After recently spending two days in the picturesque town of Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills, I have come up with a list of many of the places for eating vegan Hahndorf has to offer.
With recent changes to my diet, I am effectively eating only plant-based foods now. At home this is easy for me to achieve, but when I am out and about it becomes a little more difficult.
Have Questions? – Come and join the Facebook Group and ask any questions you may have about travel in South Australia. We can provide answers, make further suggestions and update you with the latest information. Click here to join now.
Where to find Vegan in Hahndorf
While in Hahndorf I tried all sorts of vegan foods, from snacks to desserts, breakfast and dinner. There are no dedicated vegan restaurants or cafes in town but there are still a lot of options.
Here are the places I found delicious vegan food throughout my visit
Herbee’s Garden Cafe
I just happened to ask a girl working in one of the many shops along the main street of Hahndorf where her favourite place to have lunch was.
I didn’t mention that I needed vegan options, so I was very pleased to arrive at Herbee’s Garden Cafe to discover two pages of vegan meals on their menu, such as an açai bowl or smashed avocado for breakfast, vegan nachos, three different vegan burgers and a Thai noodle salad.
Being in Hahndorf though, I had to go for the option with a German feel to it, so I ordered the Vegan Sausage in a Baguette.
It was basically a sausage in bread, just like I used to be able to have outside Bunnings – but this was super-sized and much more delicious.
Underneath the sausage was a sautéed mix of mushrooms, onion, and capsicum. As with all good German meals, it was also stuffed with sauerkraut.
It was topped with grainy mustard, tomato sauce and vegan mayo. Some of the things I have missed the most since I have become plant-based are the everyday meals, and this sausage-in-bread was a delicious alternative.
I was really tempted by the daily special – it was Taco Tuesday! All tacos were $5, and it has been so long since I have had one. There were three vegan tacos on the menu and all sounded delicious. There were a range of vegan cakes and slices available too, and a variety of plant-based milks for hot drinks.
Herbee’s Garden Cafe has a lovely garden setting out the back full of all sorts of trinkets. On the side of the cafe is also a set of angel wings, perfect for your next Instagram update.
I honestly could have come here for every meal during our visit to Hahndorf – but that wouldn’t have made for a very interesting blog post!
Bean & Bikkie Co
I got sucked in by the big “Gingerbread Cafe” sign and just had to wander over to sadly smell the delicious gingerbread aroma wafting out of this cute little cafe.
As I sniffed and admired, remembering my travels in Europe, I started up some small talk with the person working behind the counter. “I’m just looking,” I said, resigned to disappointment. “There’s probably no vegan food here for me!”. But there is, I was told eagerly.
Okay, not a lot, but there was one jar of vegan gingerbread men on the counter, and multipacks available too!
Of course now that I had smelled all that delicious spiciness, I had to buy one of the gingerbread to take home and snack on later.
Bean & Bikkie Co are all about cookies and coffee as the name suggests. The also do light meals too, such as toasted sandwiches, banana bread and omelettes.
Every time I walked past them during their opening hours there were at least a few people waiting for their coffee or snack outside, so they seem to be a popular choice.
The Fruchoc Shop
Fruchocs are a South Australian favourite, and while I had yet to try them, I had heard tales of a vegan version. As soon as I saw The Fruchoc Shop here in Hahndorf I remembered and bounded in the door.
While hubby started happily browsing, I honed in on the vegan variety. The only question was – could I really justify buying a huge 1kg bag of Fruchocs to take home?
Ultimately I decided no, I really shouldn’t buy the big bag. I’d probably scoff them all in one go since I don’t get much chocolate these days. Instead I brought home the much more sensible 150g pack.
Apparently these vegan fruchocs are available in some supermarkets in Adelaide, but I am yet to come across them. I will just have to keep looking.
German Arms
German Arms is THE German pub in town. Think huge steins of beer paired with pork knuckles and wurst and schnitzels. It doesn’t really sound all that inviting for a vegan. And to be honest, it’s not, but they do still cater for plant-based eaters, and it’s pretty tasty.
