The Garden Cafe in Cambridge

Here you order food, receive it, and pay at a small portion of a counter. When we visited at least 4 people were 'working' behind the counter. In front if us were 12 people yet we had to queue 20 minutes for service. The food was all ready, the staff were just almost incapable of serving it. And they didn't listen to requests, meaning that several people had food provided that was not what they asked for. After you finally get served, you then have to remove tea bags, add milk etc at a tiny spot right at the exit from the srving area. If anyone behind you has been lucky enough to get served, they are then stuck behind you while you juggle your tray, cups and milk. I'd be astonished if there is a way to lay this spot out worse, or to have less capable service.

On arrival customers were directed to one of two queues - hot food and hot drinks or cold food and drinks. I wanted a hot snack but found that having queued for 10 minutes and receiving my food they were unable to provide me with a hot drink and I then had to join the other long queue for a coffee. This took another 10 minutes by which time my hot food was well and truly cold. The cutlery was also not particularly clean. The cost for a small hot snack and a coffee was £12.45. The size of the cafe and queueing area is much too small is and on entry I thought that I was waiting for food whereas the queue was actually for the toilets which are for both genders and causes unnecessary delays too. I would recommend that visitors take their own refreshments and eat in the gardens. It is a great many years since I have experience such poor service.

This cafe is vastly improved since last visit. Drinks are served in China mugs and the whole ambiance is much better than previously. Maybe new owners? Cakes are well covered, still only cards, but it’s so popular cash would take too long. The Botanic gardens are so wonderful to visit, and a great place for meeting friends. There is an entry fee. There are other toilets near the glasshouses. the toilets by the cafe are rather few and queue variety. Push the doors as they are apt to look closed when they are free. Handwashing facilities are inside each cubicle. On a bus routes, near the rail station, or Trumpington P&R Seating Inside and outside with shades.

Although there weren't a lot of choices for the fridge foods, we really enjoyed the cakes that are unique flavours and organic. Even the lavender ice cream was a surprise...my daughter laughed when I described it as "tastes pretty". She liked it but I am keen on having it as a candle or air freshener. Still, I am glad I have tried something different that spells out Botanical. The cakes were amazing too, although some can do with less sugar. Overall, we enjoyed our little snack after the tour as it was a sunny, not crowded afternoon and the icing on the cake was a lovely young lady manning the till. I should have taken her name but she is very friendly, welcoming and helpful in making us choose from the unfamiliar cakes explaining what each one is. All cafes should have a delightful staff like her that even if food is quite pricey, you get really good service! My daughter and I really enjoyed our afternoon. Well done!

Toilet facilities were a row of self-contained, unisex cubicles. With a queue. With one man in the queue pushing at the doors to see if anyone was inside. And another man deciding he couldn't be bothered waiting and pushing his way past to the disabled facilities. And inside.... splashes on the toilet seat, and large puddles on the floor. Grim.

A really disappointing experience today. The cafe set up is confusing with two tills and very cramped fridge area so you can't get to anything. There are no food options for children. Most of the visitors were families so I just don't understand this. Missing a trick, will bring a picnic next time. My halloumi wrap was nice, but soggy. Lots of outdoor seating which was very pleasant. Could be so much better with very little effort.

Not a bad cafe when well staffed but can be frustrating at busy times. A pleasant area to sit outside on a sunny day.

If you just want a coffee, cake, sandwich, baked potato etc. then this cafe is good. We have visited many times and on this most recent visit we both had an excellent baked potato with a large mixed salad. My wife is gluten free and had no problem getting cake etc. If you want a proper meal go elsewhere! This is a simple but adequate selection..

I wanted a side salad with my order, not on the menu but the server instantly asked the kitchen if they could do it. A fresh decent sized salad appeared. Lovely atmosphere due to positive and friendly staff.

Very disappointing. The cafe is badly laid out with limited queuing space next to the toilets. Food was expensive (£19 for two wraps and two ice creams) and confusingly labelled - some of it without any pricing so that until you get to the till you have no idea how much you are going to pay. Some of the Ice creams were soft to the touch inside the freezer cabinet. Shall take my own picnic another time.

Visited the Botanical gardens which sadly were suffering due to the excessively hot weather. But none the less still a lovely afternoon spent. We wanted a drink and a snack but found the cafe to be very average. Gluten Free NOT catered for in any way. Not even one GF cake on this occasion. I opted to have soup which was very nice but was served in a takeaway cup but was too thick to drink from the cup so had to spoon it out anyway. Asked for GF bread. After 5 minutes a roll was given to me which had been defrosted way too long as it was red hot. But the texture was awful. A little bit of a shake up is required and it would be so much better. Disappointing.

