Cafeography
Adelaide · CBD

Cafés in CBD

Office-hours espresso, the Central Market on Gouger Street and Hutt Street breakfasts.

Photo: Sanchit Gogna, Pexels License

The CBD fills the grid south of the River Torrens, inside the Park Lands. Rundle Mall, the shopping spine, was the western end of Rundle Street until it was closed to cars in 1972, and Victoria Square, 2.4 hectares, sits at the center of the plan.12 The Kaurna name Tarntanyangga was adopted for the square alongside its English one in 2002.2

Coffee follows office hours. Likuid Espresso at 44 Waymouth Street, Lunch on Angas at 264 Angas Street and Work at 106 Pirie Street all start at 06:00 on weekdays, and about half the CBD's cafés have stopped serving by 15:00. Prices are slightly below the city average: in October 2026 a flat white in the 5000 postcode averaged A$5.11, and most cost A$4.50–5.50.3

Local tip: Plan market visits for Friday: the Central Market stays open until 21:00 that night, against 15:00 on Saturday.5

At a glance

181Cafés listed
29With opening hours
06:00Earliest opening
23:30Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Likuid Espresso, from 06:00 (Mon–Fri 06:00–16:00).
  • Closes latest: Astonish Patisserie, until 23:30 (Tue–Fri 11:00–14:30, 17:30–23:00 · Sat 17:30–23:30 · Sun 17:30–23:00).
  • Most listed streets: Pirie Street (10), King William St (10), King William Street (8).
  • Most common features: outdoor seating (8%), indoor seating (6%), wheelchair access (4%).

Three Of Cups

  • 14-38 Rundle Mall
  • Mon–Tue Closed · Wed–Thu 10:30–17:30 · Fri 10:30–19:00 · Sat 10:30–17:00 · Sun 11:00–17:00
  • Air-con
  • Indoor seating
  • Wheelchair access
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Merantau Cafe

  • Ground Floor, Ingkarni Wardli, University of Adelaide
  • Mon–Fri 07:00–17:00
  • +61 8 8224 0756
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Shibui Dessert Bar

  • 160 Grote Street
  • Wed–Thu 18:00–22:30 · Fri–Sat 18:00–23:30 · Sun 18:00–22:30
  • Open late
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Nothing matches those filters here. See all cafés in Adelaide.

Coffee chains in CBD

Chain

Gloria Jean's Coffees

  • Rundle MallMon–Thu 08:00–17:00 · Fri 08:00–20:00 · Sat 08:30–17:00 · Sun 10:30–16:30
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Free trams and the City Connector

Trams are free inside the city section, between the South Terrace, Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Festival Plaza and Botanic Gardens stops.4 The Victoria Square stop sits on the square's western edge, where it moved in 2007 when the line was extended.2 For streets the tram misses, the free City Connector buses loop the CBD: routes 99A and 99C on weekdays, and 98A and 98C, which also cover North Adelaide, every day.4

Blefari at 182 Victoria Square and Delish Espresso at 195 Victoria Square face the square, a short walk from the market.

The Central Market, Gouger Street and Grote Street

The Adelaide Central Market has traded here since 1869 and now holds more than 70 traders under one roof at 44–60 Gouger Street.5 It opens Tuesday 07:00–17:30, Wednesday and Thursday 09:00–17:30, Friday 07:00–21:00 and Saturday 07:00–15:00, and is closed Sunday and Monday.5 The shops around its edge and in the arcades are mainly cafés and restaurants, and Market Plaza, opened in 1985 on the western side, links the market with Chinatown.6

Zuma Caffe is at 56 Gouger Street and The Perfect Cup inside Market Plaza. Close by on Wright Street, My Kingdom for a Horse roasts its own coffee, serves food all day and seats about 100; it opens 07:00–16:00 on weekdays and from 08:00 at weekends.7 After dark the coffee gives way to dessert: Shibui Dessert Bar at 160 Grote Street serves until 23:30 on Friday and Saturday.

Breakfast on Hutt Street

Hutt Street, one of the original streets of Light's plan, runs 1.1 km from East Terrace to South Terrace and is named after Sir William Hutt, one of the colony's founding commissioners.8 Bocelli, at 81–83 Hutt Street, is a long-running Italian café popular with cyclists, and it cooks eggs until 12:00.9 Unusually for Adelaide, it stays open until 21:00 or later every night.

Further south, Biga at 200 Hutt Street is family-run and pours a house blend from Coffex, and Parco Espresso Bar at 259 was formerly Bici.9 Mascavado, a patisserie at 175, is known for miso cookies and plum and rose Danishes, and The Old Croissant Factory at 242 opens Tuesday to Sunday, 08:00–15:00.7

Roasters and gardens in the west end

Elementary Coffee opened on Young Street in 2016 in a former wholesale coffee warehouse, and from the café you can see the roasting area.1011 It opens weekdays, 07:30–15:00. Peter Rabbit, reached through gates off Hindley Street at 234–244, serves coffee from the Adelaide roaster 1645 in a garden setting.12

On Gilbert Street, Idle Hands grew out of the sourdough Lewis McDonald began baking in 2020; it sells Milo-dusted finger buns and holds wine nights on Friday, 17:00–22:00.12 Coffee Branch, on Leigh Street, is credited with helping start the city's modern café scene and still keeps a takeaway-first menu.7

Sources

  1. Rundle Street, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Victoria Square, Adelaide, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Flat white prices in Adelaide, SA 5000 (updated 25 October 2026), Small Flat White, accessed October 2026
  4. Trains, trams and buses, City of Adelaide, accessed October 2026
  5. Adelaide Central Market, Adelaide Central Market Authority, accessed October 2026
  6. Adelaide Central Market, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  7. The best cafes in Adelaide city, Broadsheet (updated March 20, 2026), accessed October 2026
  8. Hutt Street, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  9. Scrumptious breakfasts on Hutt Street, City of Adelaide, accessed October 2026
  10. Adelaide coffee roasters are levelling up, CityMag, InDaily (October 13, 2022), accessed October 2026
  11. 5 places for coffee, SALIFE, InDaily (Lisa Woolford, May 28, 2025), accessed October 2026
  12. Where to find the best coffee in Adelaide, South Australian Tourism Commission (August 3, 2026), accessed October 2026
Keep exploring

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In CBD, also browse: Specialty coffee Outdoor seating Vegetarian options Bakery cafés

FAQ

CBD cafés: questions

What are the opening hours of the Adelaide Central Market?

The Adelaide Central Market, at 44–60 Gouger Street, opens Tuesday 07:00–17:30, Wednesday and Thursday 09:00–17:30, Friday 07:00–21:00 and Saturday 07:00–15:00. It is closed on Sunday and Monday. It has traded on its site since 1869 and holds more than 70 traders, with cafés around its edge and in Market Plaza.

Where can you get breakfast on Hutt Street in Adelaide?

Bocelli, at 81–83 Hutt Street, is a long-running Italian café popular with cyclists that cooks eggs until 12:00. Biga at 200 Hutt Street is family-run and serves a Coffex house blend, Parco Espresso Bar is at 259, and The Old Croissant Factory at 242 opens Tuesday to Sunday, 08:00–15:00.

Is the tram free in the Adelaide CBD?

Yes. Trams in Adelaide are free between the South Terrace, Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Festival Plaza and Botanic Gardens stops, which covers Victoria Square. The free City Connector buses also loop the CBD: routes 99A and 99C on weekdays, and 98A and 98C, which include North Adelaide, every day.

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