Looking toward the autumnal orange and yellow leaves drifting from nearby Plane trees, Restaurant Botanic chef Justin James estimates that about six of the 14 tables are filled with diners from interstate.

“We’ve had guests fly in and stay Saturday night in Adelaide and come for lunch on Sunday, and then just fly back,” James, who is currently celebrating those autumn leaves falling outside the window in his tasting menu, says.

Most arrive from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, with James divulging that “probably our biggest fanbase is in New South Wales”.

The Sydney Morning Herald’s food critic is among those to have travelled to the Adelaide Botanic Garden restaurant to deliver a glowing review.

And, as the awards and accolades pile up for the restaurant James opened in 2021, more tables are seeing international diners pulling up a chair, with some foodies from the United States, Singapore and the United Kingdom declaring it “the best food I’ve ever eaten”.

It is a ripening phenomenon for South Australia, this single-destination travel where the world’s well-heeled follow the most Michelin-starred and chef-hatted offerings in search of a unique experience.

And it’s one difficult to quantify, as the chef who leads the restaurant named Gourmet Traveller’s best in Australia last year and three hats worthy by Australian Good Food, responds to early industry pondering around his decision to move south rather than east to take over its helm.

James, who has worked in some of America’s top kitchens, including Blue Hill at Sone Barnes one hour north of New York City, Eleven Madison Park in New York and vue de monde in Sydney, puts his success down to committing to unique creativity based around creating food around three pillars: botanic, native and what’s in season.

His beautiful, artistic dishes bring their own stories to tables, there are twigs threaded with barbecued duck leg glazed in a duck-heart garum and sticky with finger lime and green ants, or bunya bunya branches collected from the garden steeped in cream and fashioned into frozen custard.

James says it is all about creating an immersive celebration of place and time amid 51 hectares of beautiful gardens to inspire guests to touch and taste the experience.

It is an experience that is, as a spin-off, helping take South Australia’s wine and food reputation up a few notches after COVID affected so many of the state’s restaurants and 340 cellar doors – many with their own esteemed restaurants like Mt Lofty Vineyards and The Lane.

Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison is not surprised by the restaurant’s success in drawing long-range visitors, with the state’s latest tourism data shows food and wine are the standout reasons why interstate travellers want to visit SA.

“Food and wine are major tourism drawcards to the state, with more than one-third of all international visitors to South Australia pre-pandemic undertaking an activity which involved visiting a restaurant or a winery,” she said.

And there are many other much-awarded businesses lifting the offerings. 

The Lane Vineyard in Hahndorf was awarded Best Winery Restaurant in Australia at the 2022 Restaurant & Catering National Awards for Excellence in November last year, beating a solid line up from Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania and the ACT.

Chief executive officer Jared Stringer says interest in The Lane’s food and wine has been growing since the state re-opened after COVID and the award was only seeing this interest rise.

“Interstate and international visitors in particular are booking months ahead to ensure they secure a table or one of our unique estate wine experiences,” Stringer says.

The business is investing in its future, with works underway to create two acres of interactive kitchen gardens and there is “vineyard accommodation slated to open in 2024”.

“We are working hard to make sure The Lane will continue to be one of Australia’s must visit food and wine destinations for years to come,” Stinger says.

Back at the Restaurant Botanic, James is unapologetic in listing a $350 price tag and no refunds policy for a seat at his tables.

It is a business model that ensures each dish is carefully handmade for a tight number of people and one that delivers a unique experience for people to “take a mini-holiday” from their everyday lives.

His current tasting menu is designed with 29 different flavour combinations – some a single bite, others more substantial, but all with their own flavours – smoky, sticky, tart – finished with native thyme or marigold petals from the garden.

“We are just trying to create an exceptional experience,” James says, admitting to being surprised by some diners arriving in a mood or being disinterested. He wants each visitor to his restaurant to push other feelings aside as they walk through the door.

A Restaurant Botanic creation. Photo: supplied.

“I’m not trying to please everyone but when you come here you should have a good time,” he says.

“We are not saving people’s lives but we are celebrating people’s lives, or celebrating taking that mini-holiday from whatever is going on in your life.

“We’ve had people celebrating their 99th birthday here for four hours and they say it’s the best meal they have ever had… every time a guest says something like that to me it means the world, that’s the fuel for me to keep going every day.”