Adelaide’s Orana named Australia’s best restaurant

Orana was named the 2018 Restaurant of the Year at Gourmet Traveller’s annual Restaurant Guide Awards in Chin Chin’s new Sydney establishment last night, with four other Adelaide eateries making the top 100.

“At Orana, Zonfrillo’s intimate Adelaide restaurant, a philosophy took form in dishes where lesser-seen native ingredients and more familiar fare found a happy (and very tasty) meeting place,” Gourmet Traveller noted on the restaurant where indigenous Australian ingredients shine in a fine-dining establishment.

In a statement posted to Zonfrillo’s Facebook page, the chef paid tribute to the Orana team and reflected on the award.

“For the last 16 years I’ve been on a journey & to tell you the truth it’s one I never knew I’d have to make,” wrote Zonfrillo. “I’m saying that it’s called a journey because you cannot know what you will discover, what you will do with what you find, or what you find, will do with you. One of the things I have found is the most amazing team who don’t just work at a restaurant, they are part of something so much bigger making it OUR journey & I can’t thank them enough. I love each and every one of you, thank you so much for all the hard work, dedication & sheer tenacity involved in bringing this award home for #southaustralia”.

Ben Shewry’s Attica came in second, last year’s winner Momofuku Seiobo was third while Victoria’s Brae and Cutler & co rounded out the top five.

Other South Australian restaurants to make the top 100 of the annual restaurant awards were Magill Estate (13), Hentley Farm (50), Botanic Gardens Restaurant (54) and Africola (56).

Gourmet Traveller’s 2018 Restaurant Guide is out today with the September issue of the magazine. Huffington Post featured the top 100 on its website, which is below.

1. Orana, SA
2. Attica, Vic
3. Momofuku Seiobo, NSW
4. Brae, Vic
5. Cutler & Co, Vic
6. Vue de Monde, Vic
7. Quay, NSW
8. The Bridge Room, NSW
9. Bennelong, NSW
10. Bentley, NSW
11. Rockpool Bar & Grill, NSW
12. Sixpenny, NSW
13. Magill Estate, SA
14. Restaurant Hubert, NSW
15. Igni, Vic
16. Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, Vic
17. Automata, NSW
18. Firedoor, NSW
19. Ester, NSW
20. Minamishima, Vic
21. Aria, NSW
22. Rockpool Bar & Grill, Vic
23. Ormeggio, NSW
24. Fred’s, NSW
25. Tetsuya’s, NSW
26. Icebergs Dining Room & Bar, NSW
27. Urbane, Qld
28. Estelle by Scott Pickett, Vic
29. Flower Drum, Vic
30. Cirrus, NSW
31. Esquire, Qld
32. Sean’s, NSW
33. Café Di Stasio, Vic
34. Provenance, Vic
35. Fleet, NSW
36. Grossi Florentino, Vic
37. Aria, Qld
38. Est, NSW
39. Lake House, Vic
40. Oscillate Wildly, NSW
41. Mr Wong, NSW
42. Spice Temple, NSW
43. Wasabi, Qld
44. Spice Temple, Vic
45. Nu Nu, Qld
46. Monopole, NSW
47. Pilu at Freshwater, NSW
48. Ten Minutes by Tractor, Vic
49. LuMi, NSW
50. Hentley Farm, SA
51. Cumulus Inc, Vic
52. Lûmé, Vic
53. Woodland House, Vic
54. Botanic Gardens Restaurant, SA
55. Biota Dining, NSW
56. Africola, SA
57. Saint Peter, NSW
58. Kisumé, Vic
59. Embla, Vic
60. Billy Kwong, NSW
61. Paper Daisy, NSW
62. Atlas Dining, Vic
63. Wildflower, WA
64. No 1 Bent Street, NSW
65. Captain Moonlite, Vic
66. Porteño, NSW
67. Fen, Vic
68. Anchovy, Vic
69. Rockpool Bar & Grill, WA
70. Queen Chow, NSW
71. Oakridge, Vic
72. The Press Club, Vic
73. Tulum, Vic
74. Lee Ho Fook, Vic
75. Gerard’s Bistro, Qld
76. Marion, Vic
77. Tipo 00, Vic
78. The Apollo, NSW
79. Buon Ricordo, NSW
80. Acme, NSW
81. Yellow, NSW
82. 10 William St, NSW
83. Aubergine, ACT
84. Bar Lourinhã, Vic
85. Ides, Vic
86. Mercado, NSW
87. Supernormal, Vic
88. Stanbuli, NSW
89. Bodega 1904, NSW
90. The Town Mouse, Vic
91. Du Fermier, Vic
92. Otto, NSW
93. Monster, ACT
94. Kenzan, Vic
95. Three Blue Ducks, NSW
96. Fratelli Paradiso, NSW
97. Landscape, Tas
98. The Dolphin Hotel, NSW
99. The Agrarian Kitchen Eatery, Tas
100. Lulu La Delizia, WA