If you like your treats spicy as well as sweet, this high tea with a twist has your name on it. Pressed tin ceilings, moss green leather booths and moody lighting set the scene for an intimate experience that resembles a mini degustation. Chef Raj Kumar incorporates plenty of Southeast Asian elements into his menu, which skews more savoury than sweet and includes summery iced tea spiked with Hendrick’s gin to clear the palate after each bite. The master stock braised chicken bao with chilli and mango and crispy fried prawn slathered in Smokey Dragon chilli sauce pack plenty of punch, while the desserts include a spectacular twist on bubble tea featuring Vietnamese tea custard and mango pearls. SkyCity Adelaide, 125 North Terrace, Adelaide; skycityadelaide.com.au.

There’s a touch of gilded age grandeur to the elaborate ceremony that unfolds in this boutique hotel’s marble-filled basement every day of the week. Adelaide’s most classic high tea begins with a glass of Mumm before switching to the intricately patterned Wedgwood tea service and three tiers of savoury and sweet bites that change regularly and trend towards the traditional – think beef and horseradish sandwiches on rye, pork and fennel sausage rolls, lighter than air almond macarons and buttermilk scones with raspberry jam and Chantilly cream. And if you somehow have room after all that, the famous dessert cabinet is filled with enough droolworthy delights to satisfy the most voracious sweet tooth. 45 King William St, Adelaide; mayfairhotel.com.au.

High tea isn’t a side gig at this snug tearoom that’s brought a touch of old-world glamour back to Adelaide Arcade; it’s the main event. Based on the Chilean tradition of tecito, it begins with an antipasti platter centred around a giant ball of burrata and the small tables mean the sweet and savoury courses are delivered separately. Dainty salmon and cucumber sandwiches are interspersed with Chilean shortbread and perfumed rose jelly rolls, but it’s worth paying just as much attention to the drinks. Owner Chaveli Goya hand blends more than a dozen styles of tea and the house brew with a hint of cinnamon is the stuff of dreams when spiked with a dash of condensed milk. Shop 31 Adelaide Arcade, 112/118 Grenfell St, Adelaide; cieloadl.com.

How do you make high tea even more decadent? Add a touch of Parisian luxury, of course. Surrounded by modern artworks and gleaming brass fittings in the 9th-storey restaurant Garçon Bleu, proceedings naturally kick off with a flute of Champagne on arrival. Then it’s onto fluffy scones with confiture and clotted cream served in French cut glass and gooey croquet monsieurs before admiring the work of the inhouse pastry chefs. The roulade de cassis filled with violet-coloured Chantilly cream and delicate tarte au citron crowned with a dome of canary yellow curd look spectacular, and fortunately they taste every bit as good. 108 Currie St, Adelaide; sofiteladelaide.com.au.

A furniture store may seem like an unlikely setting for high tea, but this gem hidden inside Early Settler is worth a visit in its own right. Crispy white linens, gleaming polished cutlery and the gorgeously decorated tea service set the scene for a tiered stand groaning under the weight of delicate finger sandwiches and delectable macarons, cream-filled jelly cakes and pretty dome tarts. Morning sittings cater to those who simply can’t wait until the afternoon and dedicated menus for children and dogs (as well as a range of dietaries) make it easy to bring the whole gang along. 215 Grote St, Adelaide; thequeenofadelaide.com.au.