What a hidden gem! I had the best lunch there today, a perfectly cooked piece of grilled salmon with their garden center salad. This place deserves the great praise. The food, service and scenery were fantastic. I can't wait to come back again! read more

This restaurant has such a pleasant staff and the atmosphere is peaceful and comfortable. Lovely ambiance. Food is not disappointing. Your time spent here will be well spent. read more

Loved it! Great service and atmosphere. Steve and Carlos are great but the rest are wonderful too. Love the soups, salads and sandwiches. We came here for lunch. read more

EXCELLENT food and the service is top notch. We went on mother's day and it was packed but still had EXCELLENT service. Staff is friendly and accommodating. Nice patio area too. read more

If customer service is your thing... DO NOT GO HERE. Especially if the owner is working. Would give 0 stars due to his extremely unprofessional and abhorrent/arrogant attitude. read more

The best dinner in Fallbrook! Very friendly staff and the best prime rib in north county!

We just hosted my son's wedding rehearsal dinner at Garden Center Cafe. The experience was outstanding from start to finish. Clay helped me with the planning of the event. He was very patient with my many questions....and I mean MANY. He couldn't have been more helpful. Our servers, Dee Dee, and Ellie couldn't have been any nicer. They were OUTSTANDING! we chose three entrees for guests to choose from: prime rib, salmon and garden center pasta. The food was delicious. Many people complimented the food. The owner was very kind and accommodating. It was just perfect! A big thank you to the Garden Center Cafe for making our event such a memorable one! read more

Garden Center Cafe - New American Near Me - Fallbrook, California

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I've only been here once with a friend. She lives in Fallbrook and brought us here for brunch on a Saturday after doing a little hike. We had a good experience. We sat in the patio area, cute and nice ambience. I remember getting an omelette with home potatoes and toast. Portion was big. Taste wise, nothing really stood out but it wasn't awful. The food was ok. Our service was average. The best part was that they had $5 mimosas! It was a generous size glass and it wasn't just straight up orange juice too. Good amount of champagne. We each ordered 2 :) Cheers! read more

Everything about this restaurant works beautifully. The cozy decor with little table lamps, the outdoor patio, and especially the food! We have enjoyed every meal at the Garden Center, most recently filet mignon grilled perfectly, and served with bearnaise sauce--just right. Fresh mixed sautéed vegetables were on the side. Our glasses of house wine were very good, a nice surprise. The lemon meringue pie ended the absolutely delicious feast. We will be back! read more

This is a great place with good food, seating is limited but they have carry out which my wife and I us quite often.

After living in the area for over a year we had the chance to visit the cafe twice. Once was for dinner and the other (most recent) was for breakfast. There is a indoor waiting area. The place is nicely decorated, there is outdoor seating toward the back. I didn't tour the outdoor area so I can't give more details on that. On our dinner visit I had the Chicken Piccata with Pilaf. I enjoyed my dish, the chicken was moist and had great flavor. I was full with my dish so I was unable to eat my dessert. Of course, I had to take it with me to enjoy later. It wasn't until the next evening that I was able to enjoy the decadent dessert. Boy, oh boy was it ever delicious. I can't recall the name of it, but it is a dense brownie cake with mini chocolate chips. Yelp reviews raved about the bread pudding. Since I didn't try the bread pudding I am going to rave about this chocolate treasure. You can smell the chocolate love, and the sight of it makes your mouth water, well at least mine. Oh, you must try! On to my breakfast visit. Before coming here for breakfast I looked over the reviews to see what dish everyone enjoyed. Country French Toast with Lemon Maple Syrup was the winner, so off I go. I placed my order and quickly had my order placed in front of me. It looked and smelled heavenly (french toast is my favorite sweet breakfast). I did order my syrup on the side, as I don't like a soggy french toast. So the Lemon Maple syrup didn't look like the photos I saw on the reviews. But it tasted absolutely delicious, sweet and tart. I think next time I will request the syrup on top, maybe the toast won't be too soggy. I would like to return and enjoy another great dish of the menu but maybe I will give the patio seating area a try. read more

