A city slicker like me looked at this place from the outside and thinks "hang on, am I in the right…read moreplace?" But I persevered, wondering if the simplistic looking cafe set overlooking a car park and hosting canteen style menu board of sandwiches aimed to fool the hipsters of Parkside into thinking they should move on an eat at other hard wood floored establishments on the main road. I was right. It's the essence of things, it's the friendly country service (even though you're 20 mins from the city), it's...Mabo. Hearty soups and huge baguettes caught my eye on a cold winter's day in Stirling. My seasonal veggie soup came out with crusty bread and steaming hot. All I wanted to do for 15 minutes was eat that bloody soup but I had to wait for it to be less than burning. That soup-er temptress was worth the wait as she was peppery and full flavoured and very filling. I'm currently planning my return for a less heated affair and one of their big brekkies. Soon my pretty....

I've been wanting to review this place for ages, but I had to try every baguette first…read more (and the burrito) (and the New York Rueben) There are 15 different baguette options on the menu, not including variations. It's a tad overwhelming but I prefer this to the chain sandwich store, production-line style of ordering. Also, The Essence baguettes are well over a foot long with heaps of filling all the way to the end. No need for a tape measure. The staff are really friendly, and it seems genuine. Even when they aren't having the best day, the inner awesome shines through. Given the success of the place in it's hidden location, it would seem the fickle people of Stirling agree. The baguettes. They're just that good. All the ingredients look, taste and smell super fresh. I haven't been able to decide on a favourite, but all that come with pancetta are droolworthy. Crispy salty awesome with fresh herbs, it sounds simple but it's done so well. The chicken ceasar is really good too, as are the turkey cranberry and the chicken avocado. The philly cheese steak owns my stomach, so filling, so good. The smell alone makes my mouth water. When I tried The salami baguette I had my standards set pretty low (I'm not a mad salami fan) but upon recommendation I had it toasted. To say I was impressed is an understatement. Possibly the best cheese toastie I've ever had. There are two vegetarian baguette options on the menu, both are really good quality full of roast vegetable and herb deliciousness. I haven't looked for a vegan option, but I'm sure these friendly folks won't bight your head off if you ask nicely. They also do good coffee, and like most places in Stirling these days they do breakfast. Unfortunately I'm yet to have the Essence Breakfast experience but it's certainly on my to do list.

Stirling Cellars & Patisserie is really well priced. This is definitely surprising as it is located…read morein the middle of one of the wealthiest suburbs in the Adelaide Hills. In fact, they generally are cheaper than most other bottle shops. Depending on the product. But if you are a craft beer lovers (like myself) you will notice the difference in price. If you love wine, you will be excited to know that unlike large bottle shop chains, you will find boutique South Australian wines here. Some wineries are very particular on where they sell their produce. This is one of those very lucky destinations. But this isn't just a bottle shop/cellar, it's also a lovely café and patisserie (as the name suggests). You will find a lovely range of pastries, cakes, sweets, sandwiches, pizzas, and salads. All of them are gourmet and special. Last time I had lunch here I picked up a great special, a slice of pizza and coffee for $10. The pizza was great. It was pre-made and heated. But, it was still quality with smoked salmon, capers, and veggies. Great quality base as well! As for the coffee, I am not entirely convinced they have their in-house blend right. But, I am always willing to try it again. My barista overheated the milk as well. Oh well... Last thing to mention is the range of crockery & home wares available instore on the back wall. Very nice selection of designer pieces. So worth looking at if you are after a gift or wanting something spesh for home!

Such a quaint place, Located in such a beautiful town, open early enough to accommodate early…read morebrunch takers and even allows you the enjoyment of watching the locals and passers through stroll through at 9am for some grog. Maybe not at 9am. Located just behind the Stirling pub and just off the main road through town in a new complex built also for one of the most well laid out Foodland stores I've ever seen (wooden floors in a supermarket equals fancy!). But we're here to talk about this. fancy. place. Come up, grab a quiche, a ginormous berry meringue to crack open and devour, a cheese plate and coffees for everyone - and then go hard at the goods. Great ambiance. Want to buy ridiculously fun and expensive local and imported goods? They've got it, too. Or if they haven't, pop next door and see if they do. With seating that allows you to watch the staff behind the scenes or the trees across from the complex, styled with fun, comfort and genius. Go solo for some quiet times, or bring friends and enjoy the moment. Go initially for sophistication and depart with an armful of new friends to drink (sensibly!). Just don't miss this spot - whatever you do.

This cafe is good and what I would describe mostly as home style cooking…read more Only had breakfast here and have always been happy. Their coffee is ok and the food is nice with large servings. The seating can be difficult here as it has lots of booths but for two only. Can be a bit disjointed if three of you and seems to get quite busy. Lovely open fire in Winter and popular with the Der Hills clientele. My Nanna loved it!

