The East End of town is a brilliantly compact example of all the things our city does well – food, coffee, fashion, bars, parklands, and residential – all bundled up into a neat, walkable neighbourhood.
January 6, 2017
Habits
Take a hike, kid
Exeter Hotel
The Exeter’s steak sandwich is the Platonic ideal of a pub steak sandwich – crispy toasted bread, tangy caramelised onion, fresh lettuce and tomato, and (of course) a generous amount of thinly-cut steak. All that plus chips for $9.90. Pair it with a schooner of Cooper’s Sparkling Ale to really impress Plato.
This photo: Josh Geelen
Hey Jupiter
Christoph and Jacqui run Hey Jupiter, and are some of the only people in the city who can introduce you to pastis – a traditional French aperitif perfect for long, hot afternoons.
Christoph and Jacqui
This photo: Jonathan van der Knaap
Nano
Hot day? No prob. Sit out under an umbrella at Nano and sip on our favourite non-carton-based iced coffee in town.
Remarks
This edition of Walking City is brought to you by Cuppa Jo, our proposed mascot for the East End. Cuppa’s mug torso reflects the rich coffee culture of the area, his fruit bowl brains its venerable history, his ultra-chic boots its fashion, and his oar the trademark rowboats of Rymill Park.
East End Cellars
Summertime is known in some enlightened cultures as Rosétime, and we can’t help but agree. We’re particular fans of Barossa winemaker Spinifex’s Rosé ($24.90), which is a less watery, fuller-bodied take on the official booze of summer. Snap up a bottle at East End Cellars.
East End Flower Market
A freshly wrapped bundle of wild flowers from the East End Flower Market will help restore calm to your living space.
Remarks
We would be remiss to tour the East End and not mention the Palace Nova cinema. For many years Palace Nova has cheerfully played popcorn blockbusters alongside moody Bulgarian existentialist dramas, and we salute them for it. We trust that this finely balanced programming will continue now that the Rundle St Nova half of the cinema has closed – though we will, in an odd way, miss the feeling of not knowing which side of the street we were supposed to be on.
Rymill Park through the ages
Although the moleman machines currently ripping through Rymill Park have been met with a mixed reception by the public, just 50 years ago Adelaideans were cheering on the excavation of the eastern parklands – because at that point they were literally a garbage dump.
In a horribly short-sighted, bungled feat of town plannery, for some reason someone had decided that Bartels Road – located just metres away from the East End Markets – would make an excellent spot for a stinking tip. Then, at some point in 1960 apparently someone else discovered the germ theory of disease and decided it would probably be best to clear out the dump and erect a rose garden and statue of Alice in Wonderland in its place. It was a good trade.
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