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My first time here and I am impressed! The restaurant has a nice and peaceful ambience, if it wasn't cold, I'd love to sit in the patio. The service was great. I loved seeing how the staff engaged with their guests so warmly. Our food was made just as we asked and hot! I will definitely be returning!! Thank you!! read more

Another amazing experience at Garden Center café! The food is always amazing, the service is always great, love the outdoor seating area. I had a fresh berry salad and the fruit was incredibly fresh and everything else was too. I've been going to garden center café for 15 years now. Never, ever disappoints. I will be returning very soon. read more

Garden Center Cafe - Raspberry chipotle chicken sandwich and fries, and the fresh berry salad - New American Near Me - Fallbrook, California

We visited this cafe to grab some breakfast while staying at an Airbnb in town. The food was actually pretty tasty, however, the service was lacking. Our server made us feel like we were being bothersome by asking for anything. I'm not a difficult person to please when going out to eat, I don't ask for much. But I really just cannot stand when people make me feel like I'm putting them out by asking for coffee at breakfast. Also, there was some weird gunky stuff in my coffee mug that grossed me out. My omelette with toast was not bad though, pretty tasty. I just wouldn't go back to this cafe, I'd rather skip the crap service. read more

Well its lunch time and my Cousin & her son took us to lunch, Dad says lets go to Garden Center Cafe. As we walked in we were seated without a wait, although it was a full house. The waiter greeted us and took our drink order promptly. I had made my mind to have a tuna melt but before she took our order she told us the Special, well I said I'll have that "barbecued pork sandwich on umy toasted bread. It was excellent the bread was I'm talking GOOD, it also came with a fresh salad on the plate. Be sure to split there Berry Cobbler desert with ice cream or eat one yourself they are quit a finish to a great lunch They have indoor & outdoor seating with a Garden atmosphere Kinda a older crowd along with the local tennis gals & this Yelper but don't let that scare ya, come on in. I'll Be Back read more

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A homerun every time! The food is always hot, fresh, and tasty; the wait staff are super friendly! You won't be disappointed!

DO NOT EAT HERE! My husband and I went our after dinner looking for dessert. We knew this restaurant had pie so we stopped went in and waited to be seated. The restaurant was busy but there were many open tables and outside seating was empty. The owner came up and when I told him we wanted coffee and dessert, he rudely told us we would not be seated just for dessert. Then he turned and walked away in a completely dismissive manner and left us standing there in complete surprise. We live in Fallbrook. We are clean and respectful and we have money to pay for our meals. We have eaten here many times but we will never support this establishment again and will tell our friends why. read more

You will never get anything but a top notch meal here! Their Garden Center Salad is my favorite salad of any restaurant. You can get it as a side or meal-sized. I have been coming up here for 10 years without a single disappointment. If you like a chicken sandwich the Raspberry Chipotle one is something you can't find elsewhere...YUM! read more

Well, it's Mother's Day and while we were excited to take my mother in law somewhere new before hitting the Fallbrook wine scene it became a very awkward and unpleasant experience while dining at Garden Center....Our own fault that we were 10 minutes late to our reservation - none the less we were quickly hurried to our table by a woman who I imagine owns the place. While we walked to the table she said we would "need to hurry!" We weren't sure what exactly she meant by that but it soon became clear as we ordered food and alcohol beverages. My mother in law was mid bite of fruit when a man came over and tried to take her plate - how tacky!! Then suddenly after we had ordered another round of alcohol beverages our bill lands on the table. Okay, fine we will settle up, my husband pays immediately and we sit and finish our drinks for the next ten minutes when the woman who sat us comes over and tells us that it's time for us to go. What?! We just paid $140 for our meal and drinks. We also waited a long time for our food, so despite our being 10 minutes late I'd say we more than made up for it with our tab. We were told we could drink the rest of our drinks in a waiting area by the parking lot haha Not to mention that there were lots of parties around us that had been dining far before we arrived and after we left to finish our beverages in the parking lot! I've never been treated like this anywhere, I'm a teacher with extreme patience and show kindness to everyone but this was unacceptable. Our first time and very last time visiting Garden Center! read more

