• Chill At Portofino

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  • White Veg-options
Lacto
Ovo
Western
Juice bar
Breakfast
Australian
Non-veg

Serves meat, vegan options available. Breakfast, light meals, juices, coffee, smoothies, and sweets. A few meals can be adjusted to be vegan, such as the tree hugger breakfast ask to omit egg and add a side of beans and tomatoes. Mention if you are vegan and staff will make a note on your order to ensure your meal is dairy- and egg-free. Situated on the corner of William's Esplanade and overlooking the beach with bar-style dining inside and tables. Previously named Chill Cafe. Open Mon-Sun 7:00am-10:00pm.


Venue map for Chill At Portofino
© OpenStreetMap contributors

12 Reviews

First Review by chantea

gerrardould

Points +3501

Vegan
09 Mar 2024

Temporarily closed - 9 March 2024

Not sure why but they appear to be temporarily closed at the moment. Sad because it looks like it was very popular and in one of the best locations.

TabithaA

Points +4541

Vegan
25 Oct 2023

Simple but good

I had ciabatta and hasnrowns
Both good sized

kattyfigs

Points +185

Vegan
16 Oct 2023

Tasty food but limited options

I got the smashed avo and asked to have mushrooms instead of feta. My husband got the acai bowl, which was too sweet for me. My meal was delicious, though. Yeah most of the options just need to be adjusted.

Pros: Tasty

Cons: Most vegan options are just vegetarian options adj

jeffrey_ca2003

Points +133

Vegan
09 Jul 2023

Few options, but what I got was decent, friendly service

Like others, I ordered a treehugger breakfast and they were happy to make it vegan (without the egg and, I think, cheese). They substituted with mushrooms and I got a side of baked beans. I asked about the pesto and the server said it was vegan(?). The meal was tasty, but wasn’t as filling as I would have liked. There was one other dish that could have been made vegan, but it seemed like a smaller portion of food.

I definitely enjoyed what I got and I appreciated the chill and friendly servers, but gave the restaurant only three stars because of the lack of options. I was considering a four because there are so few vegan options in Palms Cove.


Okay, an update. Had the pizza last night. Pretty good. Ask for the vegan cheese! Upped the rating to four stars. Still no protein option, but felt the love.

Updated from previous review on 2023-07-09

Pros: Friendly service, happy to accommodate, What food they provided was tasty

Cons: Very few vegan options

RaeSabine

Points +373

Vegan
30 May 2023

Expected more

Food was ok but they don’t give you anything extra for taking off animal products. Extras are small for the price.

Spun6

Points +235

Vegan
29 May 2023

Not bad

Limted vegan options as previously stated. Quite expensive for just some avo on toast with a side of beans and hash brown. Left here still hungry unfortunately. Staff were really nice tho.

Pros: Friendly staff, Good location

Cons: Expensive , Limited options

Zelena

Points +168

Vegan
05 Dec 2022

Nice resto with limited vegan options

The menu doesn’t clearly state vegetarian/vegan options and just promises to take care of dietary requirements. You’ll need to consult the staff to make the order. For vegetarians there are many options with pasta, gnocchi, pizza, caprese salad. Vegan options are limited to garden salad and vegetarian pizza with mozzarella swapped to vegan cheese. I enjoyed the dinner and the nice terrace, just wish there were more vegan options. Vegetarian pizza with vegan cheese was nice. Pumpkin made it taste quite sweet so leave it out if you prefer savory.

Pros: Nice terrace, Great wine card, Fast service

Cons: Limited vegan options

KatieBatty

Points +1477

Vegan
15 Mar 2021

Nice vegan food, amazing view

Chill at Portofino (previously Chill Cafe) is a good breakfast and lunch option in Palm Cove. They will veganise menu items for you and have almond, soy and coconut milk. We both got the Tree Hugger - they omit the eggs and give you beans instead. It was really nice. Also got a green smoothie and pink lemonade. It's so nice to eat looking over the beach. Breakfast is served until 2pm which makes it great for lunch too.

Jeff Sanders

Points +81

Vegan
30 Jun 2020

Possibly, maybe, not sure, don’t care.

