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The Best Brunch in Adelaide

Seven Adelaide cafes worth planning a weekend brunch around, from the CBD's south-west corner to Unley, Highgate, Hawthorn and Dulwich. Every pick serves its full brunch menu on Saturday and Sunday. Every dish we name comes straight off the venue's own published menu.

By Joel Bauer, Adelaide, South Australia

Illustrative photo. Photo: Unsplash.

Brunch in Adelaide runs on a clock. Several kitchens on this list stop cooking hot food at 2pm even when the doors stay open for coffee, so when you arrive matters as much as which cafe you pick. Order by 1.30pm on a weekend and you are fine. Turn up at 2.30pm and you have probably missed it.

The seven picks sit in two clusters. Cafe Troppo on Whitmore Square and Hello, Stranger on Gilbert Street cover the south-west corner of the CBD. The rest spread out to Highgate, Hawthorn, Dulwich and two on the Unley side, Pickle in the Middle on Unley Road and Whistle & Flute on Greenhill Road. The Pantry on Egmont sits beside the railway line in Hawthorn and has outdoor tables that suit a dog.

Bookings are not uniform, so it pays to check before you go. Cafe Troppo books only half its tables and keeps the rest for walk-ins. Mad.Good accepts both. Pickle in the Middle, Whistle & Flute and Hello, Stranger all take online bookings. Where a cafe publishes a surcharge, such as the 10% Hello, Stranger adds on Sundays, I have put it in the entry.

Here is how the list was put together. Each cafe needed a Google rating of 4.5 or higher from at least 150 reviews, pulled from Google Maps on 10 October 2026. Each also needed a brunch or breakfast menu served on both weekend days, with its hours and menu on its own website so the dishes and prices can be checked. Every dish named in an entry comes off the venue's own published menu. A Mother's Milk and Coffee Institute are not here because they already feature in the inner-suburbs cafe guide and I wanted this list to cover different ground. The seven entries follow, with dietary notes, kids menus and kitchen times where the cafe publishes them.

Weekend bookings and walking in

Most of these cafes take bookings, though not always for every table. Cafe Troppo says it only books out half its tables and keeps the rest for walk-ins. It only takes bookings if you are dining in. The Pantry on Egmont does not book tables for coffee and cake but takes a limited number of phone reservations for people ordering from the dine-in menu. Mad.Good says it accepts both walk-ins and bookings.

If your group is set on a particular cafe at 10am on a Saturday, book. Hello, Stranger, Pickle in the Middle, Whistle and Flute and Corner Store all have online booking on their sites. If you are flexible, walk in early or after the late-morning rush and you will usually get a table.

What counts as brunch hours here

Adelaide cafe kitchens close early. Mad.Good runs its brunch menu from 8am to 2pm daily. Cafe Troppo is open until 3pm but its kitchen closes at 2pm. The Pantry on Egmont takes last orders at 2pm on weekdays and weekends. Whistle and Flute closes at 2pm on Saturday and Sunday.

The practical rule is to order by 1.30pm on a weekend if you want hot food. Some stay open for coffee after the kitchen closes, but a 2.30pm arrival usually means you have missed brunch. Some also add a surcharge on Sundays or public holidays, which we note in the entries where the cafe publishes it.

Dietary options

Gluten-free and vegan diners do well on this list because most of the menus label every dish. Whistle and Flute marks dishes GF, GFO, V and VO. Cafe Troppo makes its own gluten-free bread and runs a vegan bowl of spiced baked beans. The Pantry on Egmont says it has gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options on its regular menu.

Check the small print on swaps. Mad.Good lists gluten-free bread as a $3.50 side and invites you to ask for a vegan version of its big breakfast. Hello, Stranger charges an extra $2 for gluten-free toast and notes that its kimchi contains gluten and fish sauce.

Bringing kids

Three of these cafes publish a kids menu. The Pantry on Egmont's comes with a colouring-in section. Mad.Good's is for children under 12 and includes pancakes or waffles with maple syrup for $10. Pickle in the Middle lists kids serves like one egg on toast and a babycino.

Space matters as much as the menu. A small room at peak time is hard work with a pram, so if you are bringing little ones, go early and ask for an outdoor table where the cafe has one. The Pantry has outdoor tables beside the railway line, which also suits a dog.

The list side by side

No.NameAreaBest forPriceRating
01Café TroppoAdelaide CBD (Whitmore Square)Seasonal local-produce brunch with a garden feel$$ Mid4.5 (1018)
02Mad.Good CafeHighgateBig classic brunch plates and a proper kids menu$$ Mid4.8 (623)
03The Pantry on EgmontHawthornFamily brunch beside the train line$$ Mid4.7 (1019)
04Hello, StrangerAdelaide CBD (Gilbert Street)Asian-leaning brunch in the south-west CBDOn enquiry4.7 (527)
05Pickle in the MiddleUnleyPlant-forward brunch with a house pickle on every plate$$ Mid4.5 (650)
06Whistle & FluteUnley (Greenhill Road)Quick, high-protein weekend brunch$$ Mid4.5 (975)
07Corner Store CafeDulwichQuiet backstreet brunch in a cottage courtyardOn enquiry4.5 (474)

Price band is an editorial guide. $ entry-level, $$ mid-range, $$$ premium or destination. Check each business for current pricing.