I regularly attend the Kondotorei Coffee Lounge and every time I am happily satisfied with what I…read moream given. Their extensive menu ranges from delicious Vienna hot chocolates and coffee to fresh gourmet baguettes or sliders to hot chips or a big breakfast. Whatever you feel like Kondotorei is the best place in Stirling to get it. Their cute booth style seating and roaring fire in the winter makes Kondotorei stand out from other places in Stirling that are often noisy and uncomfortable. Affordable prices and friendly staff top off what is really a 10/10 experience. I would highly recommend Kondotorei coffee lounge and fern garden.

Went here with our dog on a cold winter morning. The outside heater was not working and though they…read moreoffered blankets they kinda smelled so we sat inside. They have an organic store where one can do grocery shopping. My sister got herself some vegan and organic stuff here. I got vegan scone with vegan butter - it was good! Almond latte was nothing special though. Good place to read a book or the morning paper. Very pet friendly too (our dog made some doggie friends while waiting for us).

Stirling is beautiful during the autumn. The streets are lined with shades of red and gold leaves…read moreand the streets are busy with people. One of my favourite spots to stop for coffee, lunch or cake is the Organic Market Café. Set up on a side street to the main road, the Organic Market Café is a popular destination for locals and visitors to the Adelaide Hills. They offer a range of food, beverages and a market store out back. If you are looking for grains, organic veggies, teas, olives, oils, pastas, etc you will find it here. They stock quality specially picked products from around Australia and some imports. They fruit and Veg here is really fresh and flavoursome. For those sceptics on the quality of organic foods I ask you to try an apple from this store. You will notice the flavour is more intense, it is crisp and juicy. This is the result on fresh (not frozen) food. As for the dining experience, well there are a lot of beautiful healthy and veggie heavy items for you to choose from. My favourite in particular is the antipasto platter. Order it and you can thank me later. They pickle their own veggies and make their own dips. Also, if it is cold and you need to warm up while you are in the hills, check out the soup of the day. They have a great selection and served with warm crusty bread. Super yummy! For those with dogs, this is a pet friendly café out the front area. There are many people who bring their pups along to stop for a coffee. So, don't feel shy!

Well, well, well... it seems that Aldgate Providore has re-branded and had a facelift. All for the…read morebetter. This feels a lot more modern and quite classy. I think this is a really great thing for Aldgate. Kind of stepping up and showing the Community it is ok to change your image. I hope that a lot of the neighbouring businesses take note. For too long has the Adelaide Hills been old and outdated. Over the last 5 years we have seen some impressive changes. This is one of them. The décor inside is really well planned. All the colours work together, green being their spark of colour. And certain little touches of green are really clever. For example, I brought my dogs along to the café and I was handed two green bones on a plate for them to enjoy! How sweet is that? Do you know any other cafes that offer your pups a treat? Not many that is for sure! The menu is simple, but well thought out. I ordered the DIY Brekkie, which you have poached eggs and toast as the base and you can add other items. I decided on haloumi and avocado. Eggs were cooked prefect. But only one slice of bread? It was quite a costly meal of over $20, so I thought I would get two slices at least. Oh well... My partner tried the truffle scrambled eggs. Which I thought was much better value. So much flavour and cooked really well. Fluffy and not overdone! I am glad to see this café in Aldgate. I am sure the Community will love it. As for myself, I will try a few more items on the menu.

Newly renovated Fred Eatery is the shinning gem that is drawing locals and visitors alike to…read moreAlgate. Brunch was what we came here for and boy were we keen to refuel after 8kms of hiking. Our reserved table was waiting for us upstairs. We were all enjoying the warmth from both the heaters and the interior fitout as we walked through. Green and wood is used throughout the space. A very lovely fitout indeed. First shock would be the pricing of the food dishes. I don't mind paying for quality, however, I think it is a tad outrageous to charge customers $12 for two eggs on toast or $23 for smashed avocado which came with two eggs. Getting over the initial shock, we queued up to order. It was the longest wait for the amount of people in the line. Not sure why the staff taking the orders was so slow. It became apparent that a second staff was needed. Food came intermittently, which is understandable as we didn't order together. Having said that, one of the ladies who ordered first had to wait till everyone received their food before hers came. Hangry would aptly described her emotions. The food was delicious! I had the croque monsieur. Never heard of it before, I took a gamble and was pleasantly surprised. Other dishes included a little of a lot, smashed avocado, mushrooms on toast and the Frederick special. Really glad we stopped here for brunch. It is definitely popular. I still maintain that it is overpriced for what we received though. Worth checking out, but bring a big wallet!

