The Best Pubs in Adelaide

The Wheaty is the pub Adelaide locals nominate first when asked about real craft beer, regularly cited as one of the best beer venues in Australia. The kitchen brews six house taps on-site with another seven craft taps that rotate weekly, plus an extensive bottle list, wine and whiskey program. No pokies, no TVs, no nonsense, this is a beer-and-music pub first. Live music runs most nights from the front room, the beer garden is strung with fairy lights and the room hosts a deeply loyal regular crowd alongside touring craft-beer pilgrims. Open Wednesday to Monday from 2 or 3pm, closed Tuesday. Best for a serious beer session, a Sunday afternoon in the garden or a band you want to see from three metres away. Not the place for pokies, big screens or a quiet wine.

The Exeter has been one of Adelaide's defining pubs for over a century, with a green-tiled facade on Rundle Street that has barely changed since 1929 and a public bar that wears its old-school character like a badge. The kitchen runs a small, daily-changing menu with an Asian lean and a strong vegetarian section. No pokies, cold Coopers, eclectic clientele and live music in the back room on weekends. Open until late seven days. Best for a Friday-night beer with mismatched crowd, a Sunday roast at the courtyard table or anyone who wants the most-authentic Adelaide pub experience the East End can offer. Not the right pick if you need a big TV for the footy or pokies.

On the corner of Rundle Street and East Terrace, The Stag has been a pub in some form since 1849 and is now under the Big Easy Group (Anchovy Bandit, NOLA, Yiasou George). The kitchen is led by ex-Orana sous chef Blake Drinkwater and runs a menu that takes the schnitty-and-parmie template and quietly elevates it without losing the pub feel. Three rooms inside one venue: a kitschy sports bar with TVs and a TAB, a proper old poolroom with felt tables and a more refined dining room toward the back. Open seven days, food service through to late. Best for a pre-show dinner in the East End, a Saturday-afternoon pool game or a group dinner where the menu has to suit a wide palate. Not the right pick for an intimate two-person date night, the room is alive most nights.

The Crown and Anchor (the Cranker) has been pouring beer on Grenfell Street since 1853 and after a successful community campaign was legislatively protected in 2025 to preserve the building and guarantee live music continues forever. The pub temporarily relocated in July 2025 to The Edinburgh Castle on Currie Street while a student-accommodation tower is built around the original site, with the publican holding first right of return when works finish around 2027. The Ed Castle hosts the same booking schedule, around 25 to 30 bands a week, the same cheap beer, the same loyal regulars. Best for live music seven nights, a cheap pre-gig pint or a long Saturday night that does not pretend to be a wine bar. Not the right pick for a fine-dining feed or a quiet conversation.

Pouring pints on King William Street since 1851, The Brecknock is Adelaide's original Irish pub and South Australia's number-one Guinness-selling outlet. Old-world charm runs through the building, timber-panelled walls, leadlight windows, open fireplaces and a series of small intimate bars that flow into a beer garden built with chunky jarrah pillars salvaged from Port Adelaide docks. The whiskey list is genuinely deep, the comfort-food menu lands at lamb shanks, fish and chips and a respectable Sunday roast for around $20 to $30. Open seven days, regular trad-music sessions through the week. Best for a proper Guinness, a winter lunch by the fire or anyone who likes their pub with history layered into the walls. Not the right pick if you want craft beer beyond the obvious.

South-CBD pub on Gilbert Street that has built its reputation on two things: one of the biggest curated craft-beer ranges in Adelaide and the city's longest-running wings night, every Wednesday and Thursday. The kitchen runs a proper seasonal menu beyond the wings, with a 2025 autumn rotation that pulled from the award-winning kitchen team. The beer garden is one of the better in the inner south, the front bar suits a quick after-work pint and the room handles both small groups and larger bookings. Locals get a 15 percent Sunday discount, happy hour runs most weeknights. Best for a Wednesday wings session with mates, a craft-beer flight before a south-end show or a long Sunday lunch in the garden. Not the right pick if you want a heritage-pub aesthetic, the fit-out is contemporary.

Tucked into Ebenezer Place at the East End of Adelaide's CBD, the Belgian Beer Cafe Oostende leans into its theme without tipping into kitsch. European oak panelling, jarrah floorboards and vintage decor set the scene for a beer list that runs 80-plus Belgian and European bottles plus rare drafts that rotate. The kitchen is built around Belgian mussels and frites done four ways, paired with a nine-step pour Belgian Trappist that takes the time it takes. Dog-friendly outdoor area runs the length of the laneway. Open seven days for lunch and dinner, mid-week meal deals around $20. Best for a beer-and-mussels date night, a long Sunday afternoon in the laneway or anyone tired of generic pub menus. Not the right pick if you do not eat seafood, the kitchen leans heavily on it.