I visited the Botanic Gardens with friends and whilst we were there we wanted a drink and a snack so headed for the garden cafe. I gave my order and went to pay with cash but I was told by the member of staff that they do not accept cash. This was a little frustrating as someone who is trying to manage their budget but the thing that I found ironic is that they have a cup for tips which was full of cash. So they will not let you pay with cash but they expect you to tip them with cash?!?!?!? The drinks were good but I find it really annoying when people dictate how I should pay for their services.

Long queues. Not enough staff. Awful 'hand made' cold drinks; my friend had a terrible co-called iced tea and asked for mint leaves to give the concoction any flavour at all.. There's a poor selection a food - the people behind me - and I - couldn't find anything we liked the look of. I ended up with a plain cheddar roll! I then had to eat outside (inside was stuffy and smelly and noisy) with the sun beating on my neck as the only free table, of course, was in the full sun. Surely all the tables need some shade on a summer lunchtime? I definitely recommend that you swerve this café and take your own food and drink - the gardens are beautiful!

They have a captive audience so are very expensive - it would be nice if the quality of the drinks matched the price. I have had some of the worst drinks of my life here - the iced caramel lattes are especially egregious, with huge amounts of caramel syrup being used alongside what can only be charitably described as espresso waste water to produce one of the most sickly cups I have ever had the displeasure of having.

Everything for sale here was overpriced. I get it; it's a captive audience. But £3 for one ice-cream, when you can buy a 4 pack of that identical ice-cream in the supermarket for £2? Crazy! The entire food menu aside from ice-cream was completely unappetising, all of it was either things you'd never heard of before or it was an attempt at being 'posh' and mixing herbs and leafy veg with things that don't go together. Not my idea of food, unless you're a rabbit or you want overpriced lumpy soup on a hot summer's day.

Coffee acceptable but in paper beaker,soup also served in paper container.Water served in plastic tumbler with unpleasant taste.Sausage,bacon and cheese muffin served in brown paper,muffin hard,contents did not taste fresh. Cambridge you can do better than this surely.The Fitzwilliam Museum cafe was far,fsr bettdr than this disappointing cafe food.

Hot drinks and soup served in cardboard cups and the contents taste of cardboard as a result. Pre-filled muffins are heated up in a microwave, consistency of cardboard. The gluten free cakes are positioned next to the non gluten cakes and are not kept covered and flies abound. The staff not very welcoming but are stretched, don’t look into the kitchen area if you want to eat here. Suggest you bring your own picnic. Such a shame as so much more could be made of this snack cafe

It is such a shame that each time I visit I look forward to coffee and cake qt the cafe, and each time I am very disappointed with the cake , it is always dry . I live in hope that one day I will...

Spinach / feta pie was okay-ish Sausage and cheese muffin was dreadful + Packet of crisps, soft drink and a bottle of cider £22.50 !!!!!!! What a complete con, Rip off central

We visited the Botanical Gardens on a hot summer's day and had lunch at The Garden Cafe. Despite it being a busy day, we found outdoor seating. Most of the tables had parasols and some were under a pretty pergola. For lunch, we ordered pasta...

Had a snack lunch for 10 people on Sunday. Sat outside where tables were in dire need of some tlc and had lots of ants crawling out the planters on the top of the table. The jacket potatoes at 7.50 pounds were a disgrace being...

As a café with a captive audience your expectations tend to be on the low side - and The Garden café probably fits nicely into that category - although, if you are a vegan or vegetarian you may tend to be more complimentary. We would...

We had lunch here on our visit in early May. To avoid the crowds, we went at 1145. The cafe is light and airy with lots of chairs and tables which soon filled up. The counter area is rather cramped and gloomy. The food, including...

I went with my daughter to visit the garden and it was incredible.First, they need to hire more staff.They have a delicious meal (sausage rolls and salads) and we were served by ian, a most pleasant waiter. Unfortunately he left after another girl (in Spanish...

We go to the gardens and pop into the cafe every couple of weeks, always enjoying something new and full of flavour. Food is all home made, delicious, and the staff have always been friendly and welcoming. Great coffee too.

Lovely choice of food, but not sure the staff like working there? Surly and not necessarily focused as you would expect customer service staff to be, doesnt cost anything to be welcoming and smiling. Not sure if you are meant to clear your own trays...

We went last week, having read some reviews we were a little uncertain. All I can say was that it was clean, tidy and there was plenty of room. I can see how at busy times there could be a wait but we did not...

