I have been regularly driving past the Red Lime Shack for a couple of years now and thinking I must try them out. Finally we got there, and I can promise it will not take as long to go back again!
The Red Lime Shack is a vegan cafe situated on St Vincent Street in Port Adelaide. It has been around for a few years now and has had accolades in the past with The Advertiser voting their veggie burger the best in the state in 2014.
The cafe itself has a very strong community feel to it. The furniture is a mismatched hodgepodge of comfy chairs and sofas, with some areas with tables for food, but others for relaxing with a coffee. There are also tables outside for when the weather is nice or if you have your doggy friend with you. There are many causes being promoted on the counters and surrounds, with paintings and other items for sale from local artists. The walls are covered in posters promoting local events or events that will appeal to the vegan community.
My favourite part of the cafe was a free book exchange. Customers are free to swap any books they like from the shelves with ones they have finished reading. There looked to be a decent selection of books on the shelves just waiting to be picked up. Next to the shelves was also a small table to cater for children with some colouring items and toys. Overall, there is a great atmosphere at the Red Lime Shack and I felt immediately comfortable and relaxed.
We had called in for lunch. I myself am not vegetarian, but my dining companion was. The menu is actually vegan, but had a great range of items. Red Lime Shack is a breakfast/lunch/coffee venue, so they serve an all day breakfast menu. We chose to have the fruit salad from the breakfast menu but without banana, and this was no problem at all. Of course we also had to try the award winning burger – this one was a pecan, sweet potato and maple patty with fresh salad, onion jam, mustard and tahini mayo. There was also the option of a gluten free bun, but we went with the standard. This was washed down with a BerryRipe fruit smoothly.
It’s hard to say much about a fruit salad, but this one was fresh and plentiful for the AUD$9 we paid for it. The burger for AUD$11 was delicious, not at all dry like some veggie burgers I have tried in the past, and with a great mix of flavours. The only bad part was that it was so filling we had to forgo the signature raw lime pie for dessert.
We also did not get a chance to try the organic coffees, but will be back to do so. There is a frequent customer offer with coffee, once you buy seven, the eighth cup is free. Another menu item at the Red Lime Shack is a Suspended Coffee. As a customer I can purchase one, but it is held to be served to a local disadvantaged community member at a future date. Just another way the local community is being supported by this great cafe.
Overall a great, economical place to grab a quick lunch or breakfast in Port Adelaide, to have a business meeting or to meet friends for a coffee. The food may be vegan, but it is tasty and you will not even notice the missing ingredients. Their menu can be found on the website here to get you drooling before you arrive and remember to tell them Simon from Ourworldinreview sent you!
Red Lime Shack Rating: 1-10 (1=very poor, 10 = excellent)
Decor = 8
Atmosphere = 8
Service = 8
Price = 9
Food = 8
Overall = 8
