Cleanliness 4 Service 3 Food 3 Likelihood 3 1-5 (5 Best!) 3.3 In its day, the garden cafe set the standard for portions, quality, and service. Today, it is, for the most part, a faded reminder of "ok" food and "ok" service. I ordered the Monte Cristo, it was nothing grand, very bland. It was hot (thank you!) The restrooms were clean, thank you. Service was ok. I received one refill for my iced tea and water. My friend enjoys this restaurant and order taker. While my experience was not stellar, many people will find it a place that serves ok food, for an ok price, and that is ok. I am on a quest for wow food and wow service. This simply isn't that for me.
(3)
Paige Y.
First impression when walking in was that this place smells like a nursing home. That should have been our first clue that this restaurant wasn't going to be very clean. The booths were filthy and the carpet was disgusting. The owner, Brent Ganey was in the restaurant the entire 2 hours we were in there and he did not ask us how our experience was. Good food - but too dirty.
(3)
Paul C.
The waiter was a fun guy who REALLY knew the menu and I LOVED the chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes. Just real good comfort food done right. Also picked up some pastries - this is a MUST do....looking forward to exploring more of the menu..
(4)
Patricia M.
I love their chocolate cake. I usually buy a slice before heading over to The Jaipur for dinner. I might even confess that going to The Jaipur for dinner is my excuse to stop here for a slice of cake. :-) I've also had breakfast here, which I'll admit is nothing special. Stick to the cake and pie when you want to indulge and you can't go wrong.
(4)
Lindsey B.
My husband and I ate here tonight, and my cafe benedict was mediocre at best. My food had been sitting out for a little bit in the kitchen and the hollandaise sauce was starting to congeal on my plate. He ordered the zesty burger, and thought that it was pretty good. If my review was based on the food alone, I would come back and try something else. However, the environment and the service were not that great. The interior of the restaurant smelled like mold and the booths were very uncomfortable. Our waitress barely checked on us and didn't fill our water glasses. If the restaurant was busy, I could understand this, but there were only three other tables in the restaurant.
(1)
Shad B.
There Cakes are totally amazing. I got a few cakes for birthdays from there that looked like something off the food network. There Waldorf Estoria cake is just plain amazing. If you have a birthday or event or just want a good treat get your cake here. There frostings will just melt in your mouth. Yep, it is just that wonderful.
(5)
Michael G.
This place would benefit significantly with a good cleaning. It is dirty and less than appetizing. The wait staff is very hit and miss...it seems there is mimimal training or some staff that are lazy. Upon sitting down the hostess ran a quick sopping wet towel over the dirty table leaving the table top very wet from a dirty rag. We had to ask that the table be wiped down again. we were waiting for a 3rd to join us when the waiter who brought us 3 glasses of water asked if we were ready to order...we had to explain that we were waiting for a third person. He turned to leave when I grabbed him to order some coffee. When he brought the coffee I had to ask for both cream and silverware. The food is decent and their desserts are very good but between the filthy environment and the apathetic wait staff I can't recommend. Clean thoroughly and train your staff and you may start getting as popular as the other brunch/bakery restaurants in town see regularly.
(1)
J K.
Please, for the love of God, rip out the carpet and thoroughly give this place a good cleaning. The minute you walk in, the odor just smacks you in the face. It reeks of mold, as if the place had been flooded, with minimal clean up. You know how a moldy basement smells in an old house? This is how The Garden Cafe smells. The carpet is horrible, stained, and I'm certain the odor originates here. Put in tile flooring, repaint, and sanitize everything and maybe we'll return. As for the food, it was ok. We were a party of three and one of us ordered a Monte Cristo, another a noodle dish and another hot roast beef. However, the powered sugar sprinkled on the Monte Cristo was also all over our dishes. Sweet noodle casserole and sugared roast beef may be the taste they're going for perhaps? I want to like this place again, but the carpet has to go. The smell alone will keep me away.
(1)
Kurt S.
