GOMA Bistro, Gallery of Modern Art — Restaurant in Brisbane City

This review was posted 2 weeks ago to the old GOMA Cafe page which has now been renamed Goma Restaurant. It appears this new page has been set up using a slightly different address. I don't imagine much has changed in 2 weeks so the review still stands. It's shame their first review on their new page is a bad one and I hope they make some changes so your experience was better than ours. It could easily be better and it deserves to be better.

It is disappointing to step into a cafe on a rainy day and be faced with a menu where a toastie is $18, if it was even available. A kids' meal is $14. A small plate of fries is $12. And a very ordinary ham and cheese croissant is $12 too. There is nothing special about this food, and it is priced advantageously, knowing that people have few options nearby.

I do not mind paying a high price for quality food, or even, on occasion, for an exceptional location. The cafe, arguably, is not offering either.

After I ordered my daughter's Chicken Tenders and Chips, Croissant, and Fries, I walked back to my table and saw the staff carrying what I first mistook to be something returning to the kitchen, not leaving it. But no, this staff member was placing a plate of two burned chicken tenders and basic fries on a table, not hurriedly taking it away. Whether you appreciate art or food or both, this was an embarrassment of a dish to put in front of anyone. It must have been a mistake, I thought. Ours will be better.

Our croissant came out first, a bit dry but burned—definitely not looking like a French patisserie $12 croissant (is GOMA unaware of what you can get from a sit-down bakery in Brisbane for that price?). Then the fries and tenders—looking equally as tortured as the plate I'd seen earlier. It's obvious they've got a reheater out the back on a timer that nobody can be bothered to adjust. Doused in tomato ketchup to offer some rehydration, our kids got it down. The only memorable thing on offer was the herbed aioli, and the only thing that didn't stop the entire experience from feeling like a cheap truck stop lunch (no offence to truckers—without you, Australia stops).

This is GOMA. Why, after all the effort they've put into the gallery, have they decided to rort customers in the cafe with cheap food and high prices? How does this help young families or underprivileged people taking advantage of our excellent public institutions get ahead when you're serving food on par with a homeless shelter at close to fine dining...

This bistro is conveniently accessed by a lift inside GOMA which means you don't have to sign back in and out but can stop for a rest as we did while viewing the APT10. The menu is limited but they have specials on a board. You order at the counter with a table number. I waited a long time, over 15 minutes to have my order taken due to a woman with very rude children that monopolised the counter with their demands. The staff member behind the counter handled the situation with style and humility. As a result there was a line of people that had built up and my order came a long time after my friend who had finished eating. One till taking the orders just doesn't work and you can see the line builds up during lunch service. Coffee is ok not high end and my latte was so frothy it was almost unenjoyable. The corn croquetas and vegetarian mushroom banh mi were lovely. There is a cakes cabinet with some treats, healthy popsicles for hot days and large water coolers to help yourself to chilled water. Service was very good, friendly and knowledgeable staff. It's licenced with good disability access. Perfect for a break when...

Very disappointing first experience at the Goma Bistro, which we chose to dine at while waiting for entry to the Goma exhibit. Milkshakes weren't available due to the machine being broken, which is understandable, but the iced chocolate with cream and ice cream that was offered instead had neither cream nor ice cream - it was basically chocolate milk. Very disappointing. Further, I ordered the GF chicken nachos, and while they were pretty enough that I took a photo of them, they were anything but pretty on the palette. They were bone dry and seriously needed some form of nacho sauce to offer some moisture to the chicken, cheese and chips. A blob of guacamole and a dollop of sour cream unfortunately were not enough to save this dish. I couldn't eat more than two chips worth, and my full plate sat at our table while copious numbers of wait staff walked by, without a single inquiry as to how we were enjoying our meals or experience. I will unfortunately not be returning nor recommending anyone I know to dine here. I wish I'd walked that bit further to try the museum cafe which looked much larger and full of...