Dining & Cafés
Soil to Table
A fertile landscape of dairies, market gardens, olive groves and fishing ports has produced some of South Australia's most celebrated restaurants, vineyard kitchens and seaside cafés.
13 places
Blessed Cheese
$$Cheesemonger, deli and cafe on Main Road
Beloved Main Road cafe, deli and cheesemonger in McLaren Vale - stocking great cheeses, preserves and cured meats, with counter meals and fantastic coffee.
Down South Distillery
$$Gin, wood-fired pizza & Agostino site
Gin distillery with a cellar door restaurant at the former Agostino Wines site on Stonehouse Lane, Aldinga - gin flights alongside wood-fired pizza.
Home Grain Bakery
$Artisan sourdough bakery and cafe
Family-owned artisan bakery in Aldinga, now with sister stores at McLaren Flat and Middleton - famous for sourdough loaves, pies and pastries.
Hotel Elliot
$$Casual country hotel & bistro on The Strand
Casual country hotel on The Strand with a bistro, beer garden, family-friendly pub meals and a short stroll to Horseshoe Bay.
Leonards Mill
$$$$Fine dining in a restored 1854 flour mill
Destination restaurant set inside a beautifully restored 1854 flour mill at Second Valley, serving modern Australian tasting menus.
Port Elliot Bakery
$Country bakery on North Terrace
Long-loved country bakery in the heart of Port Elliot, famous for pies, pasties, vanilla slices and coffee a short walk from Horseshoe Bay.
Russell's Pizza
$$Woodfired pizza in a heritage yard
A Friday and Saturday night institution - Russell Jeavons' woodfired pizzas served under the stars in a walled garden behind a Willunga stone cottage.
Star of Greece
$$$Clifftop dining above Port Willunga beach
Famous casual-fine dining restaurant perched on the cliff above Port Willunga beach, named for the 1888 shipwreck visible below at low tide.
The Currant Shed
$$$Restored currant shed, seasonal lunch menu
Lunch-only restaurant in a restored 1880s currant drying shed at McLaren Flat, run by Hamish Maguire and Emily Dowie since 2011.
The Flying Fish Cafe
$$On the sand at Horseshoe Bay
Beachside cafe and restaurant right on Horseshoe Bay at Port Elliot - an icon of the Encounter Coast serving breakfast, lunch and summer dinners overlooking the beach.
The Salopian Inn
$$$Heritage inn with 600 wines and 250 gins
A mid-19th century inn turned modern Australian dining room with an epic wine cellar and 250-strong gin bar.
The Victory Hotel
$$Historic hilltop pub with iconic wine cellar
Historic country pub on Sellicks Hill overlooking the Fleurieu, famous for its award-winning wine list and a cellar with over 700 wines.
Yankalilla Bakery
$Award-winning country bakery
A legendary country bakery on the Main South Road at Yankalilla - celebrated for its vanilla slice, pies and pasties on the drive to Cape Jervis.