Coffee, Tea or Me Behind the Fig Tree?
Written: Nov 26 '04 (Updated Nov 30 '04)
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Pros: Inexpensive, patio, casual
Cons: Small portions; not very clean; felt unwelcome
The Bottom Line: If you are in Sonoma and want a quick, inexpensive lunch this is an ok choice. Hopefully it will be cleaner when you go.
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| jo.com's Full Review: The Coffee Garden Cafe |
On a Wednesday in June we spent the day in the Sonoma, CA area. Satisfying 5 people when it comes to finding a restaurant is not easy. We were delighted when we looked at the menu at The Coffee Garden. In addition to 5 humans, we had Hanna, our Pomeranian, so we needed to find a restaurant with a patio. We ended up at The Coffee Garden on the Plaza.
General information:
The Coffee Garden is located at 415 and 421 First Street West in Sonoma. If you do not know the area, this is a square with a park in the middle. The Coffee Garden is in a great location surrounded by shops and other restaurants. Their phone number is 707-886-6645.
The hours are Sunday through Thursday 7:00am-7:00pm; Friday and Saturday 7:00am-8:00pm, seven days a week. Eateries do not come much more casual than The Coffee Garden.
Decor, Service and Food:
My daughter and I took menus and we all walked through a hall taking us to the outside patio in the back of the restaurant, actually more of a deli. We took the orders of the others and went inside and ordered. There was one woman behind the counter and she was miserable. We felt like we had done something wrong just by walking in. There were several other people waiting to order so maybe we were taking too much time ordering for 5 people.
The deli has a couples of tables if you choose not to eat outside. You might see online if you look that The Coffee Garden is called The Coffee Garden and Gift Shop. There is a small gift shop in the hallway. I would not go out of my way to buy a souvenir for someone here but if you go you will want to look at some unusual items and some unusual cards as well as antiques they have for sale.
You may also read that the outdoor patio was beautiful. I do not know when that was written but beautiful is not a word I would use. I will give the patio credit for many beautiful trees and greenery and a fountain in the middle. The patio garden is available for rent for events. I would not have an event here- at least not during this period of time. Perhaps I caught it when they were short help. The plastic tables and chairs were dirty. The patio needed a good sweeping. (Hanna had fun!)
The menu gives some interesting information about the building called Salvador Vallejo Adobe. This was the home of Captain Salvador Vallejo who was the brother of General Mariano Vallejo, the founder of Sonoma. The building was built by Native Americans from 1836-1846. From 1858-1864 the building was a co-educational boarding school. It is now an Historical Landmark (No.501). It is home to one of the oldest (160 years) fig trees in California.
The food was brought out by a young woman who did not say a word. The food was decent but the portions small. This is a very expensive, upscale area. The prices of the food I am sure were among the cheapest in Sonoma.
We ordered different foods all of which were adequate though nothing gourmet or special. My daughter got a spinach salad with eggs (hold the bacon) and a tomato-tamari dressing. It cost $6.95 and came with bread. The price is not high but it was mostly spinach. I would have thought they would throw in more egg since she was not getting bacon. My husband got a vegetarian sandwich which came with coleslaw, three-bean or pasta. He chose the cole slaw and had a choice of several breads. The sandwich was avocado, cucumber, sprouts, tomatoes and a choice of cheese for $5.75. This is inexpensive for a sandwich but it was very small. My other daughter got a tuna melt sandwich which came with the same but she chose pasta. The pasta was a very small portion as was the sandwich with melted cheese for $6.25. My stepson got the Chicken Vallejo for $6.95 which was a chicken breast with mild roasted chili peppers and hot pepper Jack melted on a French roll for $6.95. I can just say ditto again. He did say the chicken was tasty. I got the garden burger which was a vegetarian burger on a wheat bun for $5.75. The menu says juicy. It was not dry but it was not juicy. It was adequate. As I said nothing was delicious; it was adequate, put food in our stomachs and the price was right even though we were all hungry afterward and got ice cream from a corner ice cream parlor that cost more than the meal!
Other food:
The Coffee Garden has a decent selection of salads (8) including a cold pasta salad ($6.50); 21 sandwiches including hot ones such as grilled cheese ($4.95) and Tofu Veggie Burger ($6.95); soups made daily; an assortment of American and Italian Pastries which looked wonderful. I should have gone right to dessert!
There is also espresso, shakes, teas, coffees sodas and juices including a refrigerated beverage case.
My Final Thoughts:
In retrospect considering we had 5 different needs and a dog this was a good choice. It did not cost us a lot and though not full at least we could say we fed the kids and had lunch. Best of all Hanna could have all the crumbs she wanted and no one minded that she was there.
Would I go back? Yes I think so under the same circumstances. If my husband and I were there alone it would not be my first choice because I cannot stand anything dirty or even feeling dirty around food. I would rather spend 3 times the amount for cleanliness. It is a cute place though and if you have children it is a good choice on a nice day. They can roam around the large patio without your worrying about them (as long as they are not too young!) and make noise -no one will care. We found music playing but it was background music. It was loud enough to hear but not so loud it will drown out screaming children.
Please feel free to ask me a question or leave a comment.
I am keeping track of the reviews I am writing chronicling our 3-month cross country trip:
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Recommended:
Yes
Kid Friendliness: Yes
Vegetarian Friendly: Yes
Best Suited For: Kids and Families
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