cafe osage

flavorful food, charming character, but alas, stinky service.. believe me, i would love to while the afternoon away in the sunstreamed, wavy glass windows of cafe osage's exposed brick restaurant. but, i don't have 2 hours for lunch.

i have dined here on three occasions and enjoyed all dishes. the mediterranean platter, comprised of scoops of white bean spread, hummus, a basil spread and warm goat cheese, looked and tasted delightful. the brielt offered a nicely balanced combination of sweet and savory. the apricot and poached pear salad is something i must figure out how to make at home, it's that tasty.

however, the service is absolutely l-o-u-s-y! inattentive. somewhat clueless. slower than slow. really lacking from the intial ordering of a beverage to the clearing of the plates. in fact, the speediest part of the meal was paying the bill. in two hours, i should have been able to eat lunch and then stroll through the nursey for a bit. but, instead, i had to rush back to work.

i'll likely give cafe osage one more try....i hope the wait and kitchen staff can get its act together. if not, the cwe offers oh-so-many dining alternatives.

what is happening to cafe osage?. we have been going to osage since it opened, and have loved the atmosphere and the food. we enjoy the garden shop and garden products. we have taken many friends there and referred many there. but, what has happened to the kitchen and the food preparation? when your original chef left(the one who made the smoked trout), it seemed that the food began to decline in preparation and care. when we ordered the fruit and cheese plate it arrived without any cheese. the waiter came back with 3 pieces of one kind of cheese. the veggie sandwich has come without any cheese. service has become very slow.

my husband and i feel badly about this, and i am writing this letter in good faith that you will recognize that it is such a shame to see any decline in your delightful venture. we admire what the owners of bowood farms have done in their investment in the central west end, and wish the best for them and all involved. thank you.

terrible. i was so disappointed in today's experience. i love the nursery but restaurant was terrible. long wait which was ok as we browsed. when we finally sat we did get water and ordered right away. 1 hour later no food and no explanation. when food finally came my order was wrong. my friends had eggs with salmon, cream cheese and capers. no capers. the waiter took my plate without saying a thing. i said i hoped it wouldn't take as long as it originally had. we called hostess over to inquire about capers. she acted like we were being a pain. she said she would get the manager and then came back and said manager on cooking line and too busy to speak with us. no one ever apologized and they acted like it was our problem not theirs. it will be too bad if marginal food and crappy service reflect badly on bowoods. not sure if they are owned and run by same entity.

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blaugh !. went to the restaurant last week. ordered the tuna, rare. only choices for side dishes were high carbohydrate- didn't appreciate that and they did not offer a salad instead. when i asked about that, the waiter told me, "it is what it is..."
so...the tuna was not fresh, nor a good quality. it was not cooked at a high enough temperature to create the sear on the outside and the tuna smelled fishy (old).
hot tip...fresh fish smells like fresh cantaloupe...there is not fishy smell.
well, it tasted awful...i could only eat one bite out of the whole lunch....they did not ask how it was and/or if they could get me anything else....
my friend's lunch was a few little pieces of toast spread out on a big plate and a few little (maybe 1 tablespoon) of sample spreads.....could have been placed on a coffee cup saucer....
and, by the way, the restaurant was cold......mentioned it to the waiter several time...
very third rate...won't ever go back....

i cannot believe that i've been living in st. louis all these years and have been missing out on this little gem in my neighborhood. café osage is a breakfast/brunch/lunch cafe attached to a nursery garden owned by bowood farms and located right in the ce

what happened. the idea, concept, the setting, everything is so perfect. the food was not good. because we just did not want to get into it on a sunday morning we sort of ate and left.

all of our meals were served undercooked / not fully cooked and cold. nothing had any flavor except for the marmalade and coffee was decent - service was spotty and it really was not that busy.

we appreciate taking the time energy and money to develop a positive environment - but it has to taste good. there are many positive reviews, but for whatever reason this stunk - it is ok to charge real prices - but this had no sense of value. i mean one piece of toast? it seems that it is being run from an off site manager / owner - the presenatation of the space does not equal the experience.

i had their sticky toffee last week and it was delicious. it is basically a sponge cake covered in toffee. i usually don't go for sponge cakes, for they can be very dry and don't go for toffees either, for they can be too dense. i decided to try this sticky toffee, a combination of two items that i'm not a big fan of, because the waitress (and my guest from england) recommended this. and they were right. the sponge cake was rightly spiced and flavorful. it was covered in tasty, but not overly thick toffee. they use two kinds of toffee, one brown and one creamy white, which makes a pretty plate presentation like latte art on coffee.


my guest had the wedge salad and he seemed to enjoy his plate as well. the waitress was attentive and i liked the atmosphere too. if you are lucky, a little kitty might welcome you to the cafe. she was sitting on the couch in front of the cafe when we visited last week. well, she didn't exactly welcome us, but it is always nice to see a little kitten taking a nap.

the worst service in stl. other seated before us and poor tempered staff! come on at least offer coffee if we are waiting an hour

breakfast / lunch garden spot. where else can you grab an amazing breakfast (or delicious lunch) and purchase plants & accessories for the garden? food is simple, utilizing local ingredients, and the atmosphere is bright & comfortable. staff is friendly and accommodating. i recommend the french toast and daily risotto special.

heavenly neighborhood cafe. attached to a garden center, this wonderful restaurant benefits from vegetables and herbs grown on site, not to mention all of the other ingredients are selected from small local purveyors. lovely warm ambiance, small space, v friendly staff, and inviting music all combine to make this the best breakfast and lunch establishment in st louis (no dinner as yet). highly recommended!!