Hidden Garden was easily one of my favorite restaurants at Live Aqua and one of the few places we ended up visiting twice during our stay. There's usually a wait to get in, which says a lot considering most of the other restaurants didn't have much of one. We waited about 30 minutes the first night and 15 the second, and after eating here, I can see why it's one of the more popular spots on the property. We started with several appetizers. The samosas were small but really good. The gyoza was fine, just your standard gyoza. The chicken satay was another highlight, with a really flavorful peanut sauce. The dumpling soup was okay and a little different than expected since it included noodles. For entrees, the mixed fried rice was excellent. It had some kind of unique seasoning that I couldn't quite identify, but it worked. The rice had great texture, and they definitely didn't skimp on the shrimp and chicken. The pad thai was pretty good too, although it leaned much sweeter than I expected. It almost reminded me of a really good upscale microwavable pad thai, with more sweet sauce than spice. The THAO was another standout. It's kind of their version of orange chicken, and it was really good. My only complaint is that the portion size felt a little small, so I'd recommend ordering something alongside it. The desserts were surprisingly great across the board. We tried almost all of them except the mango and turmeric dessert. My favorites were the carrot cake and the leche coconut dessert. Both were excellent. They also have a nice selection of signature cocktails. The Sakarita, a sake margarita, was okay. The Geisha was good if you enjoy the smoky flavor of mezcal. My girlfriend really liked the Leche Martini, and my favorite was the Buddha, which felt like their take on an Old Fashioned. Service was consistently good. What really stood out was that when we returned two nights later, our server immediately recognized us, welcomed us back, and genuinely asked how we had enjoyed our first visit. It felt sincere and not scripted, which was a nice touch. The only downside is that the restaurant is entirely outdoors. They do have fans, but on really humid nights it can be rough. The second time we visited, the humidity was intense, and even sitting directly in front of a fan I felt like I was melting. That's more of a weather issue than a restaurant issue, though. Overall, this was one of the best meals we had at the resort. Great food, good drinks, friendly service, and a menu that had several items worth ordering again. If you're only trying a few restaurants at Live Aqua, this should absolutely be one of them. read more

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We were in Cancun, MX and stayed at an all inclusive resort called Live Aqua, great resort, recommended. Came to Hidden Garden for one of our dinner for a special birthday celebration of my friend. The food was great and the ambiance was great. The service from our server was great. It was such a nice special touch for the chef to come out and ask how everything was, and the server brought out a birthday dessert for my friend. 5 stars on all of that. So why 2-stars then? The hostess of this place that evening was rude and out of place. We were all dressed VERY NICE in all black, however, one of the guy in our group's outfit was sleeveless. He was wearing a very nice leather sleeveless vest. Mind you, it wasn't a tank top, it wasn't swim wear, it wasn't athletic wear. It was an expensive leather vest, very fashionable. Nicer than all of the old men wearing shorts and Hawaiian shirts or basic polo shirts. The hostess didn't allow him in until he changed to something that had sleeves. Friend changed and was allowed in. Once inside, he put the vest back on for photos since everyone in our group coordinated to be wearing black fashionably. On our way out of the restaurant, the hostess had the nerve to stop us and say something about it. Lesson here is, do better. We understand that there's dresscode, but know what should be acceptable or not. If it was a tank top, swim wear, or athletic wear, we'd definitely understand. But it was not, it was upscale and fashionable, just without the sleeve. Plus, women are allowed to be sleeveless but not men? What year do you live in? Train your hostess better. read more

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Our first night at Live Aqua we dined at Hidden Garden, after seeing a lot of great reviews from other guests. We were overall really disappointed. The appetizers were pretty good, but our main dishes were really very bad. I got the pad Thai and it was one of the worst pad Thais I have ever had. The ambiance of the restaurant was great, wish the food matched. We did want to go back and give some other dishes a try, but just ran out of time. read more

My wife and I dined here at the Hidden Garden while we were vacationing in Cancun for our 30th wedding anniversary and staying at the Live Aqua Resort. I wasn't too thrilled with the idea of Asian food while I was in Cancun Mexico. Wanted to concentrate more on Mexican food but my wife talked me into going and I'm sure glad that she did! You first enter the restaurant in what looks like a secret entrance that leads you into what looks like a giant secret hidden garden right in the middle of the resort! My wife said, it kind of reminded her of the Indiana Jones and the temple of doom ride at Disneyland and now that I think about it, I agree, it does kind of have that vibe to it. It's dark and romantic i in a bit mysterious. You feel totally sheltered from the hot and humid heat of the Cancun sun. The waiter gave us a few samples of their delicious Sake to try but that Sake came at an extra charge that wasn't part of the all-inclusive so we just skipped on that. I wished I would've remembered to take some pictures of the entrées that we had but we were so hungry that I just forgot. But I do remember what we ordered. My wife had the. Yakisoba noodles and she absolutely loved it!! Some of the past she's ever had she said. And me I I had two entrées believe it or not. I had the Shrimp Pad Thai noodles AND the Tikka Marsala!! What can I say? I was hungry! And let me tell you it was absolutely delicious. The chef there does an outstanding job. They did bring us out a nice complementary dessert and took a picture for us. When we go back to Cancun Mexico, and stay at this resort again, we will definitely be hitting up the Hidden Garden! read more