The guy serving alluded to the possibility of a vegan option... for something... but didn’t really seem to want to be there serving anyone, regardless of dietary requirements.

When I arrived the other staff member had to shut him down for his pointless patron head count and just usher me in. With the obvious lack of customers due to the oil crisis, uh, I mean.. pandemic, he still seemed too busy to help and commanded me to ‘just order at the bar when you’re ready'.

Needless to say I used the time to scan Happy Cow for another venue before deciding to just take a walk on the beach instead.

I’d advise fellow vegans to pack a lunch or just plan to get a beer in Palm Cove, or take a trip to Nepal - you have far more vegan options trekking in the Himalayas.

UnaMJ

Points +182

Vegan
19 Nov 2018

yum:) ask 4 vegan

not vegan, but the staff knows what it is and will adjust accordingly! i had a big salad w/ lettuce, quinoa, sweet potato, sunflower seeds, pomegranate, chickpeas and a vinaigrette (asked the waitress if it was vegan 1st and she said she would make sure of it). it was delicious and the portion size was good!

VeganSoapDude

Points +7308

Vegan
10 Jul 2014

Unable To Meet My Vegan Needs

I stopped in here based on the stellar review that I read on HappyCow and asked the server what vegan options he had. He seemed a bit confused and offered me a 'salad sandwich'. I told him that I read they once served a vegan wedding.. He wondered off to ask someone about it and returned to tell me that they had ordered all sorts of things in for the wedding that were not currently available. He offered me an egg sandwich without egg or something else that didn't seem appetizing. I then asked him about the tree hugger because it was recommended in the previous review, and was told that the pesto has cheese. I gave up and walked away. I'm sure the food here is lovely.. Maybe they needed some advanced notice.. I won't be returning.

Pros: Once Hosted A Vegan Wedding

Cons: No Vegan Options On Menu , Lack Of Understanding

Cteeal

12 Oct 2014

What a shame you had this experience. Ive been here lots of times and while its true that your options are limited, they can and will adjust the menu for you by doing an open salad sandwich or a breakfast with some changes such as beans for eggs etc.they also do lots of juices. The menu is very limited anyway but with a but of gentle negotiation, they will help. Like many places, i guess-you have to be prepared to assust them in understanding what youd like. I could only suggest the waiter was a bit off that day as normally theyre really good, but you have to be willing to work with them as its not a vegan restaurant (no restaurant in the area is vegan). Juices and very simple meals are easy here, but its the location and atmosphere that makes it a nice place.

chantea

Points +234

Vegan
28 Apr 2014

An absolute must visit in Palm Cove

You haven't experience Palm Cove if you haven't gone to Chill Cafe. Just as the name suggests, this is the place to sit, eat and chill. With a view of the beautiful beach and palm trees, Chill Cafe gets the best of the gentle sea breeze and with it's new funky outdoor seating area, you also get the best of the sunshine and view.

Chill Cafe's owner Tony provides a warm and welcoming atmosphere. He is such a great host and very open to providing for all his customers, vegan or otherwise. Last year he even hosted a vegan wedding at the cafe, and the only reason he doesn't do more vegan options is because of the lack of frequency of vegan visitors…but let's change that and get more of us in there!

The menu states they can do vegan options and with a bit of a switch here and there, it's not too hard to do. The staff all know what vegan means and will highlight this on the order. The tree hugger is the best option: ciabatta with avocado, spinach, pesto (cheese-free) and mushrooms, order it by omitting the eggs and cheese and instead with a side of beans and tomato. You can also get the Boss Special but omit the eggs.

There are heaps of juice options and they can do the occasional green smoothie. But keep your eye on the counter as they also sell raw vegan chocolate balls made by local company Sweet Leaf. Soy milk isn't an issue either and I'm sure they could do a nice open sandwich on request…I just always go the tree hugger cos it's so good.

A really great little cafe with cool and casual staff.

Pros: Menu is easily adapted for vegans, The beachside, chilled out atmosphere, Staff are accommodatin to vegan requests

Cons: No vegan specific meals

ElSalvadorGnarly

01 Oct 2022

If a switch here and there wasn't hard, then surely printing a specifically vegan menu, as I am sure the discerning trend is taking root, non¿




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