Africola

Great atmosphere, food was out of this world and the service was above and beyond anything we have experienced before. The attention to detail and such warm and welcoming team were for us, the icing on the cake! Such a vibe Can’t wait to come back! "

This is hands down joining my top restaurants list. Every dish that came out was delicious and a nice surprise. That chicken skin sandwich with peri peri drippings, I could eat that every day. The steak was perfectly cooked (and that sauce omg) and I still dream of the flavours of the pipis dish…. I typically think cocktails can be overpriced at places but each drop was worth it here, perfectly crafted and the flavour combo was magical. And then to top it off and what honestly made our night, the waitress Emma was so kind, fun, attentive and genuinely engaged. I love the vibe of this place. It’s unpretentious and you can tell they love making delicious food. Thanks for a great time and next time I’m visiting Adelaide I’ll drop in again!

We were blown away by our Africola experience. Would recommend the bar seating for dinner where you can watch the bustling kitchen as the chefs prepare your dishes. Each dish was a revelation and the flavours were excellent. The set menu is great value and gave us the opportunity to try (and adore) things we wouldn’t usually reach for. The overall atmosphere of Africola is wonderful: friendly staff who know the food and drinks menus back to front, vibrant artwork, a team of talented and efficient chefs, great music, excellent (strong) cocktails. The staff are super attentive and the finer details were appreciated by us.

Abundance but lacking a wow factor.

There was only the option of a 'feed me' menu, and we were asked if we had any preferences. The pipis were the only dish that screamed out to us from the menu, so we left the rest to the chefs.

There was a good variety of dishes, but too many for 2 people. Most of the dishes tasted mediocre. The pipis we were most looking forward to ended up being super salty. The sole highlight of the evening was the flan for dessert, which was wonderfully thick and creamy.

This restaurant suits larger groups looking for a fun atmosphere and encourages sharing, but those expecting exceptional food may leave with unmet expectations.

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN,

I wish to complain about my experience at your venue, “Africola. ”

My colleague announced he had booked two places at a surprise venue, which surprised me – given I didn’t realise that bookings were required to drink an approximation of a soda that was somehow tidally locked to an entire continent.

Upon arrival at said venue, we were seated outdoors and presented with a menu. It appears that the staff are trained to spot alcoholics at 100 metres within 30 seconds and a bottle of something delicious was studiously presented in short order. There was no Cola however. This is false advertising and I have advised the ACCC. I have also notified AA.

The first egregious error was allowing our waitress “Annie” and the “chef” to make the selections for us. Moments later a “chicken skin sandwich” appeared and something that sounds like it really shouldn’t be a thing became a thing. We witnessed the birth of the future. An entrée of half a broccoli (roasted, garnished with toasted nuts and served on a bed of unicorn tears) was flung on the table, causing my colleague and I to burst into tears at the sheer sight – let alone the taste – of it. A side serving of razor-thin-betroot drowned in leprechaun juice caused us to sob all the more as it glistened across our unsuspecting tastebuds.

We simply weren’t prepared. We just weren’t warned. How could we have been? As we collected ourselves from the emotional turmoil, a fresh bowl of pipis was presented and although the lab tests are yet to be returned, we suspect this dish was laced with a combination of MSG and fentanyl – the addiction was instant and violent as two grown men began fighting over who got to soak up the last of the sauce with the focaccia and/or inject the sauce directly into a left descending ventromedial artery.

All of this is irrelevant however. The competitive nature spilled over once a dish of charcoal chicken (smothered in what I can only guess was cabbage - prepared, marinated in Taylor Swift’s sock sweat and blessed by the Dalai Lama himself) was wheeled out. Every charcoal chicken joint in the country should hang their heads in shame – Gordon Ramsay must be contracted to come and scream at each of these proprietors individually, dragged by the scruff of their necks to this alleged “Cola” place and shown in no uncertain terms how it’s done. I digress.

As it turns out, what we ordered was utter rubbish compared to the two lovely ladies sat next to us and their spread. They’d clearly finished their meals and “Katie” was about to clear the table when I spied 4 strips of unfinished peppercorn beef. I almost had to wrestle that peppercorn beef out of Katie’s hands to prevent the impending wastage – and this would possibly be one of the finest life choices I have ever made. Melt in the mouth texture, delicate aroma. Deadset - Vladimir Putin himself would register an emotion upon ingesting it, which would be his first ever.

To add insult to injury, Katie plied us with a frosted delicacy for desert that words simply can’t describe. Heston Blumenthal would take one bite of that and be scratching his head for a decade.

I seek compensation for the following:

• I blew out an entire row of tastebuds with the pipi dish. Hundreds of them have gone on strike. They’re never coming back in the knowledge that Adelaide is a long way from where my tastebuds reside geographically.
• I sprained my wrist reaching for my 7kg of gold bullion I was expecting to cough up for the meal, whereas a simple debit card was sufficient.
• The service was so subtle, seamless and efficient that when I was attacked by ninjas later that evening I was completely unprepared to defend myself.

Were it possible to bottle this “Africola” and take it back to the eastern seabord, I would start a business.

It was almost criminal.

Food is decent, it tastes nice and there is a good mix of flavours. But it's far too pricey for what it is, $50-60/pp is a more reasonable price range - $85 is too high.

