Meet the night makers: the people behind a great night at SkyCity
From perfect cocktails to secret menu intel, four insiders share how to level up your next night out.
A great night out rarely happens by accident.
There’s the bartender who knows exactly when to reach for the good ice, the chef obsessing over a pizza dough long after everyone else has gone home, the brewer quietly experimenting with the next beer you’ll order, and the concierge who remembers how you like your coffee – or somehow manages to pull off the impossible dinner booking.
At SkyCity, these are the people working behind the scenes to turn dinner, drinks, entertainment and a night away into something that feels a little more memorable.
We meet four of the personalities helping make it happen.
Keshav Daruka, Eos duty manager
For Keshav, luxury hospitality isn’t really about the flashiest room or the fanciest request. It’s about paying attention. The Eos team can remember a returning guest’s favourite drink, arrange a special restaurant booking or organise a surprise for a birthday or anniversary – but the real trick is making it feel personal rather than pre-packaged.
“Personalised service starts with listening,” Keshav says. “We are fortunate to have the opportunity to really get to know our guests. My aim is always for a guest to feel that their experience has been created specifically for them, rather than simply receiving the same service as everyone else.”
That can mean knowing Adelaide inside out, too. “I think the best concierge recommendation should leave a guest saying, ‘I wouldn’t have found that on my own’,” Keshav says.
So, if you checked into Eos with a completely blank evening ahead, where would he start?
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A drink at SOL overlooking Adelaide Oval and the River Torrens, followed by a glass of champagne and a soak in the bath of one of the hotel’s suites, then dinner – either at one of SkyCity’s restaurants or delivered to the comfort of your suite.
And when he’s off the clock? “I’d start with a nice drink, have a relaxed dinner at Huami, and enjoy the atmosphere of the precinct without rushing anywhere.”
Nicola Pulera, iTL head chef
From the other side of the pass, a busy restaurant can look deceptively effortless. But Nicola knows there are hours of preparation, split-second decisions and serious teamwork behind every plate.
“There can be many dishes moving through different sections at once, but every chef needs to understand exactly where the rest of the team is,” he says. “From the dining room, it may look effortless, but behind every plate are hundreds of small decisions made very quickly.”
For Nicola, who grew up in San Severo in Puglia, the secret to great Italian food is often simplicity. His ultimate comfort dish? His dad’s spaghetti with homemade tomato sauce.
“It is a very simple dish, but it is amazing every time,” he says. “When the ingredients are good and the sauce is cooked with patience and care, a simple plate of spaghetti can be difficult to beat.”
That philosophy meets a decidedly modern approach at iTL, where Nicola is currently obsessed with pizza dough – specifically fermentation, hydration and the unpredictable nature of working with a living dough.
His must-order? The Vittoria pizza, topped with vodka sauce, salami and mozzarella, then finished with buffalo mozzarella, pecorino and chilli honey.
It’s personal, too: Nicola named it after his wife, Victoria.
Dennis de Boer, Pirate Life innovation brewer
There aren’t many places where you can order a beer brewed metres from where you’re drinking it – and The District happens to have one of Australia’s only fully functioning breweries inside a casino.
For Dennis, it’s a brewer’s playground.
“The small 500L batch size of The District’s brewkit affords me the ability to use some unique ingredients and processes without fear of impacting budgets or distribution channels if things go wrong,” he says.
That means Dennis can produce and keg three new beers a month, experimenting with everything from exotic fruits and sugars to unconventional yeast strains.
But experimentation still needs to taste good.
“The biggest thing I’ve taken away from brewing for the last 15 years is just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should!”
For first-timers at The District, his advice is pleasingly straightforward: “Get a burger and ask what beers are new!”
After all, there’s a decent chance something very fresh is waiting on tap.
Lyny Leap, SOL Rooftop assistant bar manager
Then there’s Lyny, who knows a thing or two about ending a night on a high.
For starters, she reckons guests might be missing one of SOL’s biggest selling points.
“They don’t realise our bar has the best view in the house,” she says.
The drinks matter, too. Lyny’s favourites to make are the Old Fashioned and Negroni – classics where seemingly tiny details can make a big difference.
“Even something as simple as the ice used for a particular cocktail can make a difference – not only in the presentation but also in the flavour and overall experience,” she says.
Her ultimate insider move? Come during downtime, when you can properly settle in, soak up the view and get the obligatory cocktail-and-Adelaide-Oval photo.
And if you have absolutely no idea what to order?
“A spritz-style cocktail is usually a great option,” Lyny says. “It’s light, refreshing, easy to enjoy, and gives us a good starting point to adjust the flavours based on what they like.”
Although for a special occasion, the SOL team is more than happy to get creative. Proposal drinks are among the most memorable requests, with guests asking for cocktails to match the vibe of their big moment.
“Because when you’re celebrating a ‘yes,’ the drink should be part of the memory too,” Lyny says.
For Lyny, the perfect SkyCity night is gloriously uncomplicated: pre-drinks, dinner and post-drinks – “and of course, it’s always a cocktail kind of night”.
Which, frankly, sounds like a pretty good way to put the night makers’ advice into practice.
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