Winston’s Bar

LOCATION
A minute’s walk from Hindmarsh Square.

PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIA
Those of a certain ilk will remember this location when it housed the iconic Jimmy Watson’s restaurant. Once a dignified noshery to Adelaide’s old-school and corporate crowd, these days it holds a more relaxed presence. Now known as Winston’s Bar, its appeal lies in casual, quick (pre-order if you wish) and filling dishes. Street-front windows welcome into an informal bar and dining area, suited to city lunchtime breaks. A serene but fishless aquarium nicely divides this and the rear room. The latter beckons with a more mature decor for those who prefer not to eat on a dance floor in the company of disco balls and music video screens. Fully carpeted, it is also sans jukeboxes and pool tables. (All the aforementioned however are enjoyed by swarms of city worker bees who bevvie and boogie the nights away here). It also leads into a CBD-sized courtyard for outdoor refreshments and rambles on mobiles.

Do not waste too much time talking, twittering or texting – you could be motoring through a Winston’s beef burger instead. You are likely to feel as stuffed as it, after demolishing bunned layers of beef, bacon, salad and cheese smothered in smoky barbecue sauce. You get chips – not fries – with that. A smoked salmon open sandwich is a dignified alternative; the fish served on toasted ciabatta with flavour bursts from capers, Spanish onion, rocket and avocado. Sophisticated salads appeal with the likes of a tuna Nicoise and a five-spice duck breast number, spiked with chilli and ginger dressing. Steak cuts tempt with mustard mashes and mushrooms, however the pan-fried Atlantic salmon is hard to pass on. It wins with a classic serving of roasted kipfler potatoes, green beans and the always fish-friendly dill, lemon and butter sauce.

Roz Taylor