Part Time Lover — Restaurant in Adelaide

When we think of cafés, they often conjure up images of cozy atmospheres, friendly service, and delicious food and beverages. It’s a place where you can sit back, relax, and enjoy a moment of respite. Unfortunately, this was not the case with my recent experience at "A Part Time Lover." This café, with its charming name and trendy décor, promised much but delivered very little. In fact, my visit left me feeling not only disappointed but questioning how it has managed to garner any favorable attention at all. Below is an in-depth recount of my experience, touching upon the many aspects that led to what was undoubtedly one of the most underwhelming café visits I’ve ever had.

Ambiance: A Case of Style Over Substance Walking into "A Part Time Lover," one of the first things that strikes you is the modern, minimalist design. At first glance, it seems promising – clean lines, neutral colors, and a layout that would make any interior design enthusiast swoon. But upon closer inspection, it became clear that the sleek appearance is more of a facade for the café’s deeper issues.

The seating arrangement is uncomfortable, with chairs that seem to have been selected more for their Instagram-worthy look than for practical use. Tables are either too low or too small, and the cramped arrangement makes it difficult to enjoy any sense of personal space. If you’re hoping to work, read, or have a quiet conversation, good luck. The noise level is unbearable. The café tries to cater to the young, trendy crowd, and with that comes a loud playlist of overly repetitive pop hits, blaring speakers, and a general atmosphere of chaos rather than calm.

Worse still, during my visit, the café was understaffed, and there was an evident lack of cleanliness. Cups and plates were left uncollected, tables were sticky, and the floor had visible crumbs scattered about. Even the trendy décor couldn’t distract from the basic lack of attention to cleanliness and comfort.

Service: Unfriendly and Uninformed One of the core elements of any good café is its service, and "A Part Time Lover" failed spectacularly in this department. From the moment I walked in, the staff seemed indifferent and unapproachable. No warm greeting, no smile, just a cold “What do you want?” as if my presence was an inconvenience.

I tried to ask the barista for recommendations, hoping for some guidance on the menu, but they seemed uninterested and unknowledgeable about their own offerings. When I inquired about a popular item I had seen mentioned online, they responded with a dismissive, “We don’t have that today,” without any further suggestion of alternatives. Throughout my visit, the staff maintained an air of indifference, as if they were too cool to care about actually serving their customers.

Worse, after placing my order, I was left standing awkwardly at the counter without any direction on whether I should take a seat or wait for my order. It took a good 10 minutes before I finally flagged down a staff member to ask if I could sit down, only to receive a half-hearted nod in response. The service was not just slow; it was non-existent in terms of...

What the hell was that?!

All I said was, “the beef strap meal is for me and my wife is vegetarian so can we have the vegan items in front of her, separated so not incorporated onto the same plate as the meat?”. What came out was a completely deconstructed $46 main meal disappointment. My carnivorous plate was reduced to a slab of chewy beef in broth with a bowl of cold noodles and shallots on the side, why did they ruin my meal?!

The vego starter/entrees we selected to be provided for my wife were a great disaster too.

The Corn ribs provided had a layer of pepper/chilli dusting on top sooo thick that it just destroyed taste buds with the first bite. The lime wedge was coated red (the whole plate was coated red!) with chilli(cayenne pepper?) and the mayo was wasted as it couldn’t wash out the overly spiced corn. The chilli/cayenne pepper what-everit was we scrapped off the top created its own little pile on the side of the plate. It was just heat for heat’s sake, no nuance or balance applied. We were looking for pleasant lime and mayo flavoured corn, instead we got fire. The popcorn Brocolli was deceivingly presented well, but after the first three large pieces of substance on top were removed, it revealed the rest underneath were tiny, burnt to a carcinogenic taste and drowning in oil, it was like biting down on an old oily stovetop cleaning rag. (Yeah, I used to be a hungry struggling teenage dish-pig, I know what an oily rag taste like). The ‘fries’ were completely utterly fried too, it was like a cereal bowl of crispy little grease flakes. Forget adding milk it was already swimming in oil! Hardly any actual chips with a substantial fluffy potato centre, it’s like they ran a sieve through the deep fryer to collect what leftover bits were small enough and had slipped through the chip fry-baskets, then they just bunged all that muck out in a bowl for us. Mmmm yummy.

The only satisfying taste on the table was the Malbec and the Pinot.

Even when we went to pay we had to stand for minutes behind staff chatting with friends and planning ‘coffees later’. Neither of the staff at the till asked ‘how was your meal’.., I’m pretty sure that’s because they both knew what the answer would be.

It was an Oily, Carelessly spiced waste of a night out. I sat through our theatre show with an uneasy stomach and mouth of sickening burnt greasy saliva.

This place is not as clean or as crisp as it used to be a year ago (other than the crispy chip bowl-flakes).

With so many places to choose from in Adelaide, and with so many inflated restaurant costs passed onto the consumer.., why would I want to consume anything here again?

$130 plus dollars later., I really think we got mugged in Paul Kelly Lane.

Move along, next...

Part-time lover is one of THE BEST restaurants in Adelaide! I celebrated my birthday here this evening, and I was SO impressed by the staff and food that I had to write a review, something I very rarely do.

The restaurant itself has a very cool interior, funky lighting, a great cocktail menu and is nestled in a cheeky little spot, in the heart of the city.

Tonight my family and I were served by Rosie and a lovely young man that I didn’t catch the name of. Both of them were highly knowledgeable about their place of work, and had a welcoming and positive aura that cannot be faked. We very much enjoyed Rosie’s witticisms. Even when I first booked, I had a few questions about the food and the girl on the phone was more than happy to answer and/or seek any further information. We were also allowed to take in a birthday cake, something that I feel many places do not allow anymore. To top it off, they brought the cake out with a couple of sparklers and sang happy birthday 🎂 Of course there is a small cutting fee but this price is MORE than reasonable and perfectly understandable.

Now, the food… INCREDIBLE. I have eaten at some great restaurants in both the EU and USA, and this food genuinely surpassed and exceeded all expectations. One of the best meals I have ever eaten. We had the tomahawk experience and a few starters; corn ribs, broccoli, anchovy rosti and burrata. The food served at part-time lover is a delightful fusion of differing cuisines from all over the world. It is truely unlike anything I’ve eaten before, a real credit to the menu’s creator(s). The waygu was smooth like butter and melts in the mouth, the cut alone is outstanding. The meat was cooked to absolute perfection and is perfect for special occasions. (Also great for guests with dietary restrictions, an added bonus).

The team at part-time lover made my birthday very special, I can’t wait to go back in the near future (or for my next birthday). I could not recommend part-time lover more!!!! If I could give more than 5...