Just wanted to give a shout out to a restaurant in Fallbrook. This evening we stopped to have dinner at Garden Center Cafe and Grill. It was such a pleasant experience. The staff were cheerful ,pleasant and very attentive. The food was very tasty. I have not had such a wonderful experience going out to eat in such a long time that I really enjoyed myself. Way to go to all the staff at The Garden Center Cafe and Grill. Thank You!!!! read more

February 13th after making reservations far in advance, we asked about their signature prime rib. We were told Thursday is the night to come for prime rib. They open at 5:00 and our reservation was at 6:30. When we ordered the waiter said they ran out of prime rib!! Really???! We ordered the pastrami sandwich. It was very thin, the toast was burnt, and it was dry. I had to get up and find the server to get mustard. The waiter was very inattentive. While we were seated at a table in the back water began leaking all over the floor from the bathroom. We asked to move to another table away from the water. The waiter would have had us sitting in water had we not said anything. We have been to this restaurant before and the food was fine. This was an experience I don't want to repeat. Therefore, we won't be going back. I know it probably makes no difference to anyone, but now they have two less customers!!! read more

Fantastic, generous lunch in a great setting with great service! My mom's favorite place for many years; never disappoints! read more

Garden Center Cafe - New American Near Me - Fallbrook, California

I love this cafe! The food is great. I love the back patio. It is the best place in Fallbrook I think.

I've noticed a terrible inconsistency in the reviews, which accurately reflects the inconsistency of this restaurant. One day it can be excellent, and the next it can be horrible. Its a shame because it has a great ambiance and has great potential. I've eaten here about a dozen times, mostly for lunch which is usually good... great salads and sandwiches. Their desserts are terrific. The cheesecakes and carrot cake are excellent. However, their dinners are overpriced and tasteless. The chicken piccata was dry and the side pasta was limp and tasteless. The ribs and steaks I tasted were also dry and tough. They should just give up on the dinners and stick to breakfast and lunch. Its too bad this place isn't as good as it should be, because Fallbrook needs better restaurants. read more

The best patty melts in town! My go to is the grilled salmon with a fantastic dill sauce and their house salad. The dressing is so good I could drink it! Yum! read more

The garden center Cafe has become one of our favorite breakfast spots in Fallbrook. It does help that they are in walking distance from our house so it's easy to walk off the food or mimosas that we've had. they always let me customize things to make it vegetarian friendly. Their mimosas are amazing largely because they don't skimp on the champagne. We like going here and sitting outside on a beautiful day to enjoy Fallbrook constant breeze. read more

I think we ordered wrong.... We both got different breakfast burritos and they were average at best. Would love to try their stuffed French toast. Nice atmosphere and looks like they have a nice dinner selection. If I do I'll edit this review. read more

My wife and I had dinner here for Valentine's Day. We ate outdoors, but we had a heater. The service was great! Our waitress was very personable and efficient. My wife and I both had the salmon dinner. The salmon was prepared perfectly. It was hot, but moist. The vegetables were not over cooked and a good assortment. The scallop potatoes were delicious. My wife had lobster bisque and it was terrific. We wanted bread pudding for dessert, but they ran out. Instead we had the Italian wedding cake and we loved it. Pat G. read more

Love our server Steve !!! Came for lunch on Labor Day - mr got French dip, me- pastrami and we shared. I think pastrami was the better of the two but both were good . Fries are good too. Next we will try for dinner which we have heard is good. Be sure to park in restaurant lot during the week ! Oh, and heard bread pudding is good - we got one to go! it We'll be coming often since we love "Steve" best service ever - we followed him from the 'other place' where he used to work read more

