Eat & Drink
Wine, Dine, Celebrate
The best eat & drink in Fleurieu Peninsula
Everything edible on the Fleurieu - wineries, restaurants, cafés, breweries, distilleries, markets and makers.
Read our guide to eat & drink ↓Browse eat & drink by area
Map shows the 24 places on this page.
Silent Noise Wines
View →Charlie O'Brien's alternative-variety wine project showcased in a shared tasting room on Stump Hill Road, McLaren Flat.
Silver Sands Beach Club
View →An absolute beachfront bistro and bar at Aldinga with produce-driven plates and an oceanfront deck - one of the best sunset dinners on the western coast.
Smidge Wines $$$
View →Wine Spectator favourite on Tatachilla Road
Matt Wenk's boutique Smidge Wines has a Halliday five-red-star rating and has featured in Wine Spectator's Top 100 for ten consecutive years.
Smiling Samoyed Brewery
View →Microbrewery in an old Myponga dairy factory
An award-winning microbrewery housed in a converted dairy factory in Myponga, famous for its beers named after the owners' Samoyed dogs.
Somos Wines
View →A shared cellar door (with Seven Eves) championing climate-appropriate Mediterranean varieties crafted by winemaker Mauricio Ruiz Cantu.
Star of Greece $$$
View →Clifftop dining above Port Willunga beach
Famous casual-fine dining restaurant perched on the cliff above Port Willunga beach, named for the 1888 shipwreck visible below at low tide.
Steam Exchange Brewery
View →A small-batch microbrewery in the historic Goolwa Wharf goods shed, sharing a building with The Fleurieu Distillery and pouring four preservative-free hand-crafted beers.
Swell Brewing Co
View →A surf-inspired brewery in the McLaren Vale vines
An independent craft brewery and taphouse on Olivers Road, McLaren Vale - a surf-inspired brewery with a rotating tap list and regular food truck line-up.
Terminus Hotel
View →Strathalbyn's oldest hotel - a heritage 1840s pub on the corner of Rankine Street with a beer garden running down to the River Angas and a country bistro.
The Currant Shed $$$
View →Restored currant shed, seasonal lunch menu
Lunch-only restaurant in a restored 1880s currant drying shed at McLaren Flat, run by Hamish Maguire and Emily Dowie since 2011.
The Farm Willunga
View →An organic farm cafe and providore set among biodynamic vineyards and olive groves above Willunga, with a paddock-to-plate menu that changes by the day.
The Fleurieu Distillery $$
View →Single malt whisky & Moon River Gin at Goolwa Wharf
Award-winning Australian single malt whisky distillery on Cutting Road at Goolwa Wharf, shared with the Steam Exchange Brewery.
The Flying Fish Cafe $$
View →On the sand at Horseshoe Bay
Beachside cafe and restaurant right on Horseshoe Bay at Port Elliot - an icon of the Encounter Coast serving breakfast, lunch and summer dinners overlooking the beach.
The Greenman Inn
View →An 1865 historic country pub in the pretty Finniss River valley - originally Ashbourne's post office and general store, now a refurbished gastropub with live music.
The Grosvenor Hotel $$
View →Heritage sandstone pub on Ocean Street
An 1897 sandstone pub on Ocean Street, Victor Harbor - bistro meals, beer garden, front bar and a shot of heritage in the centre of town.
The Links at Lady Bay $$$
View →Italian dining at Lady Bay Resort golf course
Contemporary Italian restaurant at Lady Bay Resort with a terrace overlooking the golf course and the Gulf St Vincent coast.
The Little Rickshaw
View →A hatted modern South-East Asian eatery in a tin-shed building in historic Aldinga village, with a tight share-plate menu and natural wines.
The McLaren Vale Distillery
View →A premium single malt whisky producer on a 127-acre hilltop estate, with sweeping views over the McLaren Vale vineyards and a Barley to Bottle distillery experience.
The Salopian Inn $$$
View →Heritage inn with 600 wines and 250 gins
A mid-19th century inn turned modern Australian dining room with an epic wine cellar and 250-strong gin bar.
The Victory Hotel $$
View →Historic hilltop pub with iconic wine cellar
Historic country pub on Sellicks Hill overlooking the Fleurieu, famous for its award-winning wine list and a cellar with over 700 wines.
