The warmer weather has finally decided to rock up to the party that is Adelaide, which means outdoor dining can once again be enjoyed to the fullest. There’s new nooks popping up all over the place, and the most recent addition to the hospitality scene is A Prayer For The Wild At Heart – the sophisticated sibling eatery to the multi award-winning cafe, My Kingdom For A Horse.
Just a short southerly walk from Rundle Mall, heading down Pulteney Street, you’ll find yourself at Hurtle Square – a peaceful lawned part of town which now homes the new breakfast, lunch and dinner joint, A Prayer For The Wild At Heart.
The corner shop is humble in size, but is enlivened by a retro-esque fit-out, complete with a mesmerising lava lamp and an iconic, multi-coloured coffee machine which is bound to live up to its My Kingdom For A Horse counterpart.
While the eatery itself is on the smaller side of things, the menu makes up for that square metreage, offering big flavours. The fare is interspersed with brasserie classics and the best of what is seasonal and fresh – with a shifting menu from breakfast to then a heftier lunch and dinner selection.
Ex-Crafers and Cremorne Hotel executive chef, Stephane Brizard is heading up the kitchen team, cooking up feasts all day long. At a glance, the breakfast menu sees a bacon and egg butty using Hahndorf thick-cut bacon on a Brioche bun, and house-made smoky baked beans with sourdough. As well as a range of croissants, pastries and baguettes.
As for the lunch and dinner menu, expect to enjoy the sensational flavours of: duck and pistachio terrine with cherry relish and brioche, sweet potato and chickpea pastilla with green olive and preserved lemon, flat iron steak with cafe de paris butter and roasted potatoes, and heirloom beetroot carpaccio with black garlic and savoury granola.
Experienced venue manager, Chris Ryan is taking care of the front of house and has curated a list of classic cocktails from the comprehensive bar atop a green marble counter. The wine list features a range of constantly changing local and international choices including a small reserve collection.
The A Prayer For The Wild At Heart’s dining experience is as much of the food and drink as it is the comfort too – with half of the seating al fresco overlooking the greenery of Hurtle Square, and cushioned booths and tables for two line the space inside. A sunny affair with a glass of something in hand is more than possible from both sides of the window.
A Prayer For The Wild At Heart owner and visionary, Emily Raven says, “This business is a love letter to the hospitality industry and the people who devote their lives to it. This time it’s Tennessee Williams who has provided inspiration. The Wild at Heart are the misfits who don’t quite fit within the confines of convention. Something many hospitality people can identify with.”
“It was a pleasure to reunite the original Kingdom design team and design build again with Adrian Stevens and his people with a little help from Sam Agostino of Agostino & Brown who also built much of our furniture. I worked once again with Kellie Campbell-Illingworth from Parallax on our branding, and my brother-in-law Tony once again traveled from Melbourne to adorn our walls,” Emily shares.
A Prayer For The Wild At Heart is open for business every dang day, with Mondays and Tuesday from 7am until 4pm, Wednesdays through to Fridays from 7am until late, and Saturdays and Sundays from 8am until late.
“It has been my great pleasure to curate a team of people to help me realise my vision of a beautiful neighborhood restaurant, that is full of heart,” Emily finishes.