North @ Sky City, North Terrace, SA.

We made a booking for lunch at what was supposed to be Adelaide's premier wine bar - Universal Wine Bar. We were surprised to find that there was literally nobody there, and judging by what the waitperson said; they didn't exactly expect that to change either. It really was a hole. The menu was unappealing, slightly over-priced, the wine list was likewise over-priced, and relatively limited (especially for a premier wine bar!) Most of all, my pet hate.. GOBLETS! As you can guess - we made a quick getaway!

Later that evening... I popped over to the casino to see what it had to offer. One of its restaurants is called 'North'. Here I was met with over 200 wines, a wine-rack that holds a total of 1,160 wines when full, 5 beers on tap, and many more by the bottle. The wine selection is quite good; typical well-knowns, though nothing really out of the ordinary. On the bright side, however, the stemware they use is Reidel's, and the wall of wines is temperature controlled and set to 15 degrees C.

The restaurant is part of a refurbished heritage building. It has gorgeous high-ceilings, gold metal chandeliers, wooden dining tables and chairs, and red candles on tables. The bench top of the bar is made of marble, and leather armrest chairs are only a few steps away from the bar. The lighting is quite nice (tick), but the music was a little ordinary if you like (cross).

The bathroom is lovely, and of decent size. It has nice hand basins, good lighting, beautiful wooden doors, and self-flushing urinals. Very responsible restaurant too: “Please wash your hands” sticker stuck onto the mirror! Just outside the bathrooms, where the inner-entrance is, I was met with a very grumpy and rude matride. It doesn't make for a very good first-impression when you walk in, nor does the impression improve when it's time to leave.

Food 4 /5
Service 3 /5
Décor 4.25 /5
Bathroom 2 /2
X-Factor 1.75 /3
Total: 15 /20

There is another bar located towards the main entrance of Sky City - it's called the 'Loco Bar'. A little boring, though would probably be better when a bit busier. The décor is not too bad; very modern/funky. The good thing about it was that the staff here seem to be friendlier and more laid-back. There is also a variety of happy hour specials that run Wednesday through to Sunday.

For more info:
http://www.skycityadelaide.com.au/skycity/adelaide/bars-&-restaurants/loco/loco_home.cfm