Restaurant review: Botanic Lodge
Step inside the city’s biggest garden to find a new restaurant that brings nostalgia to the plate as a celebrated chef makes his mark.
Chef Tom Tilbury remembers tasting his first ever Golden Gaytime. Aged eight(ish), he slid open the door of the ice cream chest freezer at the Adelaide Botanic Garden kiosk and reached for the iconic toffee and vanilla flavoured, cookie-crumbed treat.
Fast forward 30 years and Tom has reimagined that very ice cream into a plated dessert at Botanic Lodge — Adelaide Botanic Garden’s new restaurant, right where the old kiosk once stood.
Here, the Golden Gaytime takes form as a parfait, topped with chocolate and caramel sauces and a sable (French shortbread) crumb. And it epitomises the kind of Australian nostalgia Botanic Lodge aims to evoke.
Botanic Lodge is tucked behind the fancier, more expensive Restaurant Botanic, facing Kainka Wirra or Main Lake. And it’s a destination in its own right.
Outside, the restaurant is buzzing with Garden-goers, some of them ordering small bites from the “larder” menu, which can be enjoyed at one of the outdoor tables. Pairs of friends; families with kids; baby snoozing in pram — they’re all here. Inside is a different game; it’s diners who’ve booked in for lunch, some of whom spill onto the deck to take in the tranquil water views. Those vistas can be enjoyed from inside, too, thanks to large floor-to-ceiling windows.
Earthy tones and textures further emphasise the sense of bringing the outside in. South Australian floral artist Sky Allen, a long-time collaborator with the neighbouring Restaurant Botanic, has created a piece in here, too, featuring dried leaves of the giant Australian Gymea Lily (featured throughout the garden); South East Asian rattan and cane; and fibres from pineapple, banana, nettle and hemp plants. At the head of the dining room is an impressive open plan kitchen, where Tom and his team are busy bringing to life a menu that celebrates local and native ingredients, much of which are picked from the surrounding gardens.
You might like
Ribbons of zucchini — in season when writing this — are grilled and tossed with smokey red grapes, walnuts and tarragon; a light pickle brine bringing it all to zippy life. So simple, so delicious.
Tommy ruff sandwiches, like the ice cream, also pay homage to Tom’s childhood.
“I grew up fishing along the coast, and whenever we caught tommy ruff, we would fry it and serve it in white bread with butter, lettuce and mayo,” Tom says.
He doesn’t mess with a winning formula, here — as far as fish sangas go, this is as good as they get.
More complex is a steaming bowl of plump mussels, cooked in a vibrant green curry base spiked with native saltbush and wattleseed. It hums a mellow tune, while beautiful pink pearls of finger lime bring in the welcome, acidic high notes. There are 10 native ingredients in this dish, we’re told — among them, some decorative green leaves from the Garden that add pleasing texture. Don’t be too delicate, here — slurp up that sauce from the shells and mop up the rest with a side serve of excellent sourdough bread.
In keeping with the seafood theme (we are facing a lake after all), sand whiting cooked over coals is a beautiful main to share. It’s butterflied and laid to rest in a silky, smokey emulsion, made with smoked fish bones, citrus and butter.
Subscribe for updates
It’s all finished with coastal herbs — saltbush, ice plant and rock samphire, and is best enjoyed with a side of fries as what would have to be Adelaide’s bougiest fish ‘n’ chips.
Meat, chicken and pasta all make an appearance on the menu, too, while sweet finishes include a riff on the lamington and pavlova.
Tom, best known for his former restaurant, Gather at Coriole (named best restaurant in SA by delicious. magazine back in 2019), has moved around in recent years, including stints at Press* Food and Wine and Aces, both in the CBD.
He appears more at home here — perhaps it’s the bounty of fresh produce at the door (something he relished at Coriole), or the freedom to cook much to his own style. But diners should hope to see more of it, as he finds his feet in what is a bigger-than-might-appear task, catering to all those who visit Adelaide Botanic Garden.
The restaurant recently started doing dinners, which Tom says the whole team is loving as the calmer service allows them to make stronger connections with diners. For Tom, that’s what it’s all about.
That, and recreating the simple joys of the likes of a good ol’ Golden Gaytime.
Chef: Tom Tilbury
Cuisine: Contemporary Australian
Drinks: Inspired cocktails (incl. non alc), small selection of wines by the glass and beer
Cost: Smalls from $12, large dishes hover around $40
Hot take: An oasis in the city
Must try: Zucchini (when in season); mussels in native curry
Main Lake (Kainka Wirra), Adelaide Botanic Garden, Plane Tree Dr, Adelaide
7082 0177
botaniclodge.com.au
Open: Daily 10am-4pm (lunch from 11.30am), Dinners Fri-Sat (check the website)
This article first appeared in the May 2025 issue of SALIFE magazine.
