Adelaide used to be considered as just a stopover before you would head to South Australia’s got-to-get-to tourism spots such as Kangaroo Island or the bevy of wine regions only a daytrip from its wide, calm streets.
But Lonely Planet now places Adelaide as its 9th top city to visit in the world for 2014 (that’s right, in the world, ahead of both New York and London), listing it as a “cultural tour de force” particularly because of the Adelaide Fringe Festival and WOMADelaide.
The transformation has had a lot to do with its culinary and vinous credentials, flowing down the hills from the Barossa, McLaren Vale and Coonawarra. But here are five reasons we think Adelaide is a whole heap more than just the City Of Churches.
1. Chic streets paved with boutique bars
Okay, the transformation is only just beginning, since a law was passed earlier this year paving the way to allow more small bars in the inner city, but Leigh and Peel streets are sprouting a gaggle of intimate venues in and around the city centre. Places such as Udaberri (for tapas) and Clever Little Tailor bring a touch of Melbourne style to SA. Watch these spaces.
2. Just desserts
Adelaidians are embracing sweets as ‘an occasion’ with a stampede of dessert bars making a sugary mark on the city. Establishments such as Astonish Patisserie act as surrogate dinner venues, opening late, and offering bespoke creations such as the Super Rice Cheesy Glass cheesecake. Absolutely spoiled for choice: Devour Dessert Bar, Aviary Dessert Kitchen and Eggless for vegans.
3. Wine flows down hills
With some of the most outstanding wine regions in the world just up the hill or down the coast, it’s inevitable that Adelaide is Australia’s wine capital. This manifest itself in grand ways, such as the National Wine Centre, but also genuine city-fied cellar door experiences such as Cantina Sociale as well. Wine is served straight from the barrel, or they will bottle it for a takeaway, with the focus on appreciating ‘what’s in the glass’ rather than how many points it has been awarded.
4. Keep on truckin’
Up to 40 food trucks are now doing the city rounds, among them the award-winning Burger Theory, which now has a ‘bricks and mortar’ store as well. There’s also seriously cute newcomer Myrtle & Mae – a retro 1950s caravan serving cracking coffees, tarts, and all sorts of naughty treats. The new La Chiva truck is all about hearty South American dishes like chorizo burgers. If you can’t get to them all, Adelaide’s food trucks now meet once a month at ‘Fork on the Road’ gatherings.
5. Under our noses all along
It’s one of, if not the oldest, food market in Australia and thanks to our foodie evolution Adelaide Central Market, with its farm-fresh ingredients and cultural nuances, is a must for the culinary connoisseur. Many of the traders have been here for decades, long before the market became this cool, plying all kinds of multicultural delights. There are also stacks of other activities to keep your attention such as cooking classes, demonstrations and live music.
Steve Madgwick
LOVE Adelaide. LOVE the small bars (and the big bars, and the desserts and the wine and Kangaroo Island). But your article is a bit misleading. Firstly the premises in the photo is Rigonis, a fantastic long established restaurant that has been there for years and has been full for years. The new small bar laws might bring more venues in time, but the brilliant (queues for forever) Udaberri and Clever Little Tailor are not small bars by those new laws. They are great all by themselves.
Great to see the Food Trucks and Fork on the Road getting mentions! The Food Truck scene is alive and well here in Adelaide, and more trucks are appearing all the time! Well done to the Adelaide City Council for having the smarts to hand out the liscences that began it all.
Yes! Yes! Yes! to all of the above! Obviously you couldn’t name all the awesome spots but can I just add a few favourites?: botanic park, botanic gardens, mt lofty, mt lofty botanic gardens, the Adelaide zoo and monato zoo, and more parkland surrounding cbd than is the size of NYs central park! Live music venues including the gov, the wheaty, jive, and the Adelaide Festival Centre! And other fav places to eat – Amazing new pizza place opened up this year on Waymouth st ‘Barrio Uno’ by SA renowned restauranteur Kerry Flanagan. And loose caboose in Bowden, cafe troppo in Whitmore Square, and Signatures Cafe and Fair Espresso Cafe – both off rundle mall & both offer fairtrade coffee (Did you know Adelaide is a fair trade city and was the first capital city in Australia to get this status?) Also have you checked out all the local food, wine, beer & tshirts, gifts, jewellery, crafts, etc and local stand up comedy at the Howling Owl/Urban cow studio/ rhino room complex? Oooooh and what about Espionage Gallery upstairs in rundle mall?!! Amazing! And our museum, art gallery, and the old mortlock wing of the state library. And there are Thai, Indian, Italian, Ethiopian, Lebanese, Japanese, modern Australian, and so many other types of food to try! Don’t forget to visit Tandanya and learn about our Indigenous peoples both past and present and check out stunning art there. Ok ok I guess I better stop. #lovemycity
rAdelaide’s a great place for mountain biking & road cycling too!