I went to Garden Cafe for lunch with my mom today and our experience was good. I was immediately seated when I walked in and in no time the waiter came over and took my drink order. I waited a few minutes for my mom and she showed up and sat down. Right when she sat down, the waiter came over and took her drink order, he was very prompt and nice. The service was A+ I ordered the junior size hot beef sandwich and my mom ordered the ham and cheese potato casserole thing. My hot beef was really good and it was the perfect size. The roast beef was the perfect temp and moist. The masher potato's were delicious and the gravy was nice and peppery. Very good. Overall, the food was good, the service was good, the prices were good. Everything was great about this visit. I will definitely be going back again for some home-cookin' lunch.
(4)
Michelle H.
Garden Cafe has really gone down hill from what they used to be. The restaurant was pretty dirty and the employees didn't seem very hygienic as I watched them. The food left nothing to be desired and I was very unimpressed...I had an omelet that was incredibly greasy.
(1)
Adam S.
It's like Wheat Fields from the 90's. A standard American breakfast. It's cheap if you get here before 9 though, which is great. Averages at about $6 a plate on the early bird specials.
(3)
Matt J.
The breakfast here was good and the service was great. They had plenty of staff ready to serve the Sunday brunch crowd. My egg scramble was great. It tasted fresh, with a good ratio of egg, cheese, and fresh vegetables. My wife's potato casserole was great too. But the giant cinnamon roll was the "icing" on my meal. Get one and be ready to share. The odor in the restaurant was not good. What is that smell? It reminded me of a wet basement. Some people wouldn't notice it as much, but they need to get that fixed.
(3)
Amy M.
The food here was not very good. My fiance and I both have big appetites and we didn't care to finish our food. He ordered the Eyes Wide Open breakfast (corned beef hash with two eggs and sliced potatoes). I'm pretty sure they just used canned corned beef hash - it was mushy and off-putting. The only thing tasty about his meal were the pancakes. They were really good. I ordered an omelette with broccoli, chicken, almonds and hollandaise. It was bland, the eggs were rubbery, and the chicken was chewy. We did have a nice server and service was timely. Unfortunately, that's not enough to bring us back.
(2)
Steve T.
The place was busy. There was a craft show at Rockbrook Village. No waiting but the tables were not clean. Servers were pleasant but the cooks were slow. Food was just ok. Had an omelette and the wife had a skillet. Not great.
(2)
Shawn L.
I'm not sure what's happened to this place, but it's not good. Every time I've been here in the past few years, the food has been progressively worse. Today, it took 45 minutes to get three omelets and a kid's order of french toast. All were horrible - the french toast, which was supposed to be cinnamon, was pretty much flavorless. My "garden fantasy" omelet contained hard, uncooked vegetables (one being a baby carrot) that were totally unappetizing, and my two friends' omelets were so bad that they were left largely unfinished. And to top it off, our bill was nearly $40. Avoid, unless you enjoy long waits and overpriced, bad food.
(1)
Cindy W.
Pretty disappointing. They used to be known for their chicken salad. I ordered their scoop of chicken salad and a side salad. When the food came, my chicken salad was a scoop of mushy mayonaisse chicken salad with chopped celery. I thought it was tuna salad. It was like canned chicken. When I questioned the manager he assured me it was fresh chicken that is chopped. If it was, it was just like canned. Side salad had some slimy lettuce. Certainly, won't be back.
(2)
Rachael L.
I think I have been going here with my family for my entire life, especially when they used to have more locations (downtown location is now Roha). If you like Wheatfields or the Farmhouse Cafe then you'll love the home-style rustic food and potato casseroles. I believe the owners used to be or are somehow related or possible the same people. I had their club for lunch yesterday and it was delicious, but if you go here, you have to try a dessert. Luckily, I was with my 9-months pregnant sister, so we had an excuse to eat any dessert we wanted, but we ended up splitting the turtle bar. A bar is a cross between a brownie/cake and sometimes fudge. It is heavenly! If you really like chocolate cakes, order the sour-cream chocolate cake for your next occasion (or a slice if you are in the restaurant) it is extremely rich and decadent and will force you into a blissful chocolate food coma.
(3)
K S.
