Lavenders Cafe — Restaurant in Newcastle-Maitland

I would have given Lavendars 5 stars if it were not for the somewhat lacklustre service.

We were told to take our pick of seating. It was not busy at the time. There was only one other couple sitting outside when we arrived.

We decided to sit outside to enjoy the outdoors, the river views, the old heritage architecture that surrounded the cafe and the birds. We love birds! That was our choice.

We did not have any issues with the array of pigeons strutting around the cafe, some were stunning however, there was a rather long table right next to us that was covered in unfinished meals. That's ok however, these meals were being picked apart by the pigeons - again - ok. My gripe was how long these left over meals were to remain on that table.

We arrived, perused the menu, ordered - which my partner had to go to the register to do - of course that's ok if that's how you roll but we thought there was table service? Maybe we're wrong and we'll happily accept that if we are - we didn't see anything to state otherwise.

We were served or meals, which by the way were delicious! I really enjoyed my Macadamia Crumbed Camembert Cheese with Red Currant Glaze, Onion Jam and Rocket and Apple Salad. A taste sensation - prepared to perfection TBH.

I'm a really slow eater, really slow. It was not busy, as I said, there was one other couple outside, a second joined as as we ate and as far as I could see there was maybe two couples inside.

The food on the table beside us remained the entire time. It was picked apart by the pigeons. Again, I've nothing against pigeons but I could not understand why that food was left there for so long, when there were signs asking to not feed to birds. It really is not acceptable for food or plates/dishes to be left out like that for so long, they should have been collected as soon as the party left - if not beforehand. It was NOT busy.

However, as I mentioned earlier - the food was delicious and...

The Lavendars Cafe is a lovely place on the river in Maitland with delicious food, good coffee and friendly, attentive service. Recuperating from a particularly nasty bout of flu, we decided to treat ourselves and it was well worth it. We came for breakfast and thoroughly enjoyed the Housemade Fritters with two poached eggs, bacon, tomato relish and avocado. I thought the fritters were a little unusual being somewhat flat and very brown - they looked more like an overcooked pancake than a fritter. However, they turned out to be deliciously tasty and - being on the thin side - weren't overly "doughy", as some fritters can be. The 2 poached eggs were absolutely perfect - nice firm whites and gloriously runny golden yolks. The rest of the dish was just right. Coffee was very good - maybe a wee bit cool - but at least you don't burn your tongue on the first sip. Addressing some concerns from other reviews...the service was prompt, efficient and friendly. We waited, perhaps 20 minutes max, altho they had only just opened when we arrived and I can see that a small wait might be experienced if they were full. I'd just say - be patient! Enjoy the sunshine and the breeze from the river. Relax and shoo the pigeons if you're worried!!! I saw a bowl of water served to at least two doggie companions and if you don't have a few minutes to wind back and smell (the lavender- there isn't any) the roses, then get takeaway and move...

Came in for a Monday lunch with the family & ordered a hamburger and fish and chips along with Vegemite on toast for my 3yr old boy. The views are quite nice and the location is pretty good. There is some competition up the road but because they were the first we came across, we decided to try it out. The staff were great, very friendly and more than helpful! Lunch looked great when it came out and I was hanging out to get into my burger. I'm not a big fan of beetroot so I asked them to leave that out. Unfortunately that request was forgotten. The burger is enormous and certainly can't be used by hand so I did my best with a knife and fork only to find that the beef patty was pre-frozen and possibly microwaved because it was like a rubber. After a few bites I just couldn't get into it. The bun was also a little bit stale and burnt around the edges. Chips were okay but there were a handful that were still hard in the middle.

My wife's fish and chips were okay, no complaints there.

Vegemite on toast, probably the easiest thing to do. Unfortunately there was a full teaspoon of Vegemite laden over the toast making it inedible.

Coffee was good so that was a plus.

Probably won't come back, was rather disappointed with the food after paying just over $50 for a...