Elephants Rest: African Garden Gallery

Elephants Rest: African Garden Gallery is an outdoor cafe and art space at 28 Montefiore Street in Callington, a small township just off the Princes Highway between Murray Bridge and Adelaide. The venue states plainly that dogs and pets are warmly welcomed, and with almost everything happening in the garden, there is plenty of room for a well-behaved dog under the table.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome throughout the outdoor garden areas, which is essentially the whole venue; the seating is outdoors by design. The owners ask only that dogs stay under control at all times, and there are no dedicated dog facilities, so bring your own water bowl. This suits calm dogs happy to settle while you work through the scones.

The vibe

The drawcard is the African-inspired garden itself, filled with sculpture and art, with a gift shop to browse. The kitchen keeps it simple: coffee, tea, cake, scones, samosas and pizza, with beer and wine for the afternoon crowd. Entry is free and visitors consistently mention the welcoming owners, which counts for a lot when you arrive with a dog in tow.

Max: it is all outdoors, so if the forecast looks grim, ring ahead. There is no rainy-day option here and my fur took the brunt of that lesson.

Getting there and parking

Callington is about an hour from Adelaide and 25 minutes from Murray Bridge by car, with on-street parking on Montefiore Street. The venue trades Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 5pm, running seasonally from October through to the end of April, and closes over winter. Check it is open before you build a drive around it.

Pair it with

On the way home, St George's Bakehouse in Murray Bridge covers the second coffee, or Laratinga Wetlands in Mount Barker adds a waterside walk. For an off-lead run, Johnstone Park Fenced Dog Park is a short detour.

More options are on the South Australia dog friendly cafe guide and the Callington destination page.