Garden Center Cafe - New American Near Me - Fallbrook, California

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This is a very unfortunate review for me to have to leave. We have been supporting small businesses since the pandemic began. My parents have been coming to Garden Center Cafe for 20 years. They have always had lunch and to go orders though. Tonight was a special night for us. My fiancé and I were in town and my parents wanted to go out to dinner. We chose this restaurant because my dad is loyal to the small businesses he has supported during covid. 3 of us ordered prime rib. It is advertised on the outside of the restaurant. Our reservations were for 7pm. The restaurant was empty. Our "waitress" came out to tell us that only my mom and I could order prime rib and they had run out- despite having said that the restaurant had been dead all day/night. He ordered something else. When the entrees came out, the prime rib was dry as old boots. No big deal. My mom and I ordered something else. The replacement wasn't brought out until my dad and fiancé had finished their entrees. That wasn't good but oh well. We figured we'd still give it a shot. The replacement entrees were also dry and over done. We told the waitress this politely and just asked her to take it off and we'd be good to go. She offered dessert to which we politely refused. Got the bill and I asked my dad if I could check it. ( He is almost 80) She had not taken off our entrees. We asked her about it and she was so rude! She said, "Well I took the first two off already." Eventually, she took the entrees off but after having left a very bitter taste in my dad's mouth. He's been loyal to this restaurant for 20 years and she treated us like teas off the street. The gal bussing the tables told us, "Don't leave her a tip." Obviously, she had witnessed the interaction. On our way out, my dad told the server, "You mad a mistake tonight." This started all I can describe as an all out brawl between the waitress and 2 other employees against my 80 year old parents. My fiancé stood between the waitress, who had aggressively come around the counter towards us, and I. I had reminded her that she was in the service industry and her behavior was inappropriate considering my parents had been coming to the restaurant for 20 years and this was just one bad experience that she wasn't dealing with in the appropriate manner. We all felt threatened. I am sad for the owners of this restaurant. I have never experienced such juvenile behavior in a restaurant in my life. So we had a bad meal. It happens, right? Happens to everyone. This waitress took it personally and had my fiancé not been there, I feel she would've become physical. Maybe she is going through something in her personal life. But no excuses. It's a business. Very disappointed. read more

Ate here with my husband. It took 15 mins to get seated, while others were seated promptly. Took another 10 mins for menus and to take an order for drinks. The waitress (Tammy) was so rude and very unfriendly. The food wasn't that great, wished I would have gone somewhere else. If you want bad service at high prices, be my guest. read more

The one star is for their lovely patio. My husband and I just recently moved to Fallbrook and we have slowly but surely making our way to try all of the local restaurants. We gave this restaurant a try last night. It will be our first and last visit. We have LOVED almost every restaurant we have tried in Fallbrook so we were expecting better food. The server was extremely slow to even come by our table to say hello and take a beverage order and it wasn't busy. The patio was lovely so I'd go there for another iced tea but that's it. My husband had to ak three times to get more water. I ordered a very overpriced entree of medallions of beef "very rare" and my beef was medium at best. WAY overcooked. My husband ordered the same meal but medium rare and his was way overcooked also. The suggested "delicious salad was just okay and the "out of this world" gratin potatoes were flavorless. Pretty flavorless and uninspired food in general. The "free" chocolate cake tasted stale and old. We BOTH would have sent our steaks back but we were out with friends for the first time so we didn't want to make a problem or seem "picky". They had a gift card for their meal so we think that may be why they suggested this restaurant. I have never written a negative review but if I were the owner I would want the feedback. There are plenty of GREAT restaurants in Fallbrook so we will take our business elsewhere. I am quite shocked at the good reviews. Maybe it was just an "off night" for the server, the staff, and the cook? read more