Simple economic lesson no 1:
People eat ONE lunch per day. All the food trucks do is reduce the amount eaten at other establishments that pay big taxes and rents to be located in the CBD. Therefore net increase is zero.
How “vibrant” will Adelaide feel when these fixed establishments shut the doors and the city is full of food trucks and empty shop fronts.
This need to talk up Adelaide continuously drives me insane. Unless you acknowledge a problem exists you can’t take measures to fix it. I’ll join the other billions and pick London over Adelaide as a place to visit anyday!
You didn’t mention the best of the dessert bars. Wow… Crêperie Bruxelles in Mile End.
Just out of town on Henley Beach Rd. the people who Bring you Adelaide’s Famous Poffertjes at the Fringe
Garden Of Unearthly Delights every year, have opened a shop there. The best Crepes , Waffles fresh cooked on order and of course Poffertjes . They are putting in a bar after fringe. Who says the small bar trend is limited to
To city centre!
@ Ho Hum > sour grapes? Ex Adelaidian or tourist who got the wrong info? Are you basing your review on an experience 25 years ago?
Grow up, if you were from Adelaide, you should have been taught, “… don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all”.
I grew up thinking Adelaide was boring. I lived in Paris and various cities in Italy, visited plenty others, (like London,)… Then I came home and realised how great Adelaide is. We have it all close by, be it hills, sea or city.
I’m in Newcastle for a little while but can’t wait to get to my hometown again in a few years, it’s a great city – which like nice wine, gets better with age.
#notaconvictcolony, #getoveryourself
I visited Adelaide in November 2011 and April this year. Adelaide has lovely botanic gardens, chocolate shops, cafes,beautiful white sandy beaches (Aldinga beach is one of my favourites) and wildlife parks in the Adelaide Hills. Harbour Town is good for shopping.
As an Aussie from Murray Bridge living in the UK, I think it’s fantastic to see this article and read about how Adelaide is progressing and creating a great tourism hub. And while I have chosen to live in the UK for now it’s not because I don’t appreciate how fantastic Radelaide is. It’s a shame there always has to be someone negative making comments such as the above and I guess that’s why we have a reputation for having ‘tall poppy syndrome’ . Onya Adelaide, if it’s okay with you, i’ll keep telling all my UK and European friends to visit Adelaide and the beautiful regions that surround, just as I have been for the last 4 years.
Adelaide is actually quite good!!. Laid back, uncomplicated laden with extraordinary wines, bars, eatery’s, clubs, pubs and beaches. A bit hidden at times, but it is all there, just gotta look and is the place to be in March!!
Another great thing about Adelaide … Here’s how great it is to get around . As a sales person living near the cbd, I head to my first appointment from city to mt barker, half hour drive, half hour meeting. Then I head for second meeting at payneham- just over half hour drive, half hour meeting. Following that I go to the payneham shopping centre for a coffe and loo stop, then head for my third meeting at goodwood. Full hour at that one, then it’s lunch on the beach because my fourth meeting is at Henley beach. I can sneak in a visit to a client at Glenelg to finish the day. In what other city can you fit 5 business meetings in a day with an hour lunch at a beachside cafe as well? Pretty good hey?
Adelaide has so much potential. The city is beautiful and there truly is so much to see and do.
If Adelaide wants to be in the same league as London and New York, it truly needs to change its attitudes towards homosexuality and gay marriage / equality.
Radelaide is rated in the Top 5 most liveable cities in the World, congratulations to all that contribute to making this possible.. It wouldn’t take much to change that to No 1 and knock Melbourne off the top spot, we are on our way. Thank you I <3 Radelaide for your spiel, just another passionate Radelaidean with a thirst for the good life. Embrace all that is new, spend 1 day and do something you have never done before, look outside the square. Encourage the diversity in our Hospitality Industry. Explore avenues for new ventures in business. Utilise our open spaces for events both night and day.. Why should street markets only be on the weekends, people walk the city streets everyday.. Our City Councils need to be flexible and encouraging, look to the future, bring colour and vibrancy to the streets and parkland's all year round build our future on the Travelling Public, catering for their every need, this will create employment for future generations.. For 5 months of the year Radelaide is a buzz of excitement with the Pageant, Christmas Celebrations, New Years Celebrations, Tour Down Under, Big Day Out, Sound Wave ,The Fringe, WOMADElaide, Clipsal…. Lets just step it up a notch… More Theatre, More Street Events, More Music Events, Encourage more Youth Events, therefore creating sustainable future growth in Tourism, Culturalism and Employment. Bring the Soul of Adelaide Alive with its Multicultural Diversity and its Ancestral Heritage, explore the potential untapped raw experiences.
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That lead photo was before Leigh street was pedestrianised and before the bars of which you speak. It was nice then but it’s better now.