The cafe is located in the Cambridge botanic garden. You can sit inside or outside on the terrace. I prefer the terrace. Nice view over the garden. There is no service. You have to order inside.

Mediocre. Nice bacon but precooked. In great doorstops of cold (quite ok) bread. Nice tea. Packets of tomato ketchup.

It seems that having a captive market of garden-goers permits low standards. The food is deeply average, flavourless and quite frankly incredibly overpriced - The cafe wouldn’t survive if it were anywhere other than in the gardens. I have been several times and each visit...

We went for breakfast this morning. Ordered a builder's bun (with sausage patty egg and bacon) and scrambled eggs with mushrooms. Both were very slow to come and when they did were not hot - had clearly been sitting on the counter, maybe forgotten -...

Niets zo lekker als een prima drankje na een flinke wandeling door de hele mooie botanische tuin. De koffie is prima en de andere drankjes zijn divers. Bij de koffie hebben we lekkere koek genomen.

We attended the gardens last weekend, something we had been meaning to do for some time, there is nothing like walking around gardens to build up an appetite - and we were keen to have some food and a sit down vpbefore continuing to explore...

The cafe is always busy, it offers good freshly made food at reasonable prices. The are lots of tables outside so you can continue to enjoy the garden whilst sipping your coffee or eating lunch.

Mi pareja, su hija y su nieta visitado en 07 - mayo - 18 (Mayday Feriados Públicos) para el almuerzo. Me compré una quiche de bacon y queso duro (seco), contenido de pastelería roll queso (NO bonito), ensalada de salmón (salmón muy poco y muchas patatas frías). Desierto un bollo muy seco. Un 50% de su comida fue dejado sin tocarla. Ambiente bien. El personal abrumado. Pérdida de dinero - bill c. £26.

A serving counter of delicious food and deserts. No waiting..we had a jacket potato with Mediterranean vegetables,houmus and salad...full of flavours. Really friendly staff too.. a great lunch.

Called in on a very cold Sunday lunch. There was a queue out of the door. Trouble is the layout of the place makes it unclear if you're in the queue for food or the loos!

Popped in for lunch after visiting the hot houses. The home made goats cheese quiche and salad was excellent, with a nice warming cup of breakfast tea. Definitely worth the visit and good value for money.

This is a very nice place to come and rest after walking around in the garden for a long time. The food is very nice, the staff are very friendly and helpful which is great when you have a baby in a big buggy. Definitely...

Tasty, well made food and lovely coffee. However, the queuing and serving area is very small and cramped and a customer doesn’t really know everything on offer until they are virtually at the counter. This could be made easier, for both staff and customers. But...

hoped to get lunch but the queue was so long that we were glad we had popped to the supermarket for some snacks so had these instead we did get a coffee just before we left near closing time

Visited The Garden Cafe today with my partner and friends. We were welcomed my Monica (Manager) and her staff. The...

Fuimos un poco de café y tarta, y no era en absoluto decepcionó - el pastel era delicioso (aunque un poco caro) y las bebidas. Además, el personal era muy amable y yo recomendaría este lugar para un buen almuerzo o pastel porque nos quitaron...

No puedo conseguir suficiente de la hermosa artesanos café y bocadillos aquí durante los meses de verano cuando visite los jardines. Deseando que mis visitas otoño!

Acaba de leer las otras críticas de este café, y es un recordatorio sobre cómo diferentes personas stark puede tener diferentes experiencias. En primer lugar, la chica que me atendió fue amable y eficiente. El vino que compra - había una variedad de tinto o...

This is self service at a counter almost as you get through the door. The food was fine - it all depends on what you choose but it took over 15 minutes to get served with a [fairly short] queue. Coffee was excellent. Table clearing was efficient which is always a plus!

No creo que pueda ir salvo que han comprado la entrada para el jardín, ya que tratamos a principios de este año, es una pena, ya que resulta muy caro de lo contrario. La comida es buenísima y el personal parecía eficiente, pero podría haber algunas caras sirve.

Si visita los jardines botánicos el debe visitar el Garden Café. La terraza exterior está distribuido tan bien con un montón de espacio, elevado vid para sombra y una sensación general de tranquilidad. El menú no es mal!

Realmente el servicio amable en un ambiente hermoso. Las pastas, ensaladas, tartas, sándwiches, rollitos de salchicha son deliciosos!

