Adelaide’s Best New Cafes and Casual Spots of 2023

Well, we called it! Sandwiches are here to stay, and all but two of the seven venues on this list – the exceptions are a bakery and a gelateria – are offering them. From traditional panini and hefty Italo-American hero subs to toasties, deli sandwiches and even steak frites sandwiches, it’s not hard to put a finger (or two whole hands) on the biggest trend in Adelaide’s casual dining scene this year. Sandwich spots have sprung up from Glenelg to the CBD to Mount Barker and everywhere in between – and we couldn’t be more excited.

Here are the new cafes, bakeries and casual dining spots that caught our eye this year, in alphabetical order.

Adelaide’s sandwich scene is on a roll. Following the arrival of Pinco Deli, Carton Deli, Good Neighbour Deli and Our Boy Roy, this tiny beachside contender arrived in Glenelg earlier this year, inspired by the al fresco grab-and-go panino bars of Italy. The menu reflects the Italian inspo with fillings like sopressa, fior di latte, tomato, peppers, mayo and basil, or mortadella, capocollo, provolone, pickled veg and pesto, both in fresh Turkish bread. Plus, a mushroom ragu toastie with provolone and shredded mozzarella. There are also tuna melts and a chicken-salad sanga with Kewpie mayo, dill pickles, shallots and green oak lettuce. The trio tapped Goodwood’s Boulangerie 113 to supply the bread and pastries and Hark Coffee to provide the air-roasted beans. For those who would rather eat in, there’s a dog-friendly, ivy-clad courtyard out the back with around a dozen chairs.

@dantes.deli

## Fratelli Deli, Prospect## It was a trip to the US that inspired a foursome made up of family and friends to open an Americana venue in Prospect. The cornerstone of the menu is hearty, two-hander subs served in hero rolls and stuffed to the brim with pastrami and chicken with vodka sauce. A firm favourite when the venue opened in October was a sandwich made on Schinella’s ciabatta with prosciutto, crushed pistachio and That’s Amore stracciatella from Melbourne, drizzled in sweet, spicy honey. Sandwiches are made to order and the team is happy to make substitutions. Sides include a crumbed and fried pasta wedge, which the team encourages you to pair with a drinks list that includes frozen Espresso Martinis and a zesty, effervescent limoncello spritz.

@fratelli.italiandeli

@gela_teca

@ourboyroy_adl ## Prove Patisserie, Stepney## Prove Patisserie has been supplying its coveted pastries to the city’s best cafes since it launched in late 2020. Now – after moving operations from a co-working space in Port Adelaide – owners Anna Rogers and Megan Bowditch (who’s also the head pastry chef) are selling their luminous line-up of croissants (plain, pain au chocolat, choc-raspberry and almond), scrolls (cinnamon, butterscotch and the occasional baklava special), and seasonal danishes (like rhubarb and pistachio, and pear and honey crumble) at their own shopfront in Stepney. Since relocating, the team has also started baking bread – 100 per cent sourdough plain, seeded and rye loaves, plus baguettes, ciabatta and specials like olive and rosemary fougasse – which has been selling out every Saturday. Luckily, the team’s just expanded its retail hours to include Fridays too. But we recommend getting in early to be safe.

@prove_patisserie

## Spread Deli, Unley## When the team behind inner-east wine bar Lune opened its Unley cocktail bar Dolly in January, everything was perfect. Well, almost perfect. There was no room at Dolly for a coffee machine – so they decided to lease the adjoining space to open Spread, a deliciously diverse space operating as a deli by day and drinking hole by night. The team was inspired by Melbourne’s Hector’s Deli and Sydney’s Continental Deli. The lunch menu runs long in paninis and toasties. Think bonito melt with American cheese and pickled jalapeno and eggplant katsu with smoked tomato, oozy stracciatella and prosciutto. There’s also an Italian hoagie piled high with deli meats, giardiniera, chilli and mozzarella as well as a steak frites sandwich which practically begs to be paired with a glass of wine.

@spread_adl

@susa_kitchen/

##Honourable mentions##

Any Given Sundays, Cheltenham: Despite sitting between a reviving Port Adelaide and village-like Croydon, Cheltenham has been long under-served when it comes to quality cafes. So it’s easy to see why this corner-store-turned-homey-cafe has been so wholeheartedly embraced by the locals, with White Horse coffee, pastries and bread from Skala Bakery, and some classic Nippy’s flavoured milk. On weekends, the team serves traditional Serbian pastry made by co-owner Alex Perisic’s mother from a secret family recipe.

Suka, Adelaide: This Indonesian-fusion spot opened just last month on King William Road serving Indo-Western remixes like breakfast bakmi, a jumble of house-made egg noodles with sauteed chicken, mushrooms and greens, topped with a fried egg and crisp-fried wonton skin; and rendang Benedict – pulled beef in rendang curry with baby spinach, a poached egg and rendang hollandaise on sourdough toast. The drinks list includes a seriously sweet “pandanmisu” latte which comes topped with mascarpone and a ladyfinger biscuit.

With additional reporting by Kurtis Eichler & Emily Taliangis