The Garden Kitchen

Name Change!!! It is now –The Secret Garden Café…-
So not much to say different than some of the other reviews really. Its a nice little place, good food, small portions though (trying to be artsy and exclusive I think). They were happy to make adjustments. We had Cobb Salads, with different dressings than the menu called for, no problem. Fresh rolls and then dessert.
I would say the service is not so much slow as it is «casual». If its a nice day and you were sitting out in their garden patio (it was cool the day we were there so we ate inside) the pace would be about right.
Its not fast food, Americans have to try and get themselves weaned of the meal «and» mind set. If you are going out for a meal, relax and enjoy the whole experience. If you just want to wolf down a burger and run off to the next thing, skip quaint little non-​chain places– they are not for you.

Slow service with average, forgettable sandwiches. I came here with a group of friends during the summer and we thought that we should have sat outside instead of inside because we felt like our server forgot about us. It isn’t a horrible place to stop by for lunch, but there are plenty of other places in Occoquan that offer much better food.
Food: 2.5
Value: 3
Service: 2.5
Overall: 2.5

The grilled chicken panini is good… loaded with roasted red peppers. The tuna salad was decent, but very awkward to eat because of the bread and vegetable sizes. Now let’s discuss the key lime cheesecake. It was on special and looked OK. The consistency was all wrong and we could tell it was definitely a few days old. I only took a bite, but if I took any more I promise you I would’ve gotten sick. They really shouldn’t be selling that. The staff was pleasant and the prices were a little pricey for the amount of food we got. I would skip this place if I were you.

beware if your vegetarian or allergic to pork (yes, some people are allergic to mammalian meats)
I used to work in town and would stop by here occasionally to grab breakfast. The staff is friendly but their not real up front about what your getting.
I got an egg and toast breakfast and they ask me if I wanted home fries/​hashbrowns what have you… What they don’t mention is that they come served with/​fried with bacon. Which I’m sure is great as I know there are a lot of bacon lovers out there. but I hadn’t realized it as I was having a bit of rush morning and slowly picked at the potatoes (I had ordered in a to-​go-​box) when I could. I had a mild allergic reaction to bacon/​bacon grease.
It wasn’t real obvious and not something you would expect to find. so head’s up especially when it’s failed to be mentioned on the menu.

Upstairs to an outdoor patio is nice but it’s pretty sunny on a warm day. Inside place your order & take a seat while it’s prepared; orders are brought to your table. They are famous for their baked goods — chocolate cake is very good; they have a nice choice of pie. I had chicken salad sandwich, my friend had grilled cheese. Both were very good. This is a nice place for lunch. Occoquan is a pleasant place to spend time checking out small shops. Lots of parking during the week.

Went here early one Sunday morning to give it a try. Actually really just wanted to take the kids down to the Occoquon since it was a nice day. Ended up reading some reviews on the The Garden Kitchen and decided to give it a try. Overall it is a pretty quaint place one block off the river. We sat outside and it really has a nice garden like atmosphere, definitely was enjoyable.
In regards to the food, I wouldn’t say it was anything special, but was your typical breakfast fare. I have a bacon egg and cheese sandwich and my wife ended up getting a ham and cheese omelet. Again it was all really good and fresh, which is good if that is what you are looking for, but nothing really exotic by any means. The coffee was decent and the staff was very friendly and helpful.
One thing you have to try here is the freshly made pies and of course the chocolate cake that was previously mentioned in other reviews. I went with the butterscotch cream pie and of course the chocolate cake. The butterscotch pie was really good, fresh crust and a nice balance of butterscotch. The chocolate cake was by far the best and was totally outstanding. My wife stated that this was probably the best cake that she has eaten.
To sum it up, if you are looking for a normal, freshly prepared breakfast in a nice quaint area, give The Garden Kitchen a try. I would definitely go back for the atmosphere alone. You however will have to try the chocolate cake or definitely take it home. Yum.

Only tried the famous chocolate cake and it was AMAZING!!! Would def come back for more desserts! Locally owned and operated so thats a plus!

Quaint old-​fashioned charm mixed with homemade goodness. Try the pie, any pie. Don’t miss the chance to cruise upstairs and check out the amazing collection of historical newspaper clippings on the walls. If you dine outside, watch out for the bees!

