Keen on heading into the city for a meal but dread the Fringe season crowds? Queue Adelaide’s West End. Commonly known for its Hindley Street clubbing strip and small bar culture, the West End is also home to a slew of restaurants, some reeling in awards each year. But most importantly, they’re well away from the bustling East End’s Fringe festival chaos.
The West End is vast and when hanger sets in things can get dangerous – especially for the plant-eaters out there. Fear not, there are a number of vegan-friendly restaurants in Adelaide’s West End that welcome the community with open arms. From disco diners and fine dining eateries to casual joints and laneway gems – here are nine that are doing the most for vegans in the West End, Adelaide.
1. 99 Gang Social
Complete with big ol’ disco balls and checkerboard tiling, 99 Gang Social is Hindley Street’s disco diner with a menu to boot. Sink your teeth into: Korean bulgogi tofu tacos with caramelised kimchi, che*se and coriander mayo, deep-fried pickles and onions with comeback sauce, and a che*sy burger stuffed with a house-made patty, butter pickles, burger sauce and all the other good stuff. 99 Gang Social’s creative cocktail list will positively tingle your taste buds too.
Where: 99 Hindley St, Adelaide
2. Aurora Restaurant
Having won a multitude of awards since their 2021 inception, Aurora Restaurant is the place to be in Adelaide’s West End if you’re looking to splash out. Aurora pride themselves on embracing local produce and curating memorable dining experiences for all to relish, vegans too.
The slick dining room boasts an open kitchen where you can watch the artful chefs construct your choices from either the à la carte or five-course tasting menu. How about the: mushroom with whiskey, leek, potato and lemongrass, or the zucchini with hazelnut and basil? Yes please.
Where: 63 Light Square, Adelaide
3. Sunny’s Pizza
Sunny’s Pizza take it down a notch in terms of formality, and turn the tunes up a notch at their groovy ‘clubstraunt’. Popular with the youngins, Sunny’s serve up Italian fare within a retro-esque dining room – the disco balls are a’spinning and the wood-panelled walls are a’clad.
As seen in our guide to the best vegan pizza in Adelaide, the eggplant parmigiana pie has the vegans of Adelaide coming from left, right, and centre to Sunny’s. It’s topped with tender chuncks of eggy-p, garlic confit, basil, punchy San Marzano tomato sauce, and plant-based mozzar*lla that will have you questioning the laws of vegan che*se physics. Gobble it up alongside a cocktail and something from the ‘Not Pizza’ menu.
Where: 17 Solomon St, Adelaide
4. Fugazzi Bar & Dining Room
A more so recent addition to Adelaide’s West End is Fugazzi Bar & Dining Room – a New York-inspired Italo-American eatery and drinkery with a chic flare. Located on the schmick Leigh Street precinct, Fugazzi is a sight for sore eyes where attention to detail is not overlooked – both fit-out and menu wise.
While vegan options aren’t necessarily at the forefront of Fugazzi’s menu, a number of delightful dishes can be whipped up upon request. During our last visit we were presented with: house-made caserecce lunghi (lightly twisted, scroll-shaped pasta) done aglio e olio-style with plenty of garlic, chilli and chives; alongside scorched cabbage with macadamia cream, green onion juice and buckwheat, which was phenomenal.
Where: 27 Leigh St, Adelaide
5. Sushi Planet
If there’s one place in Adelaide’s West End that knows their sushi, it’s Sushi Planet. Although aptly named, you’ll find more than just sushi at the modern Japanese restaurant. Dine al fresco or within the industrial-esque eatery and get into: agedashi tofu, asparagus nigiri, miso-marinated tofu skewers done on the char-grill, and vegetable tempura udon – to name a few of Sushi Planet’s beaut dishes.
Where: Unit 1/60 West Terrace, Adelaide
6. Gondola Gondola
Perched at the helm of Adelaide’s famed small bar laneway of Peel Street, Gondola Gondola incites pedestrians with their neon signage and herbal scents of South-East Asia. Making use of family recipes and a menu designed to share, Gondola Gondola plate up fare with the likes of: salt and pepper eggplant, and banh xeo a.k.a. Vietnamese mung bean pancake with tofu mince, beansprouts, fresh herbs and lettuce cups – amongst Gondola Gondola’s vegan-friendly options. And in classic Peel St style, zippy cocktails, sake, and a variety of Asian beers aren’t out of the question.
Where: 1 Peel St, Adelaide
7. Stem
Housed inside a leafy, sun-drenched room, Stem brings a touch of class to Hindley Street – who knew. Located just a hop, skip, and a jump across Morphett Street, Stem serve up a refined selection of plant-based courses. Amongst the ‘from scratch’ menu you’ll find: salt and vinegar crispy kale, charred broccoli with pepita cream and salsa verde, as well as wood-fired sugarloaf cabbage with mushroom. Pair the seasonal offerings with South Australian wines, and Stem’s pandan sticky rice dessert with compressed apricot and coconut to finish.
Where: 188 Hindley St, Adelaide
8. Madame Hanoi
French-Vietnamese fusion and a sophisticated aesthetic is all the go at North Terrace’s Madame Hanoi. Welcoming you into the multi-level restaurant is a massive mural by artist, Emma Hack, which we can only assume is Madame Hanoi herself, overlooking your every bite. Some of these bites look a little like: coconut curry of cauliflower, tofu, potatoes and crispy chickpeas, and green mango salad with papaya, peanuts, coriander, carrot, chilli and lime.
Where: 125 North Terrace, Adelaide
9. Peel St Restaurant
An adequate nook if you’re into people-watching is Peel St Restaurant, fittingly on the West End’s main pedestrian thoroughfare, Peel Street. Exposed brick walls and a sizeable chalkboard menu encase the industrial, yet cosy eatery.
The board enlists a diverse selection of seasonal produce, drawing on Middle Eastern and South Asian flavours with the likes of: crispy fried eggplant with Szechuan chilli oil, smashed cucumber, black vinegar, tofu mayo, enoki mushroom and fried peanuts; falafels with pickles peppers and tahini yoghurt; and house-made sorbet.
Where: 9 Peel St, Adelaide
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