Rafiki By The Sea

Rafiki by the Sea is an exquisite hole-in-the-wall smoothie bar and refuelling stop tucked away beneath the Mermaid Beach Surf Club on Hedges Avenue, offering fantastic coffee and a must-try Pina Colada bowl.

This laidback venue offers handy off-street parking adjoining the café and lots of picnic style bench seating in a grassy succulent garden under a shady white umbrella canopy.  Probably the most popular spot to sit for those taking Insta-worthy selfies is the rustic timber communal benches under the iconic timber Rafiki sign.

Located across the street from Mermaid Beach’s Tower 26, Rafiki looks out towards the sand over the delightful statue of a little mermaid, basking in the sun with her arms outstretched. With Ken Mansbridge Park and absolute beachfront to the East and leafy tranquil Mermaid Park to the west, Rafiki might just be the best located café on the Gold Coast.     

Rafiki serves single origin specialty coffee rotating its selected bean-of-choice between roasteries offering the most ethical and sustainably produced blends. Possibly outshining the coffee are the superbly conceived smoothie bowls on offer, including the Signature Açaí Bowl (with blueberries, raspberries, banana, mango, strawberries, apple, passionfruit and granola) and the Pina Colada Bowl (with pineapples, coconut, banana, apricot, vanilla, mango and granola). You can select gluten-free granola and can add peanut butter or Nutella for sweetness. 

Second to the smoothie bowls, Rafiki is also famous for is golden fully loaded toasties, from the classic cheesy, bacon and egg, and ham/cheese/tomato to the more sophisticated BBQ pulled pork, Moroccan pesto chicken and vegetarian haloumi.

Similarly spectacular are the Smoothie options, including the Super Green (ginger, mango, super greens, chia, banana, kale and coconut nibs), the Bananarama (banana, vegan protein, vanilla and nutmeg), the Sahara Sunset (mango, berry coulis, banana, raspberries, blueberries and coconut milk) and the Triple Berry Açaí (blueberry, raspberry, açaí, banana, maple and coconut water). And if you just want to grab a quick treat, the counter cabinet is stocked with baked cookies and treats.

Rafiki has a spot just waiting for you to cruise in. 

By Michaela Lyons

The menu may have changed since our visit.