Hanuman, a restaurant with venues in Darwin and Alice Springs, closed the doors to its Adelaide restaurant on Saturday 27 August. The restaurants’ owner, Jimmy Shu, opened the Adelaide venue in 2014, within the Chifley Hotel on South Terrace.
Hanuman combined Indian, Malaysian and Thai cuisine, with the menu including lamb korma, nonya fried rice and red duck curry. It was recently awarded the state’s Best Asian Restaurant at the Restaurant and Catering South Australian Awards for Excellence for the third consecutive year.
Although Shu has not commented to media on the reason for the closure, there has been speculation that the location, which is removed from busier areas with premium restaurants, like East Terrace, may have been a concern, along with other considerations.
Georgina Williams, marketing director for the Silver Needle Hospitality Group, which owns the Chifley Hotel, told InDaily Hanuman’s closure “was a reflection of Adelaide’s economic climate, consumer confidence with a change in taste and also how very competitive Adelaide dining is now with its increase in small-venue licenses.”
The Alice Springs and Darwin restaurants will continue to operate.