The Artel Lounge Bar and Restaurant

Gorgeous atmosphere. State Platter had a great selection on top of the wooden board. Accompanied by a great glass of shiraz. Definitely will be coming back to select something else off the menu. Had a great kids menu which is a bonus for me having 3 kids.

This is one of those times where I wish Unilocal let us do half star ratings, as I feel a bit harsh only giving 3 stars, but don’t think it was quite up to 4 star standard.
My husband & I booked at Artel for his 30^th birthday dinner on Friday night, just the two of us. We were seated out on the deck which I thought was strange for such a cold & wet night, but it was all enclosed & we were right next to the fire so it wasn’t too bad in the end.
We had already decided we were going to go the whole hog & have three courses. There is certainly lots of choice on the menu, we did have trouble deciding!
We were warned there would be a bit of a wait for food as a large group had just ordered. Having said that, the tapas came out within about 20 minutes & the mains weren’t too far after that.
Highly recommend the sliders, they would almost do for a meal in themselves if you weren’t super hungry.
I also ordered the strawberry mocktail which was to die for. So much so, that I as our entrée/​tapas were being cleared, we ordered another round of drinks to arrive with our mains.
Our mains arrived (me– the asian chicken salad & my husband had the salt & pepper squid. No complaints there!), but unfortunately our drinks did not.
As we were nearly finished our mains, we flagged down a waitress to ask if our drinks were too far away. They didn’t arrive until we had finished our mains (& more in the mood for a coffee by then!). Unfortunately my second strawberry mocktail tasted totally different to the first one I’d had & wasn’t nearly as nice. My husband had ordered a cider but got given a beer.
By the time we finished mains as well, the fire was well & truly dead so it was getting a bit cold, but no staff came to revive it. We tried to put a bit of kindling in, but it was past the point of revival!
Onto dessert — I had the Banoffee Pie & husband had the white chocolate & pecan tart. They were nice — certainly not amazing. I’m not a big fan of cream & the menu stated that the white choc & pecan pie was served with cream which was why I went for the Banoffee. When they arrived, there was no cream at all on the white choc & pecan tart & my banoffee was covered in cream! Never mind, they were still enjoyable.
We were pleasantly surprised that our bill only came to $ 105 which we thought was pretty reasonable for a three course meal for two people.
I think I’d like to go back when they are not so busy. There were about three large groups which seemed to get priority over us, even though we had booked.
Hopefully better luck next time!

You have got to be joking!
This would be the worst restaurant experience I have had in 10 years.
Beef and Reef. Beautifully presented… Pity the medium steak was way past medium and tough and gristly to boot.
Still that is better than my son’s medium rare that was medium well.
After sending it back We could not believe how long but takes to make a medium rare steak. We thought 8 minutes but apparently not.
To add insult to injury, two of our table sat with their knife and fork together on their plates for 30 minutes until eventually we had to ASK for the plates to be cleared!
Oh did I mention that the messed up our tapas order for entrée? Oh gee to replace with the correct dish would take 15 minutes would we like a disjointed entrée or to accept the wrong dish x 2?
What a disappointment!

This place is so close to being a great restaurant. They have some amazing food, excellent local beers & wine, but what really lets them down is the service. It seems to have a lot to do with the iPad/​tablet they use to take orders– each time we have eaten here there has been some issue.
Most of the food we’ve had here has been good, but there is always at least one thing that is either over or undercooked.
Once they sort these issues out it will be awesome.

I have been to The Artel on two occasions now and both times I have enjoyed my visit.
It has a very moody, jazzy vibe which may not be everyone’s cup of tea. Located in the Main Street of McClaren Vale it is easy enough to find and I’ve not had any parking dramas.
The food is really nice. I’ve had breakfast there. I can’t remember what I had but I do remember that I enjoyed it. Most recently I came on a bus with about 12 ladies on a not so rowdy hen’s night.
Food service was quite slow. In all fairness they were very busy and we were a big group. Staff were polite and friendly. I ordered a chicken parmi which took about 40 minutes to arrive. It ended up being chicken tenderloins with parmi topping as they had ran out of snitzels. Staff were apologetic but I was not offered the opportunity to change my order or even a discount. It ended up tasting ok. Everyone else enjoyed their meals so I think I was just unlucky.
I would try my luck again. Weirdest thing I’ve ever said but the toilets smell Devine.