The Vine Shed (Conte Estate)
View →An Italian-heritage family cellar door on Sand Road with regular live music, a kids play area and a big deck overlooking the vineyards.
The Vineyard Retreat McLaren Vale $$$$
View →Boutique guesthouses on a working vineyard
Six elegantly appointed self-contained guesthouses on a 15-acre working vineyard at Blewitt Springs - plus a shared jacuzzi with vineyard views.
Thicker Than Water Wines $$
View →Home of Giant Squid Ink shiraz
A family-run McMurtrie Road cellar door famous for its Giant Squid Ink shiraz.
Tinlins Wines
View →A Scottish-heritage McLaren Vale wine institution since 1952, famous for the bring-your-own-flagon cellar door pouring bulk Shiraz, Grenache and tawny port.
About eat & drink in Fleurieu Peninsula
The Fleurieu Peninsula is a genuine paddock-to-plate region, and eating your way around it is half the reason to visit. This is one of South Australia's most productive corners - vineyards and olive groves, market gardens and orchards, almond and citrus, cheese makers and small-batch producers all within an easy drive of one another.
It shows up everywhere. Spend a morning at the famous Saturday farmers market in Willunga, graze your way through farm gates and cellar-door kitchens around McLaren Vale, or pick up fresh fish, local cheese, olive oil and just-baked bread to take to the beach. The region's restaurants and cafés lean hard on what's grown nearby, and many of the best meals are had at winery and brewery tables looking out over the vines.
From long vineyard lunches and seaside fish and chips to country bakeries and good coffee in almost every town, there's something for every appetite and budget. If you're planning a trip around food, aim for a weekend so you can catch the markets, and book ahead for the popular winery restaurants - they fill quickly, especially in spring and over the summer holidays.
Eat & Drink in Fleurieu Peninsula - frequently asked questions
What is the Fleurieu Peninsula known for when it comes to wine and food?
The Fleurieu is one of South Australia's great paddock-to-plate regions, anchored by the McLaren Vale wine district where Shiraz is the signature grape - it makes up the bulk of the crush - alongside increasingly celebrated old-vine Grenache and Cabernet Sauvignon. Beyond the cellar doors it is a genuine larder, with olive groves, almonds around Willunga, citrus and market gardens, Jersey-milk cheese and small-batch makers all within an easy drive. Names like d'Arenberg and Coriole sit alongside breweries, distilleries and weekend markets.
How many cellar doors are there on the Fleurieu, and which wine regions should I visit?
There are well over 100 cellar doors across the Fleurieu, spread through four main wine regions: McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek, Currency Creek and the Southern Fleurieu. McLaren Vale is the best-known and most concentrated, famous for bold reds, while Langhorne Creek and Currency Creek are quieter and reward those willing to explore a little further. You can easily build a day around a handful of cellar doors in any one of them.
Do I need to book to visit cellar doors, and are they family or dog friendly?
Walk-in tastings are common, but booking ahead is strongly recommended for seated tastings, long lunches and any group, and it is essential at popular spots, especially on weekends. Many McLaren Vale venues are very family and dog friendly, with lawns, playgrounds and kids' menus at some, and dogs welcome on a lead at numerous cellar doors - it is always worth confirming each venue's policy before you go. Most open daytime hours, roughly 10am to 5pm, with some restaurant and bar spaces running later.
Where can I find Fleurieu produce, cheese and craft beer or spirits beyond the wineries?
The Saturday-morning Willunga Farmers Market is the classic place to meet local growers and makers, with cheese, olives, bread and seasonal fruit and veg. The peninsula also has a growing craft beer and spirits scene, with breweries and distilleries offering taprooms and tastings, several of them family friendly with outdoor space and food. Opening days vary, so check each venue before you go.
When is the best time to visit the Fleurieu for food and wine?
Cellar doors are open year-round, but autumn around vintage (roughly March to May) is a beautiful time to visit, with the vines turning colour and harvest in full swing. McLaren Vale's long-running Sea and Vines Festival was retired after 2019, but the region's wineries and restaurants now run their own food, wine and music events through the year, with plenty happening across the June long weekend in particular. Summer and spring are also popular for sunny days spent grazing across multiple cellar doors.