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Drinks Directory|Regional SA|Fancy occasion|Date night

Star of Greece

1 Lower Esplanade, Port Willunga, SA, 5173
Website
starofgreece.com.au
Instagram
@starofgreece

Read time 3 Mins

Posted 23 Mar 2023

By
Nick Ryan

This South Australian institution has a prime clifftop location and a list of knockout wines to match that make the ideal pairing with the seafood sourced from straight out the window.

Why you goSome restaurants are so spectacularly located you’d be happy to drink tap water and nibble on bread just to spend time in that space. The Star of Greece is one of those places. Perched on the cliffs overlooking one of the Fleurieu Peninsula’s best beaches, and taking its name from the wreck of an old ship you can sometimes see at low tide, the Star is a South Australian institution, the subject of a million photographs long before Instagram was a thing, and the benchmark by which all other beachside restaurants should be judged.
Delicious food and wine pairings at Star of Greece restaurant
Why you stayIt should come as no surprise to learn the Star of Greece gets crazy busy over the long, languid days of a South Australian summer. The place is packed with winemakers from nearby McLaren Vale making the most of the lull before harvest, society types from Adelaide who use the place as an extension of their beach houses, and visitors from afar who can’t quite believe a place like this exists just 40 minutes from an airport. But the real magic of the Star is how that holiday feel can last all year round. Even in the middle of winter, on days the sea is angry, my friends, the warmth and hospitality exuded by a polished and professional team led by the formidable Nikki Govan puts every visitor in a superbly relaxed state of mind.
What drink to orderIt’s just a little over 16,000 kilometres from the fossil-rich, chalky soils of France’s Chablis region to the weathered cliffs on which the Star of Greece sits. You might think a distance like that is too large for an unshakeable bond to form, but you’d be wrong. There’s something about the mineral-laced, citrus-drenched energy of great Chablis that works with so much of the food here that a table without a bottle looks as underprepared as one sans salt. Unsurprisingly, the list runs deep, with offerings from dependable stalwarts like William Fèvre and Patrick Piuze to trophy bottlings from superstars like Raveneau and Dauvissat to slake your Chablis thirst.
Squid and wine pairing with great view at Star of Greece restaurant
What to pair it withThere’s no actual law that says it’s compulsory to eat locally caught squid at the Star, but if there was, it would be the least broken law on the books. Using catch sourced straight from the waters that glisten through the windows and fresher than a late-July swim, the kitchen consistently turns out the kind of calamari that dreams are made of. King George whiting is another menu highlight, and those who seek more terrestrial treats will be more than satisfied with what the kitchen can do with game birds and gentle grazers.
Regular’s tipGet a group together and book early, asking specifically for a large table at the northern end of the deck. This is one of the world’s great tables. These are the seats that launched a million selfies, the table on which glossy tourism campaigns are born. Just remember to take a break from admiring the view and patting yourself on the back long enough to eat something.
Don’t leave withoutThere are very few restaurants in this country that present your post-lunch, or even after-dinner, options as clearly as the Star of Greece. If you can manage it, get yourself down onto the golden sands of the Port Willunga Beach. Better still, get into the water and let the gentle swell of the Gulf of Saint Vincent refresh and reinvigorate you after some perfectly understandable overindulgence. Failing that, a Dirty Martini, heavy on the brine and ideally made with the Never Never Distilling Co’s Oyster Shell Gin from Kangaroo Island, will leave that same salty tang on your lips.
Star of Greece, the best restaurant for friends, relatives and family
Who to takeThis is the place to bring friends from out of town, relatives from interstate or those Finnish folks who were your host family when you went as a kid on exchange some time back in the late ’90s. Basically anyone with whom you want to share one of South Australia’s most special spots. It will haunt their dreams. It will bring them back. Again, and again, and again.
Authour image
Nick RyanNick Ryan turned a natural thirst into something resembling a career, writing about drinks for publications such as The Australian, The World of Fine Wine and The Robb Report.
Tags
Drinks DirectoryOutdoor areaDate nightRegional SAFamily affairVego Food OptionsFancy occasionCasual catch-upWheelchair accessibleTop notch wine listNon-alc Options
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