The Lemon Tree — Restaurant in St. Catharines

Having purposely chosen a vegan eatery, the appearance of animal words like 'chicken', 'burger', & 'feta cheese', throughout the menu caused confusion for our dining party. Between having to ask what many of the animal words stood as code for & requesting ingredient information, navigating the menu proved to be a small challenge. Our server aimed to accommodate our dietary restrictions but was stymied by the inflexibility of the kitchen as there are few gluten free options and fewer meal alterations that seemed to be possible. Example 1.I asked if a garden salad could be scaled back to have some of the items omitted - in response I was offered a side of cucumber. When I later asked to have pita bread replaced w/tomato or some other vegetable, I was told that I could have a side of cucumber. We joked at our table that someone must have over-ordered cucumber, but it was sad & disappointing. Greater fresh produce choices would have improved this experience. Many items on the menu are Greek fare & the dinner plates are quite carb/starch heavy. Two of the four of us ordered the Dolmades plate, which is grape leaves stuffed w/rice, served on rice w/mixed veg, a roasted potato AND a piece of pita bread: simply put, it is rice, rice, potato & bread. The soup of the day was a vegetable soup that contained a lot of pasta (more carbs!). The soup is good, but was served w/out a proper soup spoon/utensil. (While not providing a soup spoon might seem insignificant, people w/dexterity issues & older diners benefit from the breadth of the soup specific utensil as it makes eating easier.) A 2nd example of the kitchen's inflexibility occurred when we asked about the vegetable skewers. We requested a listing of the items on the skewer as mushrooms are a serious restriction for one of our party. When it was confirmed that mushrooms were one of the skewered items, no alternative to the mushroom was offered or discussed & the whole dish was dismissed as unsuitable. (Wish a fresh skewer could've been made w/carrot or extra green/red/yellow pepper - or some other vegetable.) Everyone at our table ordered a dinner plate. The salads, bread & my cucumber all arrived ahead of the dinner plates, which resulted in not having greens while working through the carbs. Though the bread, Caesar and Greek salads were enjoyed none of us finished our meals and out of 4 of us, only 1 person definitively enjoyed their entire meal. I found that the Dolmades plate had only one flavour: everything tasted of lemon. From the grape leaves stuffed w/rice, to the rice, to the potato, there were no other discernable flavours - no herbs, not even salt, JUST mouth puckering lemon. So single-note was my experience that it was impossible to tell that the potato had been roasted. The meal had little texture, no aroma on arrival & did not stay hot for long after receipt. The Moussaka plate was edible. Not aromatic or delicious or savoury, but dry & in need of a sauce or something other than tzatziki. Prepared in a lasagne style stack of vegetables, the Moussaka went cold quickly and was hard to finish after a salad and then bread and then a large piece of potato. The only person who stated that they enjoyed the meal, had ordered the skewers. The plating ensured that the meals photographed well, but they did not really deliver on much beyond visual appeal for 3/4 of us. The amount of carbs throughout our meal prevented us from having room for dessert.

The combination of the music, our interactions with staff & the interior decor, generate a casual, cafeteria-type environment. Two of our party described the chairs as so uncomfortable that one person sourced a cushion from their car for relief. The eatery is accessible for persons w/mobility devices or strollers and there is sufficient room between tables. The price points felt inflated & misaligned with the casual atmosphere; the quality of the mixed veg in the rice; the overabundance of starch (pasta, rice, potato); the lack of produce, and the singularity of the texture and flavour of the...

💕🌳🍋 My wife, my brother in law and I, approached this gem of a restaurant while in St. Catharines, Ontario, "The Lemon Tree"

"The Lemon Tree" is a highly inviting, colourful and carefully decorated establishment. We were attended by "Summer", our wonderful waitress who made our visit unforgettable.

This is a 100% vegetarian restaurant, so do not get confused by foods listed, such as Calamari, chicken, etc.

The restaurant has a "day's special meal(s) and desert(s)" menu, so, if you do not see it, ask your attendant.

My main dish came from the unwritten "day's specials". In addition to the main dish, it included a salad with it and a Pumpkin-cheesecake desert.

All I ate here, was delicious 🍰 🥧 🥗😋. I ordered the two chicken breasts with mashed potatoes and Greek salad. The portions were very nicely presented and healthy, both in nutrition and size. I was totally impressed 👌. My wife had the Caesar salad, which I had most of it, and she had my Greek salad instead. My brother in law, ordered the Falafel wrap and loved it as well.

It is a bit rare to find a restaurant with so much caring, class, great food, top service, lots of outside light through the windows, a good room temperature and affordable prices. Please do not hesitate in thinking twice. This is a must do while you are in St. Catharines.

The place is spacious, located in a plaza, so it provides lots of free parking.

Surely, recommendations can always be made about anything, but this is your destination, if you are looking for a delightful time and abundant tasteful nourishment, that you will surely enjoy.

The day we were there, there was a 92 yr old lady with all her senses and physical intact. I only wish to be in such great health as she was, the day of our visit. If this lady chose The Lemon Tree restaurant out of no mere coincidence, I think, this says it all.

💕🌳🍋 Thank you to the owners, family and "Summer", our waitress, for a great...

This was the first visit to The Lemon Tree for my wife and I. My wife had seen a post of theirs on the Instagram, everything looked tasty, so we thought we would give them a try. We checked out their menu online and once again everything looked great. So we went on a Saturday evening, just after 5pm. First thing I noticed was a lot of space between tables, and a very nice and truly European feel to the place. We were greeted by a smiling staff member as we walked through the door. Also first impression was the place, to me, was noticeably very clean. We seated ourselves, we had our choice of seats as the place was empty at the moment, but that quickly changed. Our server Danika, greated us at our table, at which time she gave us the run down on the specials. The Lemon Tree has a good beer list and a selection of win, it also has an option where guests can bring their own wine, however there is a corkage fee. My wife and I had the bacon burger and fries , and the Mediterranean Pasta and Greek salad, respectively. My wife assures me that it was one of the best burgers and fry dishes she has ever had. As for the pasta, it was a Linguini pasta in a cheese Alfredo sauce topped with a fresh Bruschetta mixture. This pasta was to die for, the pasta was well cooked, and the combination of the cheese sauce and bruschetta was fantastic. Our bill came out to 67.80 that includes one beer, a London Fog latte, appetizer and a 15% tip. The entrees were 15.00 for the burger and 17.00 for the shrimp pasta .. prices well worth the quality and quantity of food. This our first visit.. it will not...