Hello reader,

I recently enjoyed a brief holiday with Kathleen—a few days in Adelaide (also known as the city of churches). We have been exploring unfamiliar eateries in our respective cities, along with the usual tried and tested favourites.

I’m not going to go through every meal we enjoyed because there were so many bites to eat and because while each moment was special, I doubt you’ll find them all interesting to read. 

These are the highlights.

Veneziano Coffee Adelaide

While this is a coffee-focused shop, it was two of the pastry treats which grabbed my attention. The first was an apple and custard Danish, which was delectably light and airy, yet rich and buttery with plush custard and delicately spiced apple. The pastry was firm yet biteable. It was delicious. The second was a cinnamon scroll that wasn’t like those awful oversweet franchise creations. The scroll was delicate and flaky, with a nice balance of cinnamon and sugar. 

The River Torrens café

From the Winter Feast menu, we enjoyed:

House-made focaccia with hummus 

A tapas board with 1. Lamb shank croquette with minted peas; 2. Salt and pepper squid; and 3. crostini, mushroom pâté, and ricotta.

For main meals, we selected the free-range chicken with chermoula rub, fennel and yoghurt, and the crab linguini with a rosé sauce, tomato, and mild chilli.

House-made Petit Four cinnamon rolled ricotta doughnut with Davidson plum jelly.

Upon arrival we were promptly attended and shown to a window table overlooking the Torrens River and Adelaide city. Soon after ordering drinks the charred light and soft focaccia arrived, finishing the scene for a lovely meal. The tapas board was a good appetite stimulant for the main courses. I also enjoyed the pasta and some of the chicken, especially the skin from the chicken thigh. Kathleen said the chicken was perfectly cooked. We didn’t need to ask for dessert because the doughnut and Davidson plum rounded out the meal perfectly. We both enjoyed a cup of tea to help with our digestion.

Vietnam House – Pho and Bread Rolls

This place was so good we ate there twice over two days. Over the two meals, we enjoyed:

• Chilli lemongrass chicken Bánh mì
• Pork crackling Bánh mì
• Vietnamese coffee
• Tofu and vegetables vermicelli noodle salad
• Young coconut juice

The Bánh mì were very good. The bread roll crust was crunchy outside, and the bread was pillowy soft. The vegetables were crispy. The chilli was hot, but the heat lasted only about five minutes after savouring the last bite. While the chicken was probably the better sandwich, I’ll always choose pork over chicken if given a choice.

Vietnamese coffee is sublime. Should all my coffee be made with condensed milk?

MEATER™ made lamb shoulder roll

One of the treats was cooking a small roast. We used a MEATER™ wireless meat thermometer to cook the lamb roast, accompanied by baby green peas, potato mash and gravy.

It was a simple, relatively cheap meal and most enjoyable.

Bakery on O’Connell

This place is an institution in Adelaide. It trades all day, apart from a couple of weeks around Christmas and New Year.

We bought an apricot turnover and a vanilla slice. Both were delicious, and I’m happy to recommend their coffee.

Last supper in Adelaide

Our last dinner was phenomenal. We’d been grocery shopping and bought some cheeses, lavosh bread, rye sourdough, quince paste, and an apple. The highlight was a La Vera pancetta wrapped camembert. This product which I’ve never seen in Canberra, also includes some thyme and garlic. The wrapped cheese is prepared in an oven for about 15 minutes until the pancetta is brown and the cheese starts to ooze.

We also had a few slices of the leftover lamb shoulder which we cut and ate with the various elements.

The blue cheese was a La Vera product called Adel-Blue. This has a compelling creamy funkiness. 

Final thoughts

It was a marvellous holiday, and I enjoyed seeing more of Adelaide. I’ll be back as soon as I can.