If you ever wake up on a day off on a Friday or Saturday morning (8.30-4) and you're feeling…read moreeasy-breezy and you're looking for a cruisy, quaint, casual cafe brekky or tea then I highly recommend the Piccadilly Kitchen (PK). The coffee is good, at a good price and perfect with a cheeky slice of cake if you're so inclined. We indulged in scrambled eggs with kasundi relish (amaaaazing!) And avocado and tomato on homemade buttermilk bread. All tasty and filling too. Its uber-kitchy decor and open kitchen gives PK a unique home-meal type charm with a rustic hills cafe quality. The service is an OK pace, if you're not in a rush...i can't imagine this would be the sort of place you'd stop if you were, but as I said, if you go in feeling loosey-goosey, no fuss, no stress, PK is a definite winner. Glad we finally made it and looking forward to returning to try the rest of the lunch menu.

This is a beautiful little spot in the Adelaide Hills. Adjacent to the lower entrance to the Mt…read moreLofty Botanic gardens and situated on Piccadilly road which runs from Stirling/Crafers to Uraidla/Summertown, this little cafe is quite often pumping on the weekend. They have a fairly simple set-up; a small open kitchen and a few tables inside and then a few more tables outside. My first visit was on my brother's wedding day when the three of us bro's went out for breakfast beforehand. The breakfast wasn't huge or elaborate but was well cooked and the coffee was fantastic. I've been back for coffee and cake and the quality is still high. They sell all sorts of jams and spreads made locally in the hills and have a rack of plants out the front for purchase. I also read that they have a barter system there; so when we visited they were asking for lemons and were offering food or coffee in exchange. I like that initiative. If you live in the hills and have driven past on your way to somewhere else and thought "is that place any good?", the answer is yes, so you should pop in and support your local hills cafe. You never know how long these places will stay open if you don't.

Oh wow! Perfect little spot in this area to enjoy some nice sweets or little lunch. It was…read moredelicious and service was great!

Staff always very polite. Food delicious, best chocolate in the hills and well priced. Great…read moreatmosphere.

Good coffee in Mylor? Who woulda thunk it? The times they are a changing my friends…read more The Mylor caf is the new kid on the block and with its rustic, farmhouse charm, generous and healthy food and super friendly owner Elizabeth I dare you not to love it! They do brekky and lunch and last time I was there Elizabeth was just finishing up for the day... it was around 3:30 pm during the week and she happily scrounged to find us some food and took the time have a chat and make us feel really welcome. She would have been late home that night but she gained two loyal customers by going above and beyond. Love it! The huge homemade muffins are particularly noteworthy and all the bread is the most delicious bread in the world from the Mylor Bakery which is behind the Cafe.

The Harvest Mylor is situated opposite the Mylor Sports Oval. 240 Strathalbyn Rd, Mylor.The cafe is…read moreset back behind some nice established trees, inside there are a number of rooms available for dining. Being a warm late spring day, we found a good table in the shade, under the canopy of trees. The menu is quite comprehensive for breakfast and lunch, with cakes, croissants, freshly baked sourdough bread. We finished off our relaxing brunch with a very good coffee. We found the service was excellent and friendly, even though, being lunch time with a large crowd of customers. A very satisfactory stop in the Adelaide Hills.

Woodbake Oven is located in the heart of Stirling. It is a bakery of sorts that offers a pizza…read moretrade on Wednesday evenings. This store is really famous for it's bread, baguettes and tarts. The bread sold here is really fresh, crisp and fluffy. It is more of a French style of cooking bread. It is really lovely! They sell pre-made baguettes for lunch trade that look amazing. I have yet to try one, but there is always a line at lunch. Apart from the bread, I have tried their pizzas a couple of times. The toppings offered are not complicated. A few ingredients is all that is needed. I feel for this store it is more about the base than what is on top of it. The base is cooked really well. Nice thickness and it is crispier than other bases I have had. If you want more on your pizza you have the option of adding more toppings. As for the desserts, they are divine. The pastries are perfection and fillings deliciously naughty. Perfect for a treat for the weekend. A lovely couple own this store and are very welcoming and happy to help. They really look after you and make you feel welcome. So, if you are after a bread stick, pizza or dessert head to Woodbake and give them a go!

To review Woodbake, you can't just review their pizzas, and it is a shame that this place is listed…read moreas "Woodbake Pizzas" on some sites; so I'll give a run down of the rest of the business before I do that. According to my sources, Chris Broadfoot trained under famous French Chef Paul Bocuse and therefore knows what he's doing. When you enter the shop, you are usually greeted by Chris' partner Nancy who is lovely and very accommodating. As I've only been there at night I haven't seen everything that they offer, but what I have seen is great bread, pastries, and savoury and sweet tarts. Chris is always behind the counter preparing some baked good and getting it ready to go into the wood oven at the back corner of the shop and dresses like a traditional French baker. The pizzas are fairly minimal, but you can add extra toppings. They are a bit pricey, as is most of his products, but they are the highest quality and I always enjoy everything I buy from Woodbake.