We dined as a table of 8 on Friday the 28/07 and the staff could not have been more helpful! We dined on the feed me menu, and although I had some dietary allergies, the lady who took care of our table (didn’t catch her name), and the kitchen went above and beyond to make sure myself and the rest of the table were well fed. They even made special individual dishes to cater to my allergies which was fantastic!

The overall atmosphere was good and the staff were friendly, however the food was mediocre and not what I expected. I was keen to try African cuisine but left feeling as though that wasn’t it. They served very basic dishes that tasted ok, but are way too expensive for what it was.

Restaurents "apparently closes at 11pm" but no mention on their website that reservations need to be made by 9pm? And the kitchen closes at 9: 30? And worse off to make a reservation they dont even answer the phone.visiting from interstate and they implied that we should know that restaurenta close at 9? Very ambiguous messaging poor customer service.

Overrated. Some interesting dishes but unfortunately poorly executed in terms of flavour and spices. Some where too bland, others oversalted, burned, unbalanced.
Service was very good, though.

Food always great, vibe is good and service is awesome! No wonder it's still one of Adelaide's best restaurants and has been for so long. Love it and a must every time visit SA

Probably our favourite restaurant in Aus, visited twice now. Everything about this place is superb. First time we visited we sat around the kitchen bar which was great watching the chefs work. So much food on the feed me experience and all brought out staggered. Peri peri chicken here is unbeatable in-fact it was that good I bought the book. Top top place, well done Africola!

Average but definitely overpriced food, and nearly no fish (the person with me who asks for fish only got one average breaded fish), and then, we very tiny desserts (and very average quality).
Finally, their fermented flatbread is either (completely) burnt or very salted.

For only two people, you will pay over $200 for their single default menu and two small drinks.
And you will even have the surprise to pay for their tap sparkling water. Overall, I don’t think I wouldn’t recommended it.

Cosy atmosphere with amazing service from lovely staff. The food is very different from what we have tried before. New cuisine experience, the prawn with cabbage is at another level!

It was our anniversary and we did mention that on the booking page, but they still arranged the worst table for us. Dark, narrow, next to the toilet, more like an extra table. Thanks very much.

The best food experience ever! $85 feed me menu will keep you full for days! It was the perfect winter night feast.

Started with (as seen on tv) the famous crispy chicken sandwich with peri drippings and I could eat it endlessly. But the highlight of the night was definitely the eggplant with nduja and manchego, stunning! Carp cotoletta and the braised greens were amazing! The falafel was a bit dry but with the sauce it was good.

Insanely delicious peri peri chicken and the bread dipped in all that spicy gravy was pure bliss. Surprisingly enjoyed the pork but was a bit too fatty.

The yoghurt ice cream for dessert was phenomenal! So light and refreshing, definitely the best ice cream I've had. The poached pumpkin with cashew and pepita praline was tasty, not too sweet. The chocolate mousse was a bit heavy but that's just because I'm not a chocolate person.

The cocktail was really good but is not included in the $85 menu.

Stunning, eclectic interiors, fun tunes and friendly staff. Overall an unforgettable experience. Well done team! Hats off to the chef!

What's an amazing experience. We were seated at the bench in front of the kitchen and got to soak in the atmosphere, ambience of the kitchen. The staff are fantastic they are attentive and ask questions or if you require anything. I really love the South African taste and smell from some of the options on the menu. Well done Duncan and team

Quite possibly my favourite dining experience I had while in Adelaide, Africola exceeded all expectations. The feed me menu was more than enough for two people and allowed us to try half the menu! It’s not often you find a restaurant where you can tell the staff love what they do, the vibe, the artwork, the playlists… all 10/10. Must try the Crispy Chicken Tea Sandwich and Cauliflower and Peri Peri Chicken. Please come to Melbourne

What a night to remember dining in this place. Love the ambience, super friendly attentive staffs.
These modern African dishes came with unique complex flavors and some which we never tasted before. They were super delicious. We ordered chicken sandwich, mussels, kohlrabi, coorong mullet, hummus crudités, cabbage, cauliflower, mushroom, perri chicken and pork scotch. Our least favorite is pork dish, (flavour wise was weird to us and meat was abit chewy) but everything else was amazing. We also love their yoghurt ice cream and mandarin sorbet for dessert.

A must dine in place if you visit Adelaide and book in advance as it gets really busy.

The best food experience ever! $85 feed me menu will keep you full for days! It was the perfect winter night feast.

Started with (as seen on tv) the famous crispy chicken sandwich with peri drippings and I could eat it endlessly. But the highlight of the night was definitely the eggplant with nduja and manchego, stunning! Carp cotoletta and the braised greens were amazing! The falafel was a bit dry but with the sauce it was good.

Insanely delicious peri peri chicken and the bread dipped in all that spicy gravy was pure bliss. Surprisingly enjoyed the pork but was a bit too fatty.

The yoghurt ice cream for dessert was phenomenal! So light and refreshing, definitely the best ice cream I've had. The poached pumpkin with cashew and pepita praline was tasty, not too sweet. The chocolate mousse was a bit heavy but that's just because I'm not a chocolate person.

The cocktail was really good but is not included in the $85 menu.

Stunning, eclectic interiors, fun tunes and friendly staff. Overall an unforgettable experience. Well done team! Hats off to the chef!