Almost a year since they opened their Hindley Street disco-diner 99 Gang Social, Nina Hadinata and Morgen Wynn-Hadinata have expanded with a breezy new upstairs cocktail bar, Thirsty Tiger.
“The space upstairs has been vacant the entire time, and the more the world came back to normal, we were getting busier,” Wynn-Hadinata tells Broadsheet. “We kept saying to each other, ‘We need a bigger boat.’ Our landlord owns the upstairs location and we gave her a call, had a look and saw this beautiful big window which had all this natural light, and we just went, ‘Yep, that’s it.’”
The additional space doubles the venue’s capacity, but it’s much more than a holding cell for overflow. It has an entirely separate identity, with a separate entrance (look out for the blue door on Hindley Street), a new menu, new drinks, and a distinct vibe. (It’ll also be available to book for functions.)
Wynn-Hadinata designed the space herself – her first fit-out – bringing a lighter, brighter, summery air to the theme established downstairs (a mix of American-diner and Caribbean influences) with a blue-and-white colour scheme, wooden panelling, a speckled tiled floor, hanging plants and a disco ball.
“I’ve always had my foot in the door with the way our venues have looked, but we’ve always had an outside agency helping us,” she says. “I’m super proud of this one. I took a little bit of inspiration from downstairs, keeping that tropical vibe.”
The red and white tiger-print bar – painted by mural artist Alex Bellas – matches the colour scheme downstairs and ties the two spaces together.
“It’s got the same bones as 99 [Gang Social] but it’s a little more mature, I’d say,” says Hadinata.
“It takes you away from that Hindley Street feel,” adds Wynn-Hadinata. “Downstairs you have that hustle and bustle, but you go up there and you feel like you’re in a completely different place.”
“It’s got that indoor-outdoor feel,” continues Hadinata. “I think it’s different enough that it will attract different crowds.”
The menu stays true to the pan-Asian and California-inspired through-line found downstairs (and at the duo’s Parkside eatery), but with a bigger emphasis on shared dishes – a seed planted during 99 Gang Social’s regular wine club dinners. There’s a grilled chicken salad served ceviche-style with charred corn, cucumber, lime juice, coriander and house-made tostadas; cream cheese and chive wontons; panko-fried barramundi tacos; and buttermilk-fried chicken tenders dipped in hot honey and served with kimchi and fries.
Larger items include a Wagyu steak with miso butter, and ramen noodles with buttery garlic confit, egg yolk and parmesan. A tight edit of the burger selection downstairs is available here – in slider form (which is excellent justification to order two).
In the new year, the kitchen will introduce breakfast and lunch, to make the most of the sunny setting. “The more time we spent doing this build and being on Hindley Street, we’ve noticed the brunch and lunch offerings on the weekends are few and far [between],” says Wynn-Hadinata. “Having that awesome window we can open up … we think it’s the perfect spot.”
For now, though, it’s dinner from Thursday to Sunday, 5.30pm till late, backed by a killer drinks list curated by general manager Elisha Guglielmucci. As at 99 Gang Social, cocktails are king here – from tropical numbers like Mango Daiquiris, Banana Coladas and Passionfruit Caipirinhas, to a classic Negroni Spagliato, to signatures including a Bloody Mary with wasabi-infused vodka; a pho-inspired creation with lime, chilli and coriander; and a matcha cocktail with makrut lime gin, coconut syrup, white chocolate liqueur and vanilla.
To aid the party vibe, there’s a selection of shooters, and a slushie machine with rotating cocktails (plus the house and funk coming from the DJ booth). There are also a few sakes and Japanese beers (combine the two for a “sake bomb”), plus lo-fi wines from “everywhere”, in contrast to the South Australian focus downstairs.
Thirsty Tiger
99A Hindley Street, Adelaide
Hours:
Thu to Sun 5.30pm–late