In the heart of the Barossa Valley sits 1918 Bistro & Grill, a century-old home turned dining destination. It’s hard to miss, with the iconic black and white street sign, which has become a marker for visitors driving through Tanunda.
Here, you’ll find roaring open fires through winter, while outside, Norfolk pines and lush gardens set the scene for relaxed alfresco meals or slow afternoons with family.
Owners Sid and Tanya King spoke to Crumb Wire about their journey of acquiring the spot on a whim, moving countries to make it happen, and how they navigated the challenges to tourism posed by the pandemic.
“We first came to 1918 as guests when we were only about 21 years old. We’d just started dating and had come to the Barossa on holiday,” said Tanya King.
“And then fast forward 15 years, we’re married, we’ve got two kids, we’ve been in Dubai for seven years. I come home from work one day and Sid says to me – ‘Hey, 1918, is for sale.’ And I said to him – ‘Let’s buy it.’”
And so they did. The Kings spent all of six months working out the formalities and moved to the South Australian town two weeks before taking the reins in 2015.
1918 - A history
1918 began life as a family home that housed a large family of nine. In 1992, Robert O’Callahan – best known as the founder of Rockford Wines – teamed up with a couple of his employees to transform it into a restaurant.
At the time, the Barossa had little in the way of dining beyond pubs and a couple of average restaurants. O’Callahan’s vision for 1918 was simple but game-changing: a place built on fresh, local, seasonal food. Not fine dining, but a genuine showcase of the region’s fresh, seasonal produce.
“1918 has never been a pretentious venue,” explained Sid King. “It’s always been about relaxed dining and doing food well. After 33 years, I daresay it’s the granddaddy of the Barossa’s culinary scene. Now there are a lot of amazing restaurants in the Barossa and 1918 was the first.”
Old world charm, modern cuisine
The establishment is one of the few notable restaurants in the Barossa Valley that isn’t attached to a vineyard or cellar door, but their love for local wines is reflected on the menu. “We’re a family-owned restaurant, so we want to support other guys that are on a smaller scale, and they’ll, in turn, support us,” said Sid.
“At 1918, we provide experiences, not just food. So when you come to the Barossa and you hear the stories of these boutique producers, where the owners of the wineries are making the wine themselves, it makes for an amazing storytelling experience.”
1918’s winter menu leans into richness and warmth, built around seasonal Barossa produce and the fire of the open grill. Entrées move from indulgent duck liver parfait with grenache jelly to kangaroo rubbed in coffee and cocoa, risotto nero with Goolwa pippis, or scallops in n’duja butter.
Mains balance comfort and craft with pork served three ways, pan-roasted barramundi brightened with black vinegar, a Lancashire hotpot trio of lamb, or the decadent fish pie packed with smoked trout, eel, octopus and prawns.
From the grill, there’s the wagyu eye fillet with brisket marmalade, or the show-stopping 1–2kg tomahawk steak carved at the table. Desserts span from lemon myrtle and honey crème brûlée to apple and rhubarb crumble, watermelon lime sorbet, or a trio designed for sharing.
The restaurant is a community and tourist favourite for a reason and what’s even more impressive is how it bounced back from the dark days of 2020 that we collectively try not to think about.
Five years on, Sid and Tanya looked back on the shock of the news. “It was an absolute shock when it happened,” said Tanya. “One day we’re open and the next day we’re closed and all we could think about was our fridge full of produce.”
Lessons from the lockdown
“That night, we drank so much wine, wondering what we’re going to do. We wallowed in that fear for the evening, then woke up the next morning and announced we’re open for takeaway – then when delivery was back on the cards, we jumped on that as well.”
1918 saw a lot of support from the community as well. “People would come in for their takeaway on a Saturday night, ask how business is going and tell us ‘we’re here to support you’,” Tanya reminisced.
The JobKeeper program helped cover staff wages and keep the business afloat, but while a normal Saturday once saw 60 to 80 takeaway orders, at the height of COVID that number dropped to around 10.
“On the day restaurants were allowed to open doors again, they had set venue capacities to about 10 people. In South Australia, you weren’t allowed to even drink alcohol. So we put five tables on our lot and I ran in and out serving 20 people by myself,” Tanya said.
“Every time restrictions eased, people jumped at the chance to go out again. From that point on, the momentum just kept building – strength to strength. We knew exactly how many we could seat, how to reset, and it all became second nature,” added Sid.
Ask Sid and Tanya what the best thing is about living in the Barossa, and they don’t miss a beat. “No traffic jams,” Sid laughs. “It takes ten minutes to get wherever you want to go.”
Life in Tanunda, they say, is the sweet spot between small-town ease and international appeal. “It’s a small community, so it feels safe and friendly,” Tanya explains. “At the same time, Tanunda has just 4,000 people, but it’s always buzzing thanks to tourism. It’s not sleepy, not boring, there’s always something going on.”
“You only have to walk down Tanunda’s main street to see how good we’ve got it – beautiful retail, wine bars, plenty of places to eat. We’ve lived in some big cities, and we wouldn’t swap.”
For the Kings, that balance of calm and buzz is what makes the Barossa special – and it’s exactly what they want 1918 to reflect.
“We’re always striving to let people know that we’re not a fine dining restaurant,” Tanya says. “We want to feel like home. It’s homely, it’s relaxing, and it’s got a really good reputation for food done well. People sometimes walk in expecting it to be stiff or fancy, but it’s not. It’s a place where you can settle in by the fire or out in the garden, and just enjoy yourself.”
But the couple isn’t stopping at Tanunda. They’re currently in the middle of transforming the old Eden Valley Hotel into a new dining destination for the tiny township of just 380 people. “It’s very much the community hub up there,” Sid says. “We’re keeping the character of the 150-year-old building, adding a deck that looks out over gum trees, and showcasing only Eden Valley wines alongside local beers. It’s about future-proofing a place that matters so much to the town.”
Until then, you can find 1918 Bistro and Grill at 94 Murray St, Tanunda, South Australia.