Piacevole baretto nel cuore del fantastico giardino botanico di Cambridge. Dopo un'ora di piacevole passeggiatina nel favoloso parco, rilassatevi con una fetta a scelta tra le 1000 ottime torte ed un (discreto) double espresso.

A warmly welcoming clean café to recharge after a long walk around the Botanic Gardens. Lots of healthy food and good coffee. Lovely outside in the Summer.

Mooi restaurant net veel zelf gemaakt en gebakken biologisch eten. Redelijke prijzen en snelle bediening.

We have visited the cafe before and have been pleased with the food however today the food was poor. We ordered scrambled eggs and smoked salmon for an expensive £7.95. The scrambled egg was like rubber, obviously microwaved although the bread was nice. As I couldn't eat the scrambled egg I ordered and paid for a vegetable tortilla which was at least edible. The cakes looked nice and the coffee was good. Shame as the botanical gardens is wonderful. Will remember not to eat here again and stick to the coffee and cake instead.

This is a popular modern cafe with indoor and outdoor seating. They have freshly made hot food as well as salads and cakes and sandwiches. I had a lovely pasta bake and fresh salad box. The quality was first rate and though not cheap I though the prices were fair.

Wide range of foods. Vegetarian, gluten free, healthy and tempting treats.Very good value for money.Pleasant seating areas both outside and indoors.

It was fairly quite when we visited, and could enjoy tea in a tranquil atmosphere. Menu items vary in price according to one's testae.l

We stopped here for a spot of lunch while we were mid-way through our wander through the botanical gardens.The café itself was very clean and tidy and there were lots of staff on hand doing a good job of keeping it that way. The till staff were also very pleasant and friendly.There was a lovely selection of snacks and drinks but it was all on the expensive side. Considering the great value of entering the gardens, you would need to factor this into your budget!

We grabbed a drink and toilet break to shelter from the rain. Clean and tidy and a nice range of cakes but a bit over priced for what it was.

The Botanical gardens, hidden amongst the commercial buildings in central Cambridge, is a must do and see. Beautifully manicured lawns and borders, with greenhouses with tropical and unusual species of plants. Lovely winding walkways over water, round expanses of greenery and trees with shade and sunshine and plenty of places to sit and be quiet. The tea rooms are marvellous with snacks (baguettes, sandwiches, soup and quiches, alongside cakes and biscuits). Well priced, seating inside and out, and open all year round.The gardens are open all year round, and offer lots of events and activities, especially for young children and groups. Unfortunately, the café is only accessible when you pay the entrance fee to the garden.

Fabulous choice and jacket potatoes, but my husbands lamb wrap was mostly fat. Lovely cup of tea and place to sit outside.

Be aware that you can only use the cafe if you first buy a ticket to visit the Botanic Gardens! This is NOT noted on the cafe website or when making a phone booking.

Had a lovely coffee, jacket potatoe, cheese & salad. Really well presented in a clean friendly building with plenty of table choices both inside & out. The menu had a very good choice of hot & cold food, all served really quickly & politely. The prices seemed really reasonable.

Had afternoon tea here while visiting the Botanic Garden and this was a most necessary and enjoyable break. Reasonable prices and good quality.

Lovely cafe with large outdoor seating area. Self service and there is usually a queue but they try and keep it moving along. Great freshly cooked light lunches and cakes. Lots of choice for veggies and the carnivores love the sausage rolls! Always 2 interesting soups available. Had parsnip and apple which was a lovely combination. Quiche and frittatas and salads all tasty! Had one of the best brownies I've ever tasted-dense,gooey and chocolatey! Yum!! The gardens are well worth a visit and it's so nice to find something other than the usual fast food at a well visited attraction!

If you visit the cafe then have a sausage roll cause they taste like really nice so yeah. They have a lot of meat in so its not all air. It's worth a visit for the sausage rolls.

Had tea and cake, lunch and more tea and cake! Everything was delicious especially fresh mint tea and lemon polenta cake. I really enjoyed the lamb wrap, friends haspd quiche and salad and jacket potatoes, we all felt it was good value.

Very high quality food. Salads particularly good when washed down with a bottle of Prosecco. £34 for four.

We popped in here for lunch before meeting a friend and came back later for coffee and cake. Our jacket potatoes were ready by the time we had paid for our order and picked up our cutlery. Generous portion of filling. When we had coffee later, there was gluten free cake available - and tasted very good. The cafe is spartan in appearance but the views of the gardens make up for it. We would have appreciated the offer of help with our tray as both of us use walking aids. Overall, it's pricey enough for what it serves but it is very convenient.