Had lunch at the Garden Kitchen today as i was visiting Occoquan and all the reviews say it’s a good place. The restaurant is indeed very charming — more on the outside than inside, however. But with 95 degree heat the charming courtyard was not an option so had to sit inside, which was not as charming but just ok. Had the grilled chicken panini, and a slice of pecan pie. The panini was nice and hot, although nothing too special, and the same to be said about the pecan pie, which was not the best I ever had. It’s a good place to get a quick bite and the price is sort of reasonable. Come cooler weather when one can sit in the multileveled, green courtyard/​garden, the atmosphere could be an attraction. But not sure if I will have a reason to visit Occoquan again as I didn’t find the town to be as interesting as I had expected — the extensive faux Victorian style condo/​apt buildings on the edge of town doesn’t do the town justice, and many of the shops were closed today (maybe due to this being a Sunday or the heat).

We took our Grandma to the Garden Kitchen a few weeks ago, and it was great. The lunch was light and casual. My husband and I both had italian panini (s); Grandma ate the reuben, and our two young children split a turkey club. The food was tasty (not greasy/​overcooked/​oversized) and light. We heard that the dessert was the real draw to this place, so we picked up: slices of chocolate cream and lemon meringue pies, a chocolate chip cookie, and a gingerbread man. On the whole, the dessert was good (although the lemon meringue was a little too sweet for my husband’s tastes and the gingerbread man a little too hard). The price for the food was very reasonable for what we received.
I loved the ambiance of the place. We ate around 12:30/1pm on a Sunday afternoon. We decided to sit in a cozy little dining room off to the side of the main area. It was perfect for us. We had the whole room to our ourselves, so we could spread out. The seating was bistro-​style with 2 sets of mini tables and chairs for little ones. My 3-​year-​old daughter and 10-​month-​old son LOVED their own personal kids’ table. Becuase of the relaxed atmosphere, our own little private space, and a laid-​back waitress, we found ourselves staying longer than we planned. Grandma doesn’t venture out very much, but she raved about how pleasant the place was.

I’ve been to The Garden Kitchen several times, mostly for lunch and once for dinner.
I love small historic towns so The Garden Kitchen has this great atmosphere — very relaxed and quaint. It’s a wonderful little place hidden away in the back of the town, perfect for an outdoor lunch on their patio (especially on a sunny day.) With all their flowers and outdoor setup, the patio area is one of my most favorite and memorable parts of this restaurant.
Simple sandwiches for lunch are great and PLEASE try their chocolate cake! It is SO good! Again, just sitting out on the patio alone or even with a friend for lunch was very relaxing.
The one time I went for dinner it was as if the causal day time lunch spot had transformed into a bit upscale restaurant. Excellent dishes and plated beautifully. Great for a dinner for two :)

Nice setting, especially when it’s warmer and you can sit outside. The food’s okay and it has reasonable prices.

Food is only part of the experience of eating here. Pretty good food in the right atmosphere becomes great food. And that’s what I feel this place excels in, good food in the right atmosphere. They offer a pretty standard selection of sandwiches: chicken salad, ham, turkey, club, or BLT, etc. You get to select what kind of bread you’d like your sandwich on. While the fresh bread is a nice touch, the sandwiches are not far off from what you’d probably make at home. However, the homey feel, friendly staff, and delicious pies all combine to make this a favorite lunch spot.
Their homemade pies are to die for. I’ve sampled a handful and thought all of them were great. May favorite thus far is from last October, they made this delicious pumpkin cheesecake that I hope shows up again!
All in all, this is a great spot to pop into for a quick bite to eat that is good and not fast food junk.

If you need a casual lunch and you are in the Occoquan area, this is a good option.
First of all this place has breakfast too. I didn’t eat it, but I am very interested in going back for the Old Fashioned Biscuits and Gravy sometime soon.
I was here for lunch, and I had the broccoli soup, a large crock of it for $ 3.25. I also got a large roll and some lemonade, which made for a perfect lunch out on their outdoor seating. Their picnic tables are country and cute, with the bases of all of them made out of old Swinