My review is solely based on me browsing and only purchasing protein balls and cake pops. As a Stout graduate many years back, I often take day trips to Menomonie from the cities to discover new and old favorites. On my most recent visit, my mom and I were killing time before a craft workshop and stumbled across Golden Leaf Cafe which is far off the main drag and located directly next to Culver's. As we had already eaten lunch and had coffee we didn't have any more room to try the food out. Pros: nice parking lot, small gift shop with home goods, friendly staff who were able to sell the products and give history into the shop along with confirm that more items will be going GF very soon, wide variety of cafe products such as espresso drinks, breakfast, sandwiches, soup and more. In addition:clean interior, cute seasonal decorating and beautiful windows exposing natural light inside. I am a Halloween fan and it was fun to see some of the fall items still on display mid- November including spooky drinks, mummy cake pops and more. As mentioned above, I got some PB protein balls which were excellent and a cake pop to which I have yet to try. I definitely want to return soon and try out the breakfast items. read more

See all

You know that cozy coffee cafe where you get a steaming hot specialty drink and a sandwich seasoned perfectly? Tell me where that is, because this is not it. My coffee arrived in the nether-land between still chilled and barely room temperature. The server brought me an apologetic replacement, lukewarm on both counts. Was that dry and tasteless sandwich made with bread or packing foam? We may never know for sure. Shoulda gone to Culvers. read more

Gluten free bread a plenty and measures in place to keep breads separate on the panini press. Super fun food combos and descriptions. Very nice and diligent staff who worked really hard for that random Sunday afternoon lunch rush. And can we talk about the items for sale like the nice bags, tinctures and balms, and sweet books for your loved ones? Would stop again, 100%. read more

I have gone in twice for coffee each time it came out of a thermos. I do not go to coffee shops for coffee out of a thermos. My expectations is to have it fresh! The service was adequate. Nice clean cafe. read more

Food was not good. Soup tasted of Campbells cream of chicken soup with some rice thrown in it. Ordered an ice water never received it toast was offered but never brought. Staff awkwardly stared at my husband and I until we left with out eating our food. read more

Golden Leaf Cafe - a bowl of soup and a plate of chips - Restaurants Near Me - Menomonie, Wisconsin

We came here for lunch break from Mayo Clinic. I am so glad we came here rather than the clinic cafeteria. There were 2 lunch specials- pick 2 panini & soup or salad and quiche & soup or salad. So, we got one of each. I got the ham and broccoli quiche with salad and my wife got a prosciutto panini and chicken rice soup. Overall, it was the best proportion not too big or little. Afterwards, I got a ice coffee to go and also confetti cake ice cream on sugar cone to split with my wife. This is better than going further down to Culver's which would take more time. read more

See all

Cute place but food was not good. Soup was lukewarm at best and crackers were stale. Panini was undercooked, made with thin tasteless bread, unmelted cheese and very skimpy filling. It looks key promising but turned out to be very disappointing. read more

Slowest service ever!! over 45 minutes for a gluten free breakfast sandwich. That long of a wait does not make up for a good sandwich.

Friendly staff, fresh scones, oat milk latte, Great location! Breakfast and lunch choices! read more

This is a nice addition to Menomonie, but since they're a bit out of town, people aren't aware of it (seems a bit new and they have yet to make it looked 'lived in'). They are going for the "fair trade/organic coffee shop" approach, which Raw Deal already has the corner on in Menomonie, but since RD doesn't cook stuff, this might be the only place for a panini or baked item with natural ingredients. They also have an interesting little gift shop of various items in the store. With that said, I was a bit disappointed with both the pasty (the traditional U.P. fare) and the paninis. The ham and mustard panini was lacking in ingredients and flavor, while the pasty (perhaps the only place you can get them around here?) was extremely small and very lacking in flavor (see pic). My wife had the veggie pesto panini, which was much better, so perhaps stick with the veggie options here. We also got a raspberry chocolate chip cake/bar, which was fantastically moist and yummy. If you're by the hospital/fairgrounds and don't want to go all the way into town for coffee/pastry/lunch, this might be a place to consider. read more

Golden Leaf Cafe - Order counter - Restaurants Near Me - Menomonie, Wisconsin

See all

Don't overlook this little cafe! Anything you order is of great homemade quality. A lot of Elana's (the owner) options are healthy and picked from a place that specializes in the product! Anything you order you won't be disappointed with. read more

I've eaten at Golden Leaf many times and have always really liked their food. The pesto sandwich and soups are delicious. And they definitely have a focus on clean eating and Organic food, which I love. I give it two stars because in spite of their food, this cafe lacks friendly and inviting customer service. The people behind the counter, including the owner, are typically quite cold and unfriendly. They seem more task-oriented and less concerned with building relationships with their customers. Even when you are a frequent patron, they don't seem to notice or care. This doesn't help to build a community of loyal customers. They are also very stingy with the food they serve. I don't have an enormous appetite most days, but I always leave the Golden Leaf feeling hungry after my meals. I'm happy to pay more for sustainably grown food, but the serving sizes are way too small here. It seems that the protocol for making food involves a strict adherence to stinginess. On several occasions, I've seen the staff literally counting the number of corn chips they put on my plate. And when friends have brought in reusable mugs for coffee, the staff has poured coffee into one of the cafe's cups, then poured it into the reusable mug, to make sure my friend wasn't getting even an ounce more than she paid for. I realize they have to be profitable, but being conservative over fairly inexpensive things like corn chips and coffee is not a great message to customers. Again, great food. But I'd recommend going elsewhere if you want friendly customer service and serving sizes that make you feel satisfied. read more

I love this place!!! I'm SO happy I found it after two years here! It gets overshadowed by Cancun, which is right across the street, but this place is a big gem. Their breakfast sandwiches are a nice price, and are pretty tasty. Probably something you could make at home if you bought the right ingredients... But why do that when you can have an exotic hot chocolate or latte with it at Golden Leaf? The paninis are a must! I had the pesto panini when I went there earlier this week and it was heavenly. They put a nice amount of cheese in with the pesto and it melts into a tasty, crispy, melty panini. You can get chips or a side salad with your panini, which is perfect for those of us who like to choose depending on our mood. I also recommend the scones. It's hard to find a good scone, but they are doing it right here. I take away one star for the atmosphere. It's very quiet. But the food rocks so I can't wait to go back. And they have a drive through! That could be dangerous... read more

I've been hitting this place up on the regular for coffee and smaller meals, and have been impressed. It's great to see this type of business out here in the country, and the prices are reasonable. I'd recommend most any of the paninis and soups. They have pasties that are a little on the smaller side, but good tasting nonetheless. Support places like this as the better option to places like Culver's / ugh. read more

Charming little breakfast spot - they have a nice variety of egg-based fare (breakfast bowls, aka scrambles seem to be their specialty). I was a little amused that on the menu they have two categories of breakfast sandwiches: Breakfast Sandwiches and European Breakfast Sandwiches. And under each category are identical sandwiches, just the European ones come on croissants. Seems a little redundant to list them all twice if the only thing different is the bread. My Italian breakfast bowl had sausage, mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese and chives - it was decent, needed a little salt. The butter for the toast was too solidly frozen to spread; the jam was really tasty (possibly homemade?) Coffee was okay - nothing special but certainly serviceable. If you are looking for a breakfast spot that's not Denny's or Perkin's, I think this is a good, locally owned alternative. read more

The Island Squash soup is fabulous! Everything is made fresh. The owner puts her heart into every dish. It's a great little spot for a healthy meal or homemade dessert. read more

The squash soup is my fav! It's so nice to be greeted by the smiling ladies too! Always a good experience. read more

I really enjoy the breakfast bowls here, and they offer a variety of coffee drinks. I also like that it doesn't seem to get as packed with people as the other coffee shops in town. read more

"terrible", went there with a small group this moring oct 8th. what a joke!! the service was just bad. they should try their own food. breakfast items were tasteless. muffins are stale.. we will not go here again!!! no refill on coffee .? read more

Renee and Anna are the best barista's! The others are hit and miss. Coffee is great. Love that they open at 6. Weekends should be 6 too.

Went here for the first time and just grabbed a drink. I'm guessing the cashier was new or something because after blowing off/inturrupting my attempt at small talk she answered the phone and walked away as I was handing her my money, leaving me just standing there with my hand out holding the cash for a while. Finally the owner came over and finished the transaction, but jeez. Don't just blow off whoever you're serving. read more

I usually stick to coffee here between 1 up to 3 times a week but did have breakfast bowls once as we were hungry and didn't want to drive anywhere else. Like other reviewers have mentioned, the portions are tiny, don't expect to feel satisfied on just a breakfast bowl unless you eat like a bird, secondly, we ordered 3 different bowls between two adults and 2 kids and they were nothing special, something I could easily whip up with packaged frozen breakfast potatoes, an egg, pre cooked bacon or sausage, Pace salsa and a microwave so suffice to say, we've never had breakfast here again. Third, I like the flavor of their specialty lattes but my cup always feels emptier than it should, it's never filled all the way to the top and every time, it's not hot enough. Sometimes it's barely warm :( I still prefer it over the nastiness of Caribou coffee (why Menomonie do we have two Caribous now but still no Starbucks) but if on my way to Eau Claire anyway, I suffer for 30 minutes without coffee and pick up Starbucks in EC, it's worth the wait. I'd pick Starbucks over this any day for the value and consistency as a specialty latte here, served in a size similar to a sbux grande but filled to the equivalent of a sbux tall costs as much as a sbux venti. Lastly, as mentioned in another review, the service is ok but not exactly the type that makes you feel like "wow, I want to one back again and again". I would happily pay a little more to support this local business if the service were great, the food and coffee prepared better and the portions weren't so skimpy but until that happens, this place will be second choice for coffee and dead last for breakfast food. read more