A portrait of Marie Antoinette graces the lobby of the Sofitel Adelaide. She rests on a bed of irises and tulips, a miniature Galleon ship in her golden locks.
Her gaze seems to say: “Soon, mon ami, you too will think let them eat cake.”
She may be right.
Having spent the day drifting between my plush suite, the pool and champagne bar Deja Vu, I’ve reached peak smugness.
There’s Taittinger in the mini bar and house Mumm in the champagne bar. In the pool, I float beneath blue glass chandeliers and bask on day beds, the light pouring in through floor-to-ceiling glass.
The feels continue in Sofitel’s hatted modern French bistro Garcon Bleu, an opulent dining room decked out in rich blue velvet upholstery, marble, gilt mirrors and art. Without a dinner reservation, I make for the buffet breakfast and consume my weight in champagne, croissants and omelette (made to order) to a backdrop of panoramic city views.
Adelaide was long overdue for a new luxury hotel
It’s been 30 years since Adelaide welcomed a luxury five-star hotel, and the hotly anticipated 251-room Sofitel on Currie Street, which opened in the heart of the city late last year, doesn’t disappoint.
Like all Sofitel hotels, it pays homage to a French region. Here it’s Bordeaux. A red ribbon chandelier swirls dramatically across the lobby, echoing red wine in a glass.
Art is where the design-forward Sofitel Adelaide shines. Wandering the hotel, I’m struck by the gallery of contemporary local and international art.
South Australian photographers Emmaline Zanelli and Drew Lenman, painter and ceramicist Michael Carney and glassblower Nick Mount are part of the line-up.
Whimsy abounds in Deja Vu, the moody black interiors a contrast to the quirky pops of art.
Day tours invite guests to explore the local art and design scene.
Rooms are luxuriously appointed. There’s a modern-day mosaic in my shower, elegant floor-length mirrors, burgundy chandeliers and a feature wall of framed art. Like all Sofitel hotels, the bed is dangerously comfy. Best of all, the smart TV connects to my iPhone.
City of Churches Cool
Adelaide is fast cementing its reputation for sophistication. Last year it was named the third most liveable city – behind Auckland and Osaka – in The Economist’s annual Global Liveability Index report.
A visit here today is less about churches and more about what’s world-class, cutting edge and luxe.
Illuminate lights up the city every July, with installations, performances and events splashed across city buildings, streets and laneways.
Fans of Yayoi Kusama can step inside her famed yellow and black polka dot room or suspend time and space in her glass infinity box.
Both are part of The Spirits of the Pumpkins Descended into the Heavens exhibition, on show at the Art Gallery of South Australia until April 2023.
The Archies 100, a retrospective of 100 portraits celebrating 100 years of the prestigious Archibald prize is on until October 3.
New fine dining
Fugazzi opened last year and quickly drew crowds for its classic cocktails, inventive share plates and handmade pasta. Masterchef’s Laura Sharrad and her husband, Max, are behind the Leigh Street hotspot which channels a sexy Manhattan Italian vibe.
Try the Roman Soldier, an umami-packed bite of anchovy and butter, or the Med-vibing casarecce lunghi, brimming with blue swimmer crab, salmon roe and chilli.
Around the corner, Eleven dishes up modern Australian with classic French panache. The 11-seater chef’s table is a window to all the action, with a degustation menu that sings with flavour. The relaxed open-air bar is a pleasant spot on a sunny day.
On the other side of town, Two Pot Screamer fills the void left by Jock Zonfrillo’s eateries Orana and Bistro Blackwood. The two-level bar and restaurant in Adelaide’s bustling East End is the place for retro-meets-modern Australian fare and Indigenous flavours. Head upstairs for ’70s cocktails.
Jake Kellie (ex-head chef of Michelin-starred barbecue restaurant Burnt Ends Singapore) is behind Arkhé, a slick bar and restaurant in Norwood doing upscale barbecue.
A night here is all about fire, from the theatre of the open kitchen to the three-and-a-half tonne wood-burning oven where whole fish, aged meats and vegetables are charred, wood-fired and smoked to perfection.
The accolades are pouring in thick and fast for Restaurant Botanic – for good reason. The fine diner reopened last July with ex-Vue de Monde chef Justin James in the kitchen and an extraordinary degustation – short path or long trail – of native and seasonal flavours grown in the surrounding Botanic Gardens.
This is no ordinary dining. Along with a new open kitchen, chef’s table and 650-bottle wine cellar, expect dishes that are at once playful, innovative, daring and exciting. Think marron tail wrapped in smouldering native leaves, Wagyu rib-eye charred over pine or dry-aged Murray cod served with fermented and fresh truffles.