The one item on the menu during my visit was an Eggplant Parmigiana with vegan cheese, chips and salad (photo is at top). Another of the foods I miss is a great pub schnitty, and this was a pretty good substitute.
It was nicely cooked, with good chips and a fresh salad. I would not be disappointed if I was dining here in the future and the same item was on the menu.
I didn’t see any vegan dessert options, even when I glanced at the cakes and slices on display as we left. To be fair I didn’t ask them about desserts, so it is possible that they had something that could be modified that wasn’t on the menu.
Ye Old Ice Creamery
Talking about dessert, the one place I indulged my sweet tooth during our visit was Ye Old Ice Creamery. This is just the cutest little building in a cute town.
It was originally a butcher back when it was first built, but now houses a large variety of ice cream and sorbet flavours.
I had walked past a few times during the day and each time I would stare longingly into the ice cream case to see which flavours I could have. There were a few listed on the sign outside the door with the tell-tale “v” for vegan.
When we eventually did decide to buy an ice cream, I asked what my options were and had five or six different flavours pointed out to me. I was tempted by the coconut and pineapple or mango sorbet, but I ended up choosing raspberry. It was rich and delicious (I am using that word too much I think!).
My dairy-eating husband chose a chocolate ice cream from the many flavours. All the ice cream is made here by the owner, including the durian flavoured ice cream, much more commonly seen in Asia than here in the Adelaide Hills.
Their website lists it as the second most popular flavour (after salted caramel in case you were wondering!). There were favourites too such as honeycomb and boysenberry – now if only they can make those in vegan!
Update: In September 2023, Evercream has become The Parlour Ice Creamery
The Haus Restaurant
Since we stayed at one of the Haus Group properties, we decided to eat breakfast in The Haus Restaurant on the main street. It’s not attached to the accommodation, and it is arguably the best known place in Hahndorf to eat.
I have eaten here one or two times in the past, well before I changed to plant-based eating.
Unfortunately there is not a huge number of vegan options on the breakfast menu, but there were two items. There was “Maple Roasted Pumpkin & Eggs” with a vegan option (I’m guessing they just remove the eggs and cheese) and there was a Haus granola.
Neither of these appealed to me so I went with my all time favourite breakfast – Vegemite on toast! I requested margarine, but one of the cooks came out and spoke with me, offering me butter as they didn’t have margarine.
Obviously I didn’t go with that option and literally just had Vegemite on my toast. This is not the first time I have had a similar breakfast, and I’m sure it won’t be the last, and luckily it really is my favourite.
As we walked out a glance in the display cabinet showed a whole plate of different vegan cakes and slices, so this looks like a decent choice if calling in for cake and coffee with a friend.
Kitchen 2C
By lunch on the second day we had walked past Kitchen 2C a handful of times and I had noticed the vegan options listed on their hand-written menu board outside the door. We were just looking for something light, so this ended up being our choice.
I chose the Vegan Cornish Pasty, served with local Beerenberg sauce made just a few hundred metres up the road. There was also a Lentil & Potato Pie on the menu. The soup of the day is sometimes vegan, and there is an ever changing array of specials, cakes and slices.
While here, try one of the extensive range of teas and coffees. For the non-vegans, there were some mouth-watering hot chocolates that for a few seconds tested my resolve. I mean, Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate or Butterscotch Dark Chocolate, anyone?
I enjoyed the food at Kitchen 2C, and really liked the relaxed, shabby atmosphere. It’s a cosy cafe that immediately makes customers feel at home. It was full almost the whole time we were there, showing how popular it is with locals and visitors alike.
There are also seats outside on the footpath too. I would happily come back and eat here again, and I recommend it for everyone, not just vegans.
Now that your stomach is full, these other posts will keep you busy
Adelaide 3-Day Itinerary
Things to do in Hahndorf
1 Day Adelaide Hills Itinerary {Six different options}
Don’t forget to come on over and join the Facebook group for more South Australian inspiration and to get all your questions answered. Click here to join now.
Found this post useful? Share with your friends and pin for later
