The Garden Cafe

This review is based on a Sunday visit during breakfast. The restaurant stresses 'everything local' yet they use liquid eggs from a carton, bland bacon and cheddar cheese and tater tots instead of potatoes. Food was OK, not very exciting and ultimately disappointing given their green claims.  Sodexo runs this cafeteria, which explains this discrepancy.

Other meals may reflect their localvore philosophy, but until they make serious changes to their breakfast menu (dump Sodexo in favor of a local company?) it's hard to take them seriously. Not worth going out of your way. If you are already there, may as well chow down.

So for those of you who haven't guessed yet, this cafe is a part of the Botanical Gardens of Chicago. During the summer they have grilled chicken and burgers along with refreshing beverages. In addition to the outdoor grill they still keep the indoor kitchen open in case people are in the mood for yogurt, pizza, cookies, or any other snack or dessert. The food is amazing all around, it's very fresh but it is a little on the pricey side but naturally that is to be expected since it is a tourist attraction during the summer.
I love the gardens and I love the cafe. Would not change a thing.

HUGE improvements here - those old reviews are out of date.  Great food (grass fed beef burger, yum) although it is pricey ($10 average). I love their selection of teas, beer, and other drinks.

Beautiful place to eat outside!  Birdsong, live music, relaxation...