The Best Restaurants in Adelaide

Adelaide's flagship native-produce fine diner, set inside the Adelaide Botanic Garden with floor-to-ceiling views of the grounds. Executive chef Justin James leads a degustation kitchen that draws ingredients from the surrounding 51 hectares and growers across the country. The format is a multi-course tasting menu in the main Dining Room or a counter seat at the Chef's Table, both lean heavily on the day's harvest. Best for special occasion dinners, anniversaries and out-of-towners who want one signature Adelaide meal. Not the right pick if you want a quick a la carte feed or a kids dinner, the menu is long and the booking lead time is real. Book through Exploretock three to six weeks out for weekend slots.

Set on the original Penfolds Magill Estate vineyard in the eastern foothills, with windows looking over the Grange vines toward the city. The kitchen runs a seasonal six and nine-course tasting menu, with paired flights pulling deep from the Penfolds cellar including back-vintage Granges by the glass on the premium pairing. Twenty minutes from the CBD by car, free on-site parking. Best for wine lovers, milestone dinners and visitors who want the full vineyard-to-table arc without driving to the Barossa. Not the right pick if you want a quick lunch, the format is committed.

Duncan Welgemoed's East Terrace dining room has been one of Adelaide's most recognisable restaurants for a decade, with the open wood-fire oven at the centre of the kitchen driving most of the menu. The cooking takes cues from South African shebeen culture and Mediterranean grill traditions, with peri-peri half chicken, charred flatbreads, Goolwa pipis and a famously strong vegetable section. The room is loud, the colour palette is loud, the wines are natural-leaning and the staff lean hospitality-first. Best for a celebratory group dinner, a date night with personality or your one big Adelaide night out. Not the pick for a quiet conversation. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 6pm.

Simon Kardachi's Pirie Street Italian opened in 2015 and has held its position as the city's benchmark modern Italian ever since. The pasta room makes everything in-house daily, the cellar reads like a love letter to Italian wine with a substantial South Australian section to back it up. The dining room is built like an Italian piazza with cobblestone floors, arched doorways and a mezzanine kitchen. Best for a group pasta dinner, a serious wine night with a small group or your visiting parents. Not the right pick if you need a quiet table for two, the room is alive most nights of the week. Booking via OpenTable two to three weeks ahead for a Friday or Saturday is normal.

Adam Liston's Leigh Street smokehouse built its kitchen around a custom yakitori pit, a hydraulic charcoal grill, a wood oven and a rotisserie. The menu takes cues from Japanese and Korean fire cooking with sticks from the yakitori bar, smoked and grilled mains, katsu sandos and a serious sake list. Two formats inside one venue: the main restaurant for the full menu, the tighter Shō counter for a yakitori-led night and the small Sapporo Room for groups up to six. Best for a date night with energy, a group dinner with a varied palate or anyone tired of standard Western menus. Not the place if you do not eat anything from the grill, the kitchen is built around it. Open seven nights, lunch from Thursday.

Long-running West End dining room and bar on Waymouth Street with a modern European menu built around South Australian growers and producers. The format suits both a quick after-work plate at the bar and a longer sit-down dinner upstairs in the dining room. Wine list reads as a who's who of small-batch South Australian winemakers with European depth to back it up. Open lunch and dinner Monday to Friday, dinner only Saturday, closed Sunday. Best for an after-work dinner, a wine-focused date or a business lunch you want to be remembered. Not the venue for a five-person birthday with a buzzing soundtrack, the energy is calmer and the room is more reserved.

Suburban pizzeria and pasta bar on Prospect Road that started as a hole-in-the-wall and has grown into one of the most reliably booked neighbourhood restaurants in greater Adelaide. The pizza is Neapolitan-leaning out of a dedicated oven, the pasta menu is short and seasonal and the wine list runs deep on small-producer bottles, predominantly Italian grapes. Vegan and gluten-free options are baked into the menu, not pinned on. Best for a casual Friday night with friends, a no-fuss date dinner or anyone who wants a relaxed top-tier feed without committing to a CBD booking. Not the place for a quiet two-person conversation on Saturday night, the room gets loud. Open daily from 5pm, walk-ins handled at the bar.

Late-night Neapolitan pizza joint from the team behind Pink Moon Saloon, opening 5pm to late seven days. Tight menu of wood-fired pizza, antipasti and natural wine. The room is small, gets loud and runs walk-in only after 9pm, which is exactly the format Adelaide's late-night dining scene was missing. Best for a post-show pizza, a Friday-night feed where you want quality without the long sit-down or an after-work stop with one drink that turns into three. Not the right pick for a quiet two-person dinner or a kids visit. The Pink Moon DNA shows in the wine list which leans hard on natural producers.