After a lovely walk round the Botanic Gardens we popped into the Garden Cafe for some coffee and cake. The Soya Flat white that I had and my husbands flat white were delicious, nice and hot, great strength of coffee and served quickly by a lovely friendly barista. We shared a piece of their berry and pear cake (gluten free) which was also yummy. Well worth a visit and nice to go somewhere other than the usual chain coffee shops.

The café is modern, spacious and very clean, with stone floors and chunky wood furniture. Plenty of light floods in and the décor is very pleasing. A good selection of hot and cold meals are on offer, together with cakes and sandwiches, rolls etc., also a good selection of hot and cold drinks. Good provision of plenty of clean toilets makes this a very good place to visit.

Lovely setting, delicious home-made food, cakes to die for, friendly staff couldn't do enough to help.

Outside of the school holidays this is an oasis of peace in Cambridge. A pretty basic cafe with a dull menu that doesn't seem to ever change. However, sitting outside on a sunny day looking across the botanic garden makes up for a lot.

Food in this beautifully designed cafe surrounded by lime trees, is high quality and locally sourced. I would recommend stopping off in this excellent place for a snack and drink when visiting the garden. The sausage rolls are sumptuous and generous. When raining, as if was when we visited, it is possible to snack while being sheltered from the elements with light lunches being available until 3 pm. Wifi also available.

Always providing a changing menu with high quality healthy ingredients. Fresh coffee and tea. Will suit singles, couples, families, and people just wanting to get away from it all.

After a lovely walk around the beautiful Botanic gardens it is so refreshing to find a nice spot to have lunch or a coffee. The menu is simple but the food is delicious and very reasonably priced and something for the kids too. It is a cafe more than a restaurant but the food was fresh and appetising and a good selection of drinks (maybe a few leaves of salad on the plate with the flan would be more attractive). Indoor and outdoor seating although the outdoor is not covered. The staff were very friendly and premises clean. Only one thing which let it down and that was the toilet facilities, which were unisex and simply not enough on a busy day, having people lining up for food next to the people lined up for the toilet is not a good look.

Offering a somewhat limited menu and somewhat costly prices. Quite busy none the less we tried the jacket potatoes with beans and the falafel wrap.The potatoes were of a good size, properly cooked and the beans reasonable with a mixed leaf side salad. The falafel wrap was actually bigger then I thought it would be with three falafels, a bit og humus, some leaf salad and a sweet chilli sauce that still had a bit of bite to tit.There were some interesting drinks on offer but for the three of us to eat and have a drink it totaled £23. They also offer a selection of baguettes, quiche and a few other things.

What could be better than a walk through a beautiful garden, followed by a lay lunch with friends? June is an excellent time to visit when so many flowers are in bloom. The cafe has a huge terrace, and it is far better to lunch outdoors. The cafe is self service and the queues can be long, so aiming to lunch early or late is a good plan. You can take food and coffee out if you prefer to have a picnic on the grass, or seated on one of the many benches around the fountain.Food tends to the expected lunchtime staples of soup, sandwiches, quiches and a salad bar, all healthy and with plenty of vegetarian options. There are excellent homemade cakes. Paths are wide and flat from the Panton street entrance off Trumpington Road to the cafe, so wheelchair users and those with buggies will find this a highly accessible trip.

Esta cafetería ubicada en el interior del jardín botánico de la universidad de Cambridge es una excelente opción donde tomar un café, con alguna porción de torta o sandwiches surtidos. Hay variedad de comidas vegetarianas. Buen precio.

The new cafe in the heart of the Botanic Gardens is an oasis of green in the city. The food and drink selection is well matched to the setting but a few things let it down.1. There were no opening times on the website for the cafe so mid afternoon we took a chance only to find that the 'menu' ceased at 2.30. The menu means anything hot. Its disappointing this ends so early, and frustrating that you can't know that from the website in advance.2. There was however a selection of stock items available outside this time. I had a vegetarian flat quiche thing and my friend a piece of gala pie. Neither were horrible but they lacked any particular taste - completely forgettable food. We added salad (coleslaw, pasta salad, beetroot etc) to that which was quite tasty, but the pots were very small and seemed expensive.3. I suppose what you pay for here is the terrific location, but unless you are a member of the botanic gardens, or a Cambridge University student you will have to pay the entrance fee to the gardens to access the cafe so it makes a meal for 2 expensive for what it is.IN SUMMARYIf you want to visit the Botanic Gardens anyway or have free entry it is well worth a visit - otherwise it would be a much more attractive proposition if they served food for longer periods and gave a discount at the cafe against your entry fee.