Treehouse Café — Restaurant in Carmel-by-the-Sea

We will not mince words, Treehouse Cafe was an incredibly disappointing meal that sticks out like a sore thumb against the restaurant’s nice setting and decent service. We went for a family dinner in the private room and were seated, ordering pretty quickly as well. They did accommodate our dog but repeatedly forgot to bring him water even though we asked three separate times. The private room was pretty, an old wood room lined with wine bottles, almost like you’re in a cellar. By all accounts, it felt like we were headed towards having a decent meal, here’s where it went wrong…

We ordered the honey and cheese appetizer, osso buco, and their special, which was a ribeye. Let’s start with the honey and cheese: it really is just bruschetta with honey and some goat cheese. It was good, nothing to write home about but a decent starter for things to come. Where it all fell off were the entrees. The osso buco was, to put it lightly, not good. It isn’t supposed to be the most aesthetically pleasing dish but this looked like a bunch of slop with a lamb shank thrown on top. The mashed potatoes and veggies it came with were good but you don’t order this for the veggies. The lamb shank, the best part of the meal, was incredibly gamey, even by lamb standards. Believe us when we say we can stand gamey meat but this was very gamey, just not enjoyable. It was cooked decent even though the flavor was not good. What wasn’t cooked decent however was the ribeye. We requested the ribeye at a medium, we got something maybe 10 seconds away from being well done. The meat was tough, not easy to chew. The flavor was all held on the crust which made it wildy unenjoyable to eat past the initial taste you got. Again, the mashed potatoes were good but we didn’t order a bowl of mashed.

We didn’t finish the steak, only ate about a quarter of it. The staff did knock off some of the price of the steak and gave us a bunch of free baklava, which was also way too sweet. Maybe we just had a bad day, or maybe this place is not a meat place. Either way, we were incredibly disappointed by our food, which is unfortunate because others at our table liked theirs, specifically the paella, which again makes me wonder if we should’ve gone down the seafood route. Regardless, we don’t foresee a world where we come back here for dinner should we be in the area again. This place seems good enough that we don’t want to say not to go, but based on our experience, we just...

This place was an excellent choice for my family to wrap up our trip to Monterey. Our previous dining experiences had not been as smooth, so this was a last-ditch effort to find some good food, and it certainly was delivered..

The staff here was exceptionally polite, friendly, and helpful. They ensured our comfort and well-being throughout our meal.

The clam chowder was absolutely astonishing. It had the perfect consistency, fresh flavors, and an excellent texture. We couldn’t resist finishing the entire bowl, cleaning it out!

The lamb gyro plate’s meat was absolutely perfectly cooked and flavored. It definitely paired well with the tzatziki and pita, but there was way too much meat for the amount of pita— our only complaint.

The bread that came as a default appetizer was standard, but the oil/vinaigrette/Parmesan dip was better than most.

The seafood pasta was very fresh tasting, and the sauce had a great flavor, but the noodles, being handmade, just lacked a bite— which is often times what happens when pasta is cooked fresh.

The bolognese sauce was a little bit sweet for my liking, but well flavored nonetheless. The noodles had the same soft texture, though.

The Thai yellow curry was undoubtedly very spicy! It’s exactly what someone seeking authentic Thai curry would crave; we haven’t been able to find a good curry since our favorite restaurant closed down, but this is certainly progress. The person who ordered it found it a bit too spicy, but our server promptly addressed the issue by providing them with extra curry without chili.

The wine that we had ordered was also stricken from the bill, on the house— very generous!

Upon receiving the check, a complimentary Baklava dessert was presented, though it wasn’t the tastiest I’ve had. Nevertheless, it was a thoughtful gesture.

The atmosphere is casual and calming, even though you’re perched on a balcony a story above the sidewalk, in Carmel. It’s a bit chilly, which is typical for coastal restaurants, and the heaters are a bit sparse, but the overall experience was...

The TLDR version of the review is to skip the place and try another nearby as the food here is mid and service is lackluster.

We stopped here yesterday just before 4 pm despite initially planning to stop at another restaurant nearby since we saw a crowd at the outdoor patio and the ambience sold us. First off the place is not wheelchair accessible..we had a stroller so we just carried it up.. there is another set of steps to go to the outdoor patio. The staff here look like they hate their jobs..no smiles, no warmth whatsoever. After being seated the server came twice in a span of 3 minutes asking if we were ready and then was nowhere to be found for about 20 minutes so we just sat there waiting. My husband ordered a sandwich only to be scoffed at and told that it was mentioned on the menu that it was not available after 4. While that was totally fine to state there was zero need for attitude. He ordered the grilled salmon and I settled on a crab ravioli. The food arrived in about 13 minutes . Both were ok. The grilled salmon came with cream caper sauce, mashed potatoes and sauteed spinach. To their credit the salmon portion was generous but the cream sauce and mashed potatoes were bland and boring. The pasta sauce felt as through it was pre - prepped /canned. Our server was likely at the end of the shift because we had someone else tend to us towards the end of our dining. The food was priced quite similar to the places nearby so I suggest anybody reading to skip and go elsewhere as the food doesn't match the price

On our way out, not one person in the five staff members who we passed by thanked or greeted us.

The outdoor patio was nice and they had good music. however they were folding the heavy umbrellas and setting up tables for dinner while patrons were eating and it just seemed risky because one slip and anybody could get hurt. So something for the management...