My friend and I met for lunch today. We both ordered salads and both were very bland/blah the side of bread was stale. As were the crackers served w/ my friends soup. Would never return for such sub par boring food and dull atmosphere. The gentleman who gave us water and the stale bread had a much better attitude/service than our actual waitress. read more

We have heard good things about this restaurant over the past year and decided to try it for a weekend breakfast because our go-to choice, Main Street Cafe, was too busy. The gentleman who greeted us was very nice and gave us the last booth in the place. Our server came by fairly quickly after that and took drink orders. The hot chocolate was good; the decaf wasn't hot. Later on, leaded coffee was requested; it, too, wasn't hot. What gives with the lukewarm coffee?? I ordered one of their new omelettes--ABC and substituted swiss cheese for cheddar. The wifee had the unstuffed french toast. Upon arrival, the omelette wasn't hot--barely warm and much to my surprise was quite small, compared to other breakfast place omelettes. It was overwhelmed with cheese. On the plus side, generous portions of avocado and bacon topped the eggs. The french toast wasn't crispy, but was quite warm. One big faux pas the server made was not coming back 1-5 minutes after serving our main courses. EVERY server should make an effort to check in with the customer after serving the main course to see if the customer needs anything else. Guess what? I needed a glass of water and after some struggle to get someone's attention, I finally got the water. That was unnecessary. I have no plans to return. read more

Love everything about this place. The food is outstanding and the service is fantastic. The only problem is I want to.order everything on the menu. Oh well it just means I need to come back! Highly recommend. read more

I've been coming here for years and have always had a wonderful experience with great food. For reviewer Kelsi from Temecula, I'm one of those older diners, almost to the age of 70. Sorry you had to sit by so many old people. As far as service is concerned, the owner always greets us with a friendly smile and always remembered our names. When in comes to servers, Tammy usually was our food server. She too, always greeted us with a smile and wonderful attentive service. I would highly recommend this restaurant, read more

My husband and I went for dinner on Saturday night. We had a 4:30 reservation, of which we were the only ones there. And being the only ones there, Service was very slow to come and greet the table. Was surprising. And then my husband ordered baby back ribs and received St. Louis style rib, cut up. First, they should not be cut up, as that dries them out. Since they weren't baby back ribs, they were dry and chewy. And the price is $28. They misrepresent what they are selling. Sorry, we were disappointed, both in quality of the meal and how long it took to get our food. read more

Nice little restaurant! Staff and good are both great! I highly recommend! All the ladies in our group enjoyed their food.

Enjoyed a nice patio brunch with family on Father's Day. I had the Monte Cristo that was grilled rather than the deep-fried standard...great choice that came with a side of seasoned potatoes. My only suggestion on this entree would be to serve it with a dish of strawberry jelly (or a choice of another flavor syrup) but not the plastic Smucker packet it came with. The specials my family chose were equally good. We really enjoyed this place despite it being a bit slow on service initially. read more

Every time I've gone here the service is absolutely horrible. Each time worse than the last. But their nice patio is the main reason I love ever ended up there. Well today my family and I went and the waitress never bothered to even fake a smile at us, was short and oblivious to what customer service is. It took SO long to get our food, our waitress never checked on us. When we'd call her over she would turn and walk away before we got a chance to finish what we called her over for. Once we finally finished our mediocre, over priced meals and waited for about 10 minutes, we called her over again to ask for boxes and the check. Before we finished asking she once again turned and walked away. I was pissed. So I go inside where I attempted to talk to the owner (who by the way stole a painting from my grandmother when it was only to be on display in the restaurant for 1 month). I asked him literally 5 times to split the bill and instead he ignored me while the server gave us attitude again, and charged it all to my moms card instead of listening to me speaking to him. We asked for lemon water, I literally got a lice of lemon rhine. I asked for toast before the meal comes out, I had to ask her 30 minutes later for the toast that was then brought out with the meal. We had to holler her down several times. She had bad attitude. The owner is a slime. This will be the last time, ever. read more