Garden Cafe at VanDusen — Restaurant in Vancouver

When my family initially visited VanDusen Gardens, we were pleasantly surprised with the great cafe space in the building. Truffles Cafe was bright and comfortable and has a spectacular view overlooking the garden. It feels like you've actually gotten out of the city for the day. In the cafe, my family and I were able to spread out on a sofa and arm chairs with a large coffee table (likely longer than we should have!). If the weather had been better, we could have sat on the patio, but we'll save that for another day. The menu is extensive and quite affordable (thankfully, as I have three kids with healthy appetites!). All the food looked very fresh and my wife was happy to see a couple of gluten free options. Everything was delicious, with very few leftovers thanks to the kids! We don't live nearby but I 'm often on Oak Street on the way to and from work. I hadn't associated a quick coffee or food pit-stop with the garden, but since visiting Truffles, I've been back a couple of times alone. I've only ever been impressed by the quality of food and the beautiful environment. Looking forward to the summer when the family will visit the gardens and spend some time on the patio.. likely another extended visit :) Thanks Truffles, just wanted to write and...

I've come here with my mum twice in the past couple months, one time with my 2 young children as well. The food is okay but the service is SO SLOW. Both times we stood in line for ages while one person took orders. It wasn't busy at all and yet it took at least 10 minutes for us to get to the front of the line. There 3-4 other people working in the background but they didn't seem to be doing much. The most recent time we came, we ordered soup and a sandwich to share. The sandwiches were premade (I could see them in the display cabinet). The soup took about 10 minutes to come, then the sandwich came as we were finishing the soup. Even though they have a number system, there was often a server wandering around with a food item looking lost. They mixed up the order of the people sitting near us and gave it to someone else who had ordered after them. The soup (potato bacon) was good. The sandwich was fine, but nothing spectacular. I love Van Dusen Gardens, and my family and I are members. Truffles looks lovely on the outside but they seem to need a manager - the service is very...

Most pleasant afternoon lunching with friends and children. The staff is very helpful and conscientious in cleaning the glass top tables set up outside so the not yet double doses vaccinated younger children are kept safe touching the surfaces. Washrooms are close by so handwashing is made easy and convenient. The grilled chicken sandwich is made from big fresh juicy chicken pieces and quite adequate to share for two seniors. The chili is not heavy and filled with chopped tomatoes in a mild chili sauce, suitable for both younger children and seniors. From the children, they liked the curry chickpeas over rice. That speaks volume. The Sun is shining with lots of shade from the multiple umbrellas set up. I cannot complain when there is no flies (not fries) just a well behaved little duck wandered between the legs and the children were highly entertained. Whether you are a group of 8 or 2, you will enjoy a leisure lunch with good reasonable priced foods, plenty of wiggle room for kids outside and a lazy hazy summer afternoon here at VanDusen...