We came to Artel on a busy day in Mclaren Vale. This place is classy and looks like a jazz bar. I didn’t see a piano with a lady sitting on it humming tunes but it does have a chandelier, black bar, solid wood furniture, table flowers and some old fashioned pieces around. There is also a modern extension out the back. The bartender makes the classic cocktails if you are in the mood for a shirley temple or something more modern. They are pretty good and not too expensive. They also serve tapas like salt and pepper crocodile or mains like the rosemary lamb burger. I also love how they have hand towels instead of paper towels in the toilets. I’d love to come back at night to see what it is like then.

Not a fan at all. I’ve been a few times because I keep seeing good reviews but the staff are very rude and the food and drinks are very overpriced.
On the bright side the food is really nice and the wine is good it’s just not worth the massive price tag.
I’d rate it higher but the incredibly rude service I’ve had on multiple occasions has completely put me off this place.
Also I’ve always had to wait so long for service. I order simple nachos and it took an hour to come. Me and my friend were the only people in the place. I’ve also had to wait about 30 minutes for a cocktail before.

Yep, this is one of those places that impress as soon as you enter and continue to throughout your meal. I had dinner here and found the staff wonderful, the service personal, the food and menu yum! And the cocktails to die for. Highly recommended

Always greeted warmly by bright and bubbly staff. Beautiful heart-​warming food and the 1930s theme adds a nostalgic decadence in a league of its own. Tapas always served on time and go beautifully with the wine/​cocktail menu. A great alternative to your expected meal. Well done and compliments to the chef!

Awesome food massive serves the BIG Brekkie certainly lives up to it’s name. The staff were so friendly and accommodating. The chef even took time out to come and speak to the clients. Breakfast is available until 2:30 which is great after a big night out.
Make sure you drop in here for a feed when in Mclaren Vale

I’m writing a review for Artel, even though we had drinks here rather than a full meal … but judging from my impression on this visit, I’m pretty sure this is going to be a 5 star review next time I visit ;)
The décor here is lovely — dark and intimate in the dining area, and light and open in the outdoor (covered) area. We sat on a lounge chair and enjoyed wine and mocktails on a Saturday afternoon. If we hadn’t just eaten elsewhere, we would have definitely have sampled the menu — ah well, another time!
We were very impressed by the array of mocktails on offer — for the designated driver (thankfully not me!), this is fantastic — my partner sipped on a very fancy lemon, lime and bitters in a cocktail glass, and thought it was fantastic! Of course, the wine list is extensive, as is the cocktail selection.
Staff are very friendly too — and they serve Mahalia coffee, which is a big plus in my opinion!
Can’t wait to dine here and update my review!

In a sleepy town like McLaren Vale, it is expected the only businesses open past 9pm on a Saturday night are the pub and the pizza bar. Neither are serving food you choose to eat and neither are conducive to relaxing and having a cosy chat.
You can imagine how surprised I was to see this place open at 10pm on a Saturday evening when we were on our way back from a beach walk (yes, we stayed at the beach far too long). Not only were hey open but they were serving food — good food!
I ordered salt and pepper tofu and aubergine parmigiana (no cheese) from the tapas menu while plus one ordered a cone of fish and chips and a garden salad from the main menu. Not surprisingly, the place was about quarter full with people doing the same as we were. There were some recognisable faces from local restaurants, lots of laughs and more than a few G&Ts on surrounding tables.
The décor is 1920’s chic which has been done on a budget but it works. It’s cosy and comfortable at night and light and refreshing during the day. There’s an area of smokers at the front and plenty of heating to keep everyone warm.
This is exactly what McLaren Vale needed, I hope the town supports it enough for it to stock around for a while