Café Troppo

Adelaide CBD (Whitmore Square). Seasonal local-produce brunch with a garden feel

A corner cafe on Whitmore Square that cooks a seasonal all-day menu from local produce, with dishes like chilli scrambled eggs on flatbread ($27) and a kangaroo pastrami Roo-ben bagel. Coffee is from De Groot Coffee Co in Port Elliot. It is open seven days from 7.30am to 3pm and the kitchen closes at 2pm.

  • Books only half its tables, walk-ins welcome
  • House-made gluten-free bread
  • Vegan Flower Power bowl of spiced baked beans
  • De Groot coffee
Rating
4.5 from 1018 reviews on Google
Book or get a quoteVisit website

Mad.Good Cafe

Highgate. Big classic brunch plates and a proper kids menu

A Fullarton Road cafe with a long brunch menu served from 8am to 2pm every day. The menu runs from eggs benedict ($20) and Turkish eggs to a FOMO pancake stack with bacon and meringue shards ($24). Its free-range eggs come from Mt Compass. Walk-ins and bookings are both accepted.

  • Brunch 8am to 2pm daily
  • Kids menu for under 12s
  • Vegan version of the big breakfast on request
  • Walk-ins and bookings accepted
Rating
4.8 from 623 reviews on Google
Visit website

The Pantry on Egmont

Hawthorn. Family brunch beside the train line

A neighbourhood cafe on the railway line in Hawthorn that has been open since 2010 and serves all-day breakfast. The dine-in menu includes Turkish eggs with garlic labne and eggplant ragu ($26) and house-made gnocchi alla vodka that can be turned into breakfast with a poached egg. It has a kids menu with a colouring-in section and welcomes dogs at its outdoor tables.

  • Open since 2010
  • Kids menu and dog-friendly outdoor tables
  • Gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options
  • Weekend hours 8am to 2pm, last orders 2pm
Rating
4.7 from 1019 reviews on Google
Visit website

Hello, Stranger

Adelaide CBD (Gilbert Street). Asian-leaning brunch in the south-west CBD

Opened in October 2021 by two sisters, this Gilbert Street cafe blends Asian flavours with a local-produce brunch menu. Signature dishes include kimchi scrambled eggs on dark rye and a crab omelette croissant. Coffee is from Altura, a South Australian roastery. The cafe opens seven days from 7am to 3pm.

  • Kimchi scrambled eggs and omelette croissants
  • Altura coffee and Paris Creek dairy
  • Online bookings
  • 10% surcharge on Sundays
Rating
4.7 from 527 reviews on Google
Book or get a quoteVisit website

Pickle in the Middle

Unley. Plant-forward brunch with a house pickle on every plate

A bright Unley Road breakfast and lunch cafe that aims to put a pickled element in every dish and makes almost everything in house, including a Scandinavian-style gluten-free seed bread. Brunch runs from smashed avocado ($24) to eggs benedict ($25), with the kitchen open from 7am to 2.30pm. It also runs monthly pickling workshops.

  • House-made gluten-free seed bread
  • Kids menu
  • Book a table online
  • Monthly pickling workshops
Rating
4.5 from 650 reviews on Google
Book or get a quoteVisit website

Whistle & Flute

Unley (Greenhill Road). Quick, high-protein weekend brunch

A cafe and liquor bar on Greenhill Road serving a brunch menu seven days. The current menu is built around doorstops (open sandwiches on thick sourdough, $19 to $25) and bowls such as smoked salmon with edamame and sushi rice ($24). Weekend hours are 8am to 2pm and bookings are made online.

  • Brunch menu seven days
  • Every dish labelled GF, GFO, V or VO
  • Online bookings
  • Weekend hours 8am to 2pm
Rating
4.5 from 975 reviews on Google
Visit website

Corner Store Cafe

Dulwich. Quiet backstreet brunch in a cottage courtyard

A cafe in an early-century cottage on a tree-lined Dulwich backstreet, a short walk from Fullarton Road. A full-time chef cooks a seasonal breakfast and lunch menu seven days, served in-store only. The coffee is a Willow Bend house roast. Weekend hours are 7.30am to 2pm and it is closed on public holidays.

  • Courtyard seating in an early-century cottage
  • Seasonal chef's menu, dine-in only
  • Online reservations
  • Closed public holidays
Rating
4.5 from 474 reviews on Google
Visit website

Frequently asked

Do I need to book brunch in Adelaide on a weekend?

For a specific time at a popular cafe, yes. Most cafes on this list take online or phone bookings. Some keep part of the room for walk-ins, so arriving early without a booking often works too.

What time do Adelaide cafes stop serving brunch?

Usually around 2pm. Several of these kitchens close at 2pm even when the cafe stays open later for coffee, so aim to order by 1.30pm.

Which brunch cafes have good gluten-free options?

Cafe Troppo makes its own gluten-free bread, Whistle and Flute labels gluten-free and gluten-free-option dishes across its menu and The Pantry on Egmont says it caters to gluten-free diners on its regular menu.

Which brunch spots have a kids menu?

The Pantry on Egmont, Mad.Good and Pickle in the Middle all publish a kids menu.

Why are A Mother's Milk and Coffee Institute not on this list?

Both are already featured in our inner-suburbs cafe guide. This list deliberately covers different cafes so the two guides do not repeat each other.

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