hamilton gardens cafe

18 minutes in line to order. that’s okay it’s probably good. ordered 2 cooked meals and 5 items from the case plus a flat white, hot chocolate, milkshake and oj. (4 people) included was a cheese scone. there were 2 on display and the cashier physically checked all of the previous orders ‘to make sure one was available’. it was.
oj was not fresh but came in bottle from fridge.
went to table.
coffee (very good) arrived immediately. asked server for glass for oj.
7 minutes...cashier arrives to inform that the scones had sold out and requesting another choice. when this offer was declined cashier quite rudely agreed to give a refund. (when the refund arrived it was slapped on the table and there was no recompense for the extra butter that had been charged)
after 8 minutes the first hot meal arrived. asked again for glass. told to go and get one from the water cooler. hmmm.
1 more minute the next hot meal arrived.
4 minutes later, the milkshake and the got chocolate.
hot food almost eaten and we went up to ask where the salmon tart, the brownie and the other case food was. and there it was lined up on the bench behind the counter. told
... it will be out immediately.
joke.
poor male server swings past with a huge smile to ask if we were enjoying our meals?
he certainly did not expect a resounding no!!!
poor guy runs away and after another 5 minutes the food that could have been served first finally arrives. brought out by the unsmiling cashier who clearly regarded the debacle as our fault.
no suggestion of an apology or any sign of gracious behaviour.
the next time i come to hamiltongardensi will buy my food at couplands bakery in te rapa and eat from a brown paper bag.
a hugely pretentious and expensive disappointment.

was expecting good service as the owners themselves were running the function. the female owner was extremely rude to members of our party and had awful customer service skills, also just a sour demeanor that was very off putting at an elderly person's birthday party. clearly unpolished glassware and cutlery, the front of house staff don't seem to do much, as all orders are made through the counter, and they don't bother to take dishes to the kitchen. dishes are left dumped in big trays in the dining area, absolutely disgusting and terrible practice. food was below average, muffins are worse than what you get from the supermarket. all in all, terrible service, rude owners and below average food. bring your own food and drinks when you visit thegardensfor a much more enjoyable experience!

popped in for a quick coffee before looking around thegardens- the drink itself was nice enough, but the service was incredibly unfriendly!!  

my lactose-free friend asked for almond milk but was told there was only soy available - something she's pretty used to, but this information is usually given with a smile and an apology, not a flat "no" with an equally flat expression.
i had a couple of queries about the drinks menu, all of which were responded to tersely.  when i ordered a regular size latte (as was advertised on their board, which i pointed out) i was told that actually no, there was only one size available.

the worst came when our drinks arrived and my friend asked for a side of hot water with her tea - this was followed by an audible sigh, and our waitress walked off - we could only assume to get the hot water as opposed to just walking off completely.  to her credit, she did bring back the water a few minutes later, which was plonked on the table in front of us without a word.

the food would have to be pretty spectacular to prompt me to return again, as opposed to just bringing my own picnic to enjoy in the gardens...

i have been here a couple times and the food is always pretty tasty! love the iced chocolate! service is usually fast, and the setting of it in the hamiltongardensis wonderful by the lake! saw some turtles the other day while we ate :)

was over in hamilton on saturday and stopped in to the beautiful hamilton gardens. after our stroll around thegardenswe stopped into the cafe for a coffee and a light lunch. wow this place was busy! but service was prompt and with a smile. i had the chicken roulade from the cabinet, which was delicious. and they serve seriously good coffee.

we had a very pleasant experience and will definitely be back.

as from october 1st 2015 the hamiltongardenscafe has new owners, craig and jenny fraser, we would love to see you so come on in and enjoy the beautiful gardens, have a fabulous allpress coffee and try our great range of food.

edited 31/5: probably worth revising, as it seems we were really unlucky that first time. been there a few more times subsequently, and the food and service was much improved.

gorgeous surroundings, but the food and service was rather lacklustre. it’s a pity, really, because you would be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful place for a cafe setting in hamilton city – thegardensthemselves are lovely and well worth a visit in and of themselves. to start with, the dishes were cleared from tables very, very slowly. everyone just ended up having to clear their own tables and dump the dishes onto a neighbouring empty table before seating themselves. to be fair, though, the staff were probably struggling as they appeared to be pretty short-handed, so i would probably fault the establishment for this, not the waiters themselves.

went to thegardensa couple of weeks ago for the first time in years. cafe has a great setting and stopped in for a coffee on the way out and found both the service and the product rather a let down compared to the gardens. would not bother dining after the experience, actually thought such a great attraction would have had a better establishment