelaide institution. Shōbōsho evokes the tradition of a Japanese izakaya and each dish comes to life through an alchemy of steam, smoke and fire. Start with sake and some raw snacks, and then make your way through the elements — the kitchen has a wood oven, a grill, rotisserie and custom yakitori pit.

The Exeter Hotel

The Exeter Hotel is the very definition of a gastro pub — really tasty food washed down with a beer and a top-notch menu that’s updated daily depending on what’s available, in season and at its peak. There’s something deeply satisfying about sitting in a lively pub courtyard and tucking into a schnitzel, and from what we’ve heard The Exeter’s curry of the day is just as good for the soul.

Osteria Oggi

Pasta made fresh, daily. If this sounds like your love language, consider Osteria Oggi your soul mate. The interiors are reminiscent of an Italian piazza complete with a mezzanine-level kitchen turning out pasta and gnocchi that will melt in your mouth. From there, let your heart and appetite decide — snack on share plates, dig into full-bodied meat dishes and finish with house made gelato.

Africola

Africola is that rare sort of restaurant that has achieved cult status. It oozes confidence and attracts a fashionable crowd, but it’s also friendly and fun, and takes pride in exploring South African cuisine using Australian ingredients. Bookings entail a set kitchen menu, but it’s anything but limited and guests are in for an unforgettable experience, every time. And if you’re after something that’s lighter and on-the-go, check out sister restaurant Africola Canteen.