The starting point is a bowl of lemon aspen jelly with finely diced kohlrabi and halves of twice-shelled green peas looking like lily pads on the surface of a pond. The finish is a toffee-topped, semi-frozen cream and matching syrup, flavoured with the spiky fallen branches of a bunya pine tree. As stunning as both are, the remarkable part about lunch at the reimagined Restaurant Botanic is that every one of the nine courses between are their equal. For those who care about what they eat, Restaurant Botanic is a Magical Mystery Tour from start to finish. Plane Tree Dr, Adelaide; restaurantbotanic.com.au.

Dining at this level is all about memorable moments and the cooking here from long-time chef and now owner Scott Huggins certainly offers plenty, with fingers used almost as often as forks. A sandwich of barbecued porcini and a frizz of fried leek between discs of brioche seems equal parts bread and (truffle) butter, while a next-level seafood medley of lobster meat, abalone and burnt tomato is served with roti to swipe through the ambrosial juices. A perfectly pink lamb cutlet is wrapped Wellington-style with prosciutto, mushroom duxelles and puff pastry that would ideally have cooked through a few minutes longer.To finish, a block of rice pudding adorned with poached pear, honeycomb, raisin puree and flakes of milk skin is comfort food of a rare calibre. 78 Penfold Rd, Adelaide; magillestaterestaurant.com.au.

The provision of bread to sop up sauce or gravy is a reliable indicator of a restaurant that cares about its customers. At Maxwell, however, they take this to a whole new level. A pair of waffles, brushed with beef fat, arrive on a folded napkin, ready to swipe through the glossy puddle of sauce at the base of a block of grilled wagyu. This final savoury course is Exhibit A of the sensible sophistication and egalitarian appeal that has taken Maxwell to a place among the very best of the state’s vast array of winery restaurants. Chef Fabian Lehmann has created a single tasting menu of 10 courses, starting with a sequence of bite-sized snacks. Then move on to a chicken tart with a case formed from a layer of crisp skin and pork belly brined and cooked in fat for three days to make a small, fat-streaked slab that hovers somewhere between bacon and the stuff of your wildest dreams. Finish with a dessert that has multiple links with the winery – caramelised oak chip ice cream, malt crumble, mead sabayon and mead jellies. 19 Olivers Rd, McLaren Vale; maxwellwines.com.au.

Fishbank, established in the grand bank building on one of the city’s most prominent corners, lives up to its name by putting local seafood treats in the spotlight. A plate of Albany and Sydney rock oysters is shucked on demand by the chef, while the raw section offers up ora king salmon, bluefin tuna and kingfish sashimi. Grilled King George Whiting is dressed with peperonata, green olive and basil salsa. Whole fish, such as baby snapper, are handled with expertise; if your budget has no limit, order lobster (grilled or wok-fried). All this is enhanced by a wine list of such commendable breadth and engaging personality that we have named it the best in SA. 2 King William St, Adelaide; fishbankadl.com.au.

If it’s a big celebration, or you just feel the need to splurge, Hardy’s Verandah Restaurant in Mount Lofty House has the grand setting and luxe experience to fit the occasion. On the table chef Jin Choi delivers with poise and elegance. There’s sublime savouriness in raw wagyu beef wrapped around a core of enoki mushrooms with a ponzu sauce, and pleasing spikes of Sichuan pepper in rich plum sauce to accompany lean duck breast smoked with oolong tea. Choi achieves similar great balance throughout a la carte four-course meals and eight-course degustations, with his signature wagyu brisket another highlight. Mount Lofty House, 1 Mawson Dr, Crafers; mountloftyhouse.com.au.

When the world seems weary, cynical, distracted, you can walk into arkhé and the planets start to realign. The welcome is warm and genuine, the mood upbeat, the sense of a large team working with common purpose strangely reassuring. From a seat at the counter (highly recommended), it is a pleasure to watch it all unfold: the fire powering furnace-like ovens, grills and even a cauldron deep-fryer; the preparation of unlikely ingredients such as a magnificent turbot (fish); the synchronicity and sense of calm in a kitchen under the leadership of Jake Kellie, who learnt his craft at Singapore’s revered Burnt Ends. For those entranced by the theatre of the kitchen, by food in all its sensual wonder, by hospitality at its finest, this is one of Adelaide’s finest packages. 127 The Parade, Norwood; arkhe.com.au.

A visit to Seppeltsfield is a complete outing. The buildings across the Barossa property are steeped in history, while the galleries of the Jam Factory have an array of art admire. Along with the theatre of an open kitchen, it means there is plenty to talk about over lunch at Fino in the winery’s cellar door and courtyard. Taking the helm in the kitchenis former Fino sous chef Daniel Murphy, returned after polishing his talents at notable establishments including eleven, St Hugo and Appellation. The result feels seamless with superb, local ingredients singing for themselves. Both the a la carte and sharing menus build steadily in size, so if you are yearning for more of the likes of a deliciously meaty lamb croquette garnished with beetroot and labne, hold on. Kingfish crudo, with persimmon and Geraldton wax, is a more delicate and generous starter. From the larger serves, four sweet fillets of Coorong mullet feature in a lively plating with leek, oyster mushrooms and romesco, while wagyu brisket is accompanied by sugarloaf cabbage and black vinegar. Crema catalana for dessert is always excellent, or opt for something seasonal such as quince frangipane tart. 730 Seppeltsfield Rd, Seppeltsfield; seppeltsfield.com.au.

Why is there no apostrophe? If ever a business warranted the use of a punctuation mark to signify possession, it would have to be Georges on Waymouth. Georges is George’s by any measure. It’s not just that he is and always has been a near-constant presence in his CBD restaurant but also that the hospitable, personable spirit of the place is an almost perfect reflection of the man himself. Georges has evolved gradually, carefully over the past 20 years. The cooking has expanded from a focus on Italy to a wider view of the Mediterranean, as interpreted by the succession of different chefs. That role now belongs to Cameron Coutts (Jolley’s Boathouse, Chianti) who seems to share Georges’/ George’s ethos that approachable food should still be made with quality ingredients and no shortcuts. The dollop of whipped ricotta that comes with figs and hazelnuts, for example, is made the old-fashioned way, resulting in a bonus by-product of milky whey that just happens to sing the sweetest of harmonies when streaked with tarragon oil and pooled beneath blushing slices of raw kingfish. Brined pork cutlet benefits from the smoke and scorching of a charcoal grill (a key addition to the kitchen), as well as the sweet/ sour tang of preserved muntries. 20 Waymouth St, Adelaide; georgesonwaymouth.com.au.

This bold venture from local food entrepreneur Callum Hann and his business partner Themis Chryssidis has plenty going for it. The cooking is often memorable; the drinks list superb. Chef Water Lo supervises the contemporary French cooking, realised mostly as hero ingredients arranged on a plate and sauced at the table. The magic here is the extraordinary, seductive flavours to be found in liquids with the consistency of your morning tea or coffee. Saffron risotto stars zucchini flower, buffalo curd and fermented chilli oil, while roast chicken breast is elevated by confit leek, pickled cauliflower and davidson plum jam. Mascarpone mousse with strawberry sorbet and bay oil supplies sweet relief. 11 Waymouth St, Adelaide; elevenedl.com.au.