Hidden Garden - The backdrop to one of the dining tables! - Wine Bars Near Me - Cancún, ROO

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This is the Pan-Asian cuisine at the Live Aqua Hotel in Cancun. So expect delicacies such as samosas, gyozas, chicken satay, bao buns, noodles. In my opinion, the appetizers were way better than the entrées. In hindsight, I would just enjoy the appetizers only. The drinks were also very delicious, particularly the lychee cocktail. What I also appreciated was the ambiance and decor for dinner. The low lights, dining under the shaded trees...very romantic option for dinner. Just stick to the appetizers and cocktails. read more

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Great service, cozy and cute ambiance. The one thing I did hate was there was with the position of one of the lights a fan was in front of it so it kept giving a flickering blinding motion throughout the night. Food was different than what I had hoped for and am used to but it wasn't bad, just different. Wish there was a little more heat to the dishes and a little more authentic flavor but it's Mexican Asian so not bad for what it is. read more

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Food is very mediocre. Not authentic asian if you are looking for that. -miso soup was salty -tonkatsu tasted more like crunchy fried bits with very saucy rice -bao was very sweet, it was okay -food took very very long But !! Pretty inside decor, nice ambience and vibe read more

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Hidden Garden is the East Asian dining option at Live Aqua resort. The cool part of the restaurant is the ambiance- you walk through a temple gate looking entrance, go through a narrow alleyway as if you are entering a secret garden, then enter the dining area that is above an expansive tree canopy. Half the restaurant is under the canopy and the other half is in a banyan hut-esque indoor area. Go earlier in the evening - 1. to avoid wait times (we had to wait for 30 mins coming at 7pm) AND 2. it's hard to see in the restaurant at night as it's pretty dim. This is definitely not authentic Asian food by any standard but the food was alright. They offer a selection of Chinese, Japanese, Indian, and Thai food. The service could be better for a top notch resort- we were never asked whether we wanted any more beverages after they took away our initial glass. We also had to flag staff down twice - once to order another entrée and second to order dessert. I felt like the staff missed out on the meaning of true hospitality as they were too preoccupied with bringing food out to guests and clearing tables. read more

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They had me at the name....ever since I was a young child, I've imagined myself as Mary Lennox from The Secret Garden and I've fallen in love with outdoor, romantic spaces just like this one. It's an absolute gem, and worthy of a visit when you stay at Live Aqua. The cuisine is Asian themed, which fits the bamboo that you're surrounded by as you dine, whether indoor or out. Even the indoor area is still very gardenesque, so don't worry that you'll miss out on the whole experience if you are seated inside. Like the name suggests, you are dining in a hidden garden area; no ocean view. But there are plenty of other places with that. The food is terrific-we enjoyed several appetizers amongst our group and the miso soup was everyone's favorite. If you're looking for true authentic Asian food, you may be disappointed, since this is a bit more of a fusion. But I liked the concept. Just like with all the other restaurants at the resort, service is impeccable and they pay great attention to details-especially the presentation of the dishes. Portion sizes are modest, so feel free to try a few different things. But, by far, the ambience is what won me over. read more

Hidden Garden - Wine Bars Near Me - Cancún, ROO

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This place has a very romantic, dark feel to it. The food was so full of flavor and delicious. I can't wait to come back for more!

Appetizers and service were the best on the resort. Loved the bao buns and chicken on a stick. Orange Chicken entree was also very good. 2nd favorite restaurant on the resort behind MB read more

The food is about 7/10. Some dishes are better than others and we didn't expect authentic Asian food but they do a decent job! We really enjoyed the layout of the restaurant and the staff were very nice like all the other spots at Live Aqua. read more

Orange chicken with fried rice was phenomenal. The service was amazing and the ambiance was great. This is one of my favorite spots at live.

I'm divided on whether this was designed to cover up a pool or a fountain or if it was designed to be this way. Either way it's a very fun and cute idea that maybe isn't the best with Zika issues. There's two types of tables, those "outside" under the roots, which are beautiful, but suffer from a lot of debris coming down (similar issues can be found at Varenna next door) and those "inside", which area a little more comfortable and secluded. That being said, the only mosquito bites I received during our Mexico trip I found the day after our dinner here, so while we enjoyed ourselves, I think the roots create a nice environment for the buggies, so keep that in mind if you decide to drop in. Our service at Hidden Garden, like everywhere else, was steller. The food was enjoyable, though the meal more than the dessert (the 'carrot' cake was more like a macaron with carrot shavings). All in all, between Varenna and Hidden Garden I liked the dinner at Varenna more and found the seating and experience more comfortable, so while I like the idea of Hidden Garden, Varenna is infinitely more practical. read more

Great food and atmosphere. We had the pad Thai, gyoza, satay, and ramen. All were delicious.

The orange chicken was absolutely delicious! Great ambiance and the service was stellar. We also had a sample platter that very delicious as well. Everything was fresh and flavorful. We loved the hidden garden concept, super cool! read more