I would first like to say, I wonder why the previous glowing reviews only garnered 3 stars! My husband and I are new to Omaha and have struggled to find nice hometowny cafes in areas that aren't ridiculously out of the way for us. We were hungry after picking up some prints at rockbrook camera and decided to scope out the rockbrook plaza for some quick and easy dinner. We found the Old Fashioned Garden Cafe tucked far in the back corner of the plaza and made our way inside. The atmosphere is cute and diner/kitsch, but very clean even though it seems quite outdated. We were greeted promptly and sat at a booth, but I did get a glimpse toward the back corner where it looked like there was a cozy indoor "gazebo" for large parties. Our server was kind and not overly fake/friendly, a quality I really appreciate It was pleasant to hear her interacting with what seemed to be regular customers, clearly remembering their orders after much loyal patronage. The clientele were mainly elderly folks looking sideways at me and my husband and our tattoos, treatment that we have grown used to in this area. This was a minor annoyance but of course the restaurant can't help their customers' prejudicea, and none of the staff seemed to treat us with any prejudice. He ordered the Cheyenne potato casserole topped with a fried egg and I had the biscuits and gravy with a side of crispy hash browns. I tasted the chicken fried steak from his dish, but I don't like corn or onions so I declined to try the rest. The steak tasted decent though! My biscuits amd gravy was great, a step above the bland flavor most diner b&g turns out to have. Husband thought it needed salt but I disagreed. The biscuits were stick-to-your-mouth thick and the sausage patties sandwiched between were salt and peppery, which is probably where most of the flavor came from. I asked for crispy hash browns and crispy they were, I was not remotely disappointed. We declined dessert but they did have a 2 for $5 special on dessert portions. I was pleasantly surprised with our quick, hot, and tasty meal and while I might not go out of my way to dine here again (it is about a 25 minute drive in traffic) I will certaibly be back next time I am in that area.
(4)
P J.
What a cute little restaurant. I went here for a late breakfast with some friends. I had the Works scramble, which is scrambled eggs with bacon, ham, and vegies. I've never had broccoli with eggs before and I was surprised that it actually tasted pretty good. It was also accompanied by a huge cinnamon roll -really enough for 2 or 3 people. My friends had a pancakes and a skillet. and both seemed to be pleased. It wasn't the best breakfast I've had, but the staff are friendly and they didn't mind that we stayed in the restaurant for over 2 hours talking.
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Brunch Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Divey Noise Level : Very Loud Alcohol : No Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : Free Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : Yes
Royal B.
Cleanliness 4 Service 3 Food 3 Likelihood 3 1-5 (5 Best!) 3.3 In its day, the garden cafe set the standard for portions, quality, and service. Today, it is, for the most part, a faded reminder of "ok" food and "ok" service. I ordered the Monte Cristo, it was nothing grand, very bland. It was hot (thank you!) The restrooms were clean, thank you. Service was ok. I received one refill for my iced tea and water. My friend enjoys this restaurant and order taker. While my experience was not stellar, many people will find it a place that serves ok food, for an ok price, and that is ok. I am on a quest for wow food and wow service. This simply isn't that for me.
(3)Paige Y.
First impression when walking in was that this place smells like a nursing home. That should have been our first clue that this restaurant wasn't going to be very clean. The booths were filthy and the carpet was disgusting. The owner, Brent Ganey was in the restaurant the entire 2 hours we were in there and he did not ask us how our experience was. Good food - but too dirty.
(3)Paul C.
The waiter was a fun guy who REALLY knew the menu and I LOVED the chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes. Just real good comfort food done right. Also picked up some pastries - this is a MUST do....looking forward to exploring more of the menu..
(4)Patricia M.
I love their chocolate cake. I usually buy a slice before heading over to The Jaipur for dinner. I might even confess that going to The Jaipur for dinner is my excuse to stop here for a slice of cake. :-) I've also had breakfast here, which I'll admit is nothing special. Stick to the cake and pie when you want to indulge and you can't go wrong.
(4)Lindsey B.
My husband and I ate here tonight, and my cafe benedict was mediocre at best. My food had been sitting out for a little bit in the kitchen and the hollandaise sauce was starting to congeal on my plate. He ordered the zesty burger, and thought that it was pretty good. If my review was based on the food alone, I would come back and try something else. However, the environment and the service were not that great. The interior of the restaurant smelled like mold and the booths were very uncomfortable. Our waitress barely checked on us and didn't fill our water glasses. If the restaurant was busy, I could understand this, but there were only three other tables in the restaurant.
(1)Shad B.
There Cakes are totally amazing. I got a few cakes for birthdays from there that looked like something off the food network. There Waldorf Estoria cake is just plain amazing. If you have a birthday or event or just want a good treat get your cake here. There frostings will just melt in your mouth. Yep, it is just that wonderful.
(5)Michael G.
This place would benefit significantly with a good cleaning. It is dirty and less than appetizing. The wait staff is very hit and miss...it seems there is mimimal training or some staff that are lazy. Upon sitting down the hostess ran a quick sopping wet towel over the dirty table leaving the table top very wet from a dirty rag. We had to ask that the table be wiped down again. we were waiting for a 3rd to join us when the waiter who brought us 3 glasses of water asked if we were ready to order...we had to explain that we were waiting for a third person. He turned to leave when I grabbed him to order some coffee. When he brought the coffee I had to ask for both cream and silverware. The food is decent and their desserts are very good but between the filthy environment and the apathetic wait staff I can't recommend. Clean thoroughly and train your staff and you may start getting as popular as the other brunch/bakery restaurants in town see regularly.
(1)J K.
Please, for the love of God, rip out the carpet and thoroughly give this place a good cleaning. The minute you walk in, the odor just smacks you in the face. It reeks of mold, as if the place had been flooded, with minimal clean up. You know how a moldy basement smells in an old house? This is how The Garden Cafe smells. The carpet is horrible, stained, and I'm certain the odor originates here. Put in tile flooring, repaint, and sanitize everything and maybe we'll return. As for the food, it was ok. We were a party of three and one of us ordered a Monte Cristo, another a noodle dish and another hot roast beef. However, the powered sugar sprinkled on the Monte Cristo was also all over our dishes. Sweet noodle casserole and sugared roast beef may be the taste they're going for perhaps? I want to like this place again, but the carpet has to go. The smell alone will keep me away.
(1)Kurt S.
I went to Garden Cafe for lunch with my mom today and our experience was good. I was immediately seated when I walked in and in no time the waiter came over and took my drink order. I waited a few minutes for my mom and she showed up and sat down. Right when she sat down, the waiter came over and took her drink order, he was very prompt and nice. The service was A+ I ordered the junior size hot beef sandwich and my mom ordered the ham and cheese potato casserole thing. My hot beef was really good and it was the perfect size. The roast beef was the perfect temp and moist. The masher potato's were delicious and the gravy was nice and peppery. Very good. Overall, the food was good, the service was good, the prices were good. Everything was great about this visit. I will definitely be going back again for some home-cookin' lunch.
(4)Michelle H.
Garden Cafe has really gone down hill from what they used to be. The restaurant was pretty dirty and the employees didn't seem very hygienic as I watched them. The food left nothing to be desired and I was very unimpressed...I had an omelet that was incredibly greasy.
(1)Adam S.
It's like Wheat Fields from the 90's. A standard American breakfast. It's cheap if you get here before 9 though, which is great. Averages at about $6 a plate on the early bird specials.
(3)Matt J.
The breakfast here was good and the service was great. They had plenty of staff ready to serve the Sunday brunch crowd. My egg scramble was great. It tasted fresh, with a good ratio of egg, cheese, and fresh vegetables. My wife's potato casserole was great too. But the giant cinnamon roll was the "icing" on my meal. Get one and be ready to share. The odor in the restaurant was not good. What is that smell? It reminded me of a wet basement. Some people wouldn't notice it as much, but they need to get that fixed.
(3)Amy M.
The food here was not very good. My fiance and I both have big appetites and we didn't care to finish our food. He ordered the Eyes Wide Open breakfast (corned beef hash with two eggs and sliced potatoes). I'm pretty sure they just used canned corned beef hash - it was mushy and off-putting. The only thing tasty about his meal were the pancakes. They were really good. I ordered an omelette with broccoli, chicken, almonds and hollandaise. It was bland, the eggs were rubbery, and the chicken was chewy. We did have a nice server and service was timely. Unfortunately, that's not enough to bring us back.
(2)Steve T.
The place was busy. There was a craft show at Rockbrook Village. No waiting but the tables were not clean. Servers were pleasant but the cooks were slow. Food was just ok. Had an omelette and the wife had a skillet. Not great.
(2)Shawn L.
I'm not sure what's happened to this place, but it's not good. Every time I've been here in the past few years, the food has been progressively worse. Today, it took 45 minutes to get three omelets and a kid's order of french toast. All were horrible - the french toast, which was supposed to be cinnamon, was pretty much flavorless. My "garden fantasy" omelet contained hard, uncooked vegetables (one being a baby carrot) that were totally unappetizing, and my two friends' omelets were so bad that they were left largely unfinished. And to top it off, our bill was nearly $40. Avoid, unless you enjoy long waits and overpriced, bad food.
(1)Cindy W.
Pretty disappointing. They used to be known for their chicken salad. I ordered their scoop of chicken salad and a side salad. When the food came, my chicken salad was a scoop of mushy mayonaisse chicken salad with chopped celery. I thought it was tuna salad. It was like canned chicken. When I questioned the manager he assured me it was fresh chicken that is chopped. If it was, it was just like canned. Side salad had some slimy lettuce. Certainly, won't be back.
(2)Rachael L.
I think I have been going here with my family for my entire life, especially when they used to have more locations (downtown location is now Roha). If you like Wheatfields or the Farmhouse Cafe then you'll love the home-style rustic food and potato casseroles. I believe the owners used to be or are somehow related or possible the same people. I had their club for lunch yesterday and it was delicious, but if you go here, you have to try a dessert. Luckily, I was with my 9-months pregnant sister, so we had an excuse to eat any dessert we wanted, but we ended up splitting the turtle bar. A bar is a cross between a brownie/cake and sometimes fudge. It is heavenly! If you really like chocolate cakes, order the sour-cream chocolate cake for your next occasion (or a slice if you are in the restaurant) it is extremely rich and decadent and will force you into a blissful chocolate food coma.
(3)K S.
I would first like to say, I wonder why the previous glowing reviews only garnered 3 stars! My husband and I are new to Omaha and have struggled to find nice hometowny cafes in areas that aren't ridiculously out of the way for us. We were hungry after picking up some prints at rockbrook camera and decided to scope out the rockbrook plaza for some quick and easy dinner. We found the Old Fashioned Garden Cafe tucked far in the back corner of the plaza and made our way inside. The atmosphere is cute and diner/kitsch, but very clean even though it seems quite outdated. We were greeted promptly and sat at a booth, but I did get a glimpse toward the back corner where it looked like there was a cozy indoor "gazebo" for large parties. Our server was kind and not overly fake/friendly, a quality I really appreciate It was pleasant to hear her interacting with what seemed to be regular customers, clearly remembering their orders after much loyal patronage. The clientele were mainly elderly folks looking sideways at me and my husband and our tattoos, treatment that we have grown used to in this area. This was a minor annoyance but of course the restaurant can't help their customers' prejudicea, and none of the staff seemed to treat us with any prejudice. He ordered the Cheyenne potato casserole topped with a fried egg and I had the biscuits and gravy with a side of crispy hash browns. I tasted the chicken fried steak from his dish, but I don't like corn or onions so I declined to try the rest. The steak tasted decent though! My biscuits amd gravy was great, a step above the bland flavor most diner b&g turns out to have. Husband thought it needed salt but I disagreed. The biscuits were stick-to-your-mouth thick and the sausage patties sandwiched between were salt and peppery, which is probably where most of the flavor came from. I asked for crispy hash browns and crispy they were, I was not remotely disappointed. We declined dessert but they did have a 2 for $5 special on dessert portions. I was pleasantly surprised with our quick, hot, and tasty meal and while I might not go out of my way to dine here again (it is about a 25 minute drive in traffic) I will certaibly be back next time I am in that area.
(4)P J.
What a cute little restaurant. I went here for a late breakfast with some friends. I had the Works scramble, which is scrambled eggs with bacon, ham, and vegies. I've never had broccoli with eggs before and I was surprised that it actually tasted pretty good. It was also accompanied by a huge cinnamon roll -really enough for 2 or 3 people. My friends had a pancakes and a skillet. and both seemed to be pleased. It wasn't the best breakfast I've had, but the staff are friendly and they didn't mind that we stayed in the restaurant for over 2 hours talking.
(3)