Garden of Joy Fl — Restaurant in Sarasota

April 2024. A husband-and-wife duo owns the restaurant, and the wife's name is Oksana. They opened the restaurant in December 2023 and specialize in Eastern European and Western Asian cuisine, specifically from countries such as Russia, Ukraine, and Georgia.

The service at the restaurant is great, although it can be a bit slow at times. Oksana herself often comes to the table to ask about the food and if there is anything she can do to help. The restaurant has seating both inside and outside, giving customers a choice. Reservations are not required.

The food is the most important aspect of the restaurant, and it does not disappoint. The dishes are delicious and fresh, with a home-cooked feel. The restaurant has a kitchen inside and a grill outside. One must-try item on the menu is the Syrniki in the dessert section. They are excellent and highly recommended, although they are 2-3 times smaller than traditional homemade Syrniki in Ukraine.

The restaurant has a good selection of vegetarian options, but these must be clearly marked on the menu. Therefore, if you are a vegetarian, you would need to ask the staff for help choosing.

The only downside to the restaurant is that parking can be a challenge. The area can be busy, and the restaurant only has 2-4...

We recently visited this East European food restaurant, and overall, we had a great experience. The food was delicious, and everything was beautifully presented. The dishes were well-prepared, and it was clear that care went into making each one.

However, there were a couple of downsides. First, we had to wait over an hour for the shashlik, specifically the lula kebab and lamp kebab (shish). Meanwhile, some of our group who had ordered salads already finished theirs while we were still waiting for our main dishes, which was a bit disappointing.

Second, when we got home, our younger son unfortunately became ill, and it was pretty clear that it was after the meal at the restaurant, as we didn’t eat anything else afterward. This left us a bit concerned.

Lastly, it seemed that the waitress was handling too many tables at once and wasn’t able to keep up with the demand. She was clearly trying her best, but it felt like she couldn’t manage everything efficiently, which contributed to the delays.

Despite these issues, the food and atmosphere were enjoyable, and I hope they can improve on the wait times, service, and food...

I had a horrible experience this past Saturday. It was my birthday celebration. I booked a table a day before for 12 people. My reservation was confirmed over the phone in advance. As I was on my to my party, I called the restaurant to let them know that I am running 10 min late. To my surprise, I was told that my reservation was just canceled and was given to other people. When I asked how it is even possible, I was told that apparently they called me two hours ago and since I didn't pick up the phone, they have decided that it would be ok to give my reservation to another party. This answer came with no apologies or any solution to resolve the conflict. I was very disappointed to say the least. I had twelve guests invited to my party. It was 7 pm Saturday night. I franticly started calling different restaurants to find a spot. Everything was completely booked. We ended up having outside sitting at some cafe. It was very chilly outside. I have never encountered anything like this in my life! Such as unprofessional and indifferent treatment of the clients! None of my family members or friends will ever come...