Opening up just behind the Sofitel in mid-October is Niña, a Spanish inspired restaurant that wants to inject some informal fun into the serious site.
Niña will be the Sofitel’s fun little cousin
From L—R: Leonardo Loureiro, Brenda Loveday and Jessica Purcell
The Niña trio came together from three separate food and hospo lives.
Front-of-house superstar Jessica Purcell, Adelaide food blogger Brenda Loveday and Basque by Leo cheesecake shop owner Leonardo Loureiro have combined talents to open the restaurant.
Niña will be a Spanish inspired, Mediterranean, snack-style restaurant, located behind the Sofitel and a minute’s walk from the Cry Baby, Sunny’s Pizza and Solomon gold mine.
“It’s going down the line of Spanish style, but we don’t want to limit ourselves to that,” Leo says.
“Leo’s obviously Brazilian, so there’s some influence there. There’s even a bit of Asian influence with some of the foods, some of the sauces, so the idea was that we just wouldn’t pin ourselves down too much,” Jessica elaborates.
The menu is set to have dishes including octopus, unusual cuts of meat like lamb backstrap and a burnt carrot dish to keep the Spanish twist.
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“Following on from the Mediterranean roots of the cuisine, that’s how we want the dining to be – a communal family table with friends enjoying it, not just in your own little plate, enjoy it with everybody,” Jessica says.
And from October onwards, Niña will be the only place to get a slice of Leo’s infamous soft and creamy Basque cheesecake.
“It’s cooked at a very high temperature, so you get a burnt top… and then the inside is creamy soft. No base, very rough sides as well so it’s a very different style of baking, not formal,” Leo says.
Obviously sangria will feature on the small cocktail list and the rest of the drinks menu will highlight the best of South Australia through a curated wine list.
“You’ll still be able to get your big names like Henschke, probably some Penfolds so that when people do come from interstate to the hotel, they do get a really good representation of those power brands of SA,” Jessica says.
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“But then we’re also going to be focusing on a lot of the smaller guys, so sort of our medium to small producers. A lot of SA wines and trying to showcase what they’re doing, but really focused on organically farmed and biodynamically farmed or practiced wineries, rather than just going for that minimal intervention approach.”
“We know that people from interstate will be coming because of the hotel, so the idea is to showcase different brands of SA,” Leo says.
The space, still undergoing renovation, will be snug but fun.
There will be an intimate booth in the snug space and multiple bar seats that overlook the bartenders and chefs making their magic.
“It’s going to be fun, there’s bright colours throughout,” Jessica says.
“It does have a moody atmosphere, so when you come at night, you’re going to feel cosy and can tuck yourself into a corner bar [type] setting.”
Although not contracted to the hotel next door, the Niña clan hope to use their association with the Sofitel to build on their clientele.
“Because we’re here, at the Sofitel, and we’ve got Garçon Bleu upstairs which is more fine dining, a bit more formal, the idea for us is that we want to provide something that is a bit more low key, good vibes, good energy, but we’re not going to limit ourselves to that particular kind of service,” Leo says.
“With our relationship with the hotel and the building, I’ve been describing it to people as we’re the fun little cousin,” Jessica says.
Niña is located at 38 Rosina Street, Adelaide, and is slated to open in October. Connect with the business on Instagram for more.
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