Adelaide punches above its weight for small bars, thanks to a licensing reform around 2013 that allowed venues to open without extensive food operations. The result is a laneway bar scene concentrated in the East End and CBD: Peel Street, Leigh Street, and Ebenezer Place are the main strips. Most bars are small, independent, and have good local and imported wine lists.
Adelaide has strong cafe culture, with morning coffee seriousness comparable to Melbourne. The East End (Rundle Street east of Frome) and O'Connell Street in North Adelaide are the main precincts. Normans coffee on Gouger Street has been roasting locally for decades and is the old benchmark; a wave of newer specialty roasters has raised the bar.
Craft beer arrived slightly later than in the eastern states but has caught up: Wheaty (The Wheatsheaf Hotel) in Thebarton is the home of the Adelaide indie beer scene; Brodburger on Melbourne Street does good burgers to go with.