This polished cocktail den ticks all the boxes: expert drinks, good snacking and real attention to detail. And a not-so-secret bar out the back with grungy house-party vibes doubles the fun.
Leigh Street Luggage was a travel goods store for 40 years. It closed in late 2020, and the space reopened a year later as a petite wine and cocktail joint under bartender Shahin Chegini (who worked at a string of Melbourne spots, including Morris Jones, The Smith and Frédéric, before moving back to Adelaide), as well as Robbie Behrad, Andrew Razzano and Joshua Fileti. Besides the name, other hints of its former life remain – a plane propeller, some vintage suitcases, and a photo of the former owner as a flight attendant circa 1972 hanging on the wall. These features are found alongside a blue-tiled bar, lit-up backbar of spirits, Italian liqueurs and vermouths, and a strong Mediterranean accent throughout. Touch down here and the drinks list will do its part to take you to an Italian summer.
This may be one of the newer additions to Adelaide’s bar scene, but it quickly had a huge impact thanks to a very smart cocktail list and slick attention to detail. Perch at the bar and flick through a menu of concoctions filed under light and bubbly, fruit-driven, floral and herbaceous, and spirit-forward. There are also mini Martinis (at $9), plus four kinds of Spritz, while wines lean European – think pecorino from Italy, rosé from Provence, touriga nacional from Portugal, and palomino from Spain. These are best paired with the Mediterranean-flavoured snacks – largely things on toast such as heirloom tomato with balsamic glaze, cured and shredded pork rillettes with caperberries and Basque-style green piparra peppers, and dry-cured pork with house pickles.
If Leigh Street Luggage is the polished face of the venue, its not-so-secret next-door bar Nevermind – accessible via the back or through a side alley – is the darker, grungier underbelly. In a dimly lit space previously used for storage, you’ll find a largely Australian drinks list of tinnies and playful cocktails. After a couple of wines or Martinis out front, this is where you might retreat for a pickleback – a shot of whisky chased by a slug of pickle brine – and a late-night toastie served with house-made pickles and crisps (available past midnight). The gritty, red-lit set-up was inspired by the ’90s grunge scene, and “industrial Soviet East Berlin”, says Chegini, who’s calling it “fine-diving”.
“I’ve always worked in more high-end establishments and I have major respect for that polished service and attention to detail, but after a long night’s work or on my nights off I kept finding myself frequenting bars like Leonard's House of Love and Jungle Boy,” he says. “I loved certain aspects of those bars and wanted to mix them into one space – polished, well-made cocktails, good banter over the bar and that familiar house-party vibe.” The party vibes here are assisted by resident DJ Geisterrüstung spinning underground party jams until late on weekends. On Thursdays, the vibe shifts to old-school hip hop. Alleyway parties are in the pipeline.
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