Tanja's Cafe & Restaurant

Tanja's Cafe and Restaurant has been part of Main Road in Wellington Point since 1972, a family-owned, fully licensed dining room that has fed generations of Redlands locals. For dog owners it has a rare drawcard: a fenced dog area built into the outdoor dining space, so a meal out does not have to mean a dog tied short at your feet for two hours.

The dog setup

Dogs are welcome across the large undercover outdoor dining area. At the back is a fenced section where dogs can go off lead, with tables positioned close enough that you can keep an eye on yours while you eat. Staff regularly put out water bowls and there is no extra charge for bringing a dog. Service runs to breakfast and lunch, and it gets busy at peak sittings, so arrive early if you want a table near the fenced area.

Pepsi: A fenced yard next to the tables means I can actually stretch my legs off the lead instead of sitting still through the whole meal.

The vibe

The kitchen runs a broad a la carte menu: eggs benedict, a generous seafood basket, chicken parmigiana and schnitzels, with gluten-free options and a cake cabinet fed by the on-site croissanterie. Live music appears on the calendar, and the room has the feel of a well-loved local institution rather than a trend-driven cafe. Weekends fill fast with families, so expect a wait at prime times.

Getting there and parking

The address is 372-374 Main Road, Wellington Point. On-street parking runs along Main Road, and the cafe is an easy drive from the surrounding Redland City bayside suburbs.

Close by with the dogs

Wellington Point Reserve, with its foreshore paths and the low-tide sandbar walk out to King Island, is minutes away and makes a natural partner to a long lunch here. For more dog-friendly tables on the same strip, Farmhouse Restaurant and Cafe and Oxleys on the Bay are both nearby, and Cedar and Stone covers the pizza night.

The wider list is on the QLD restaurants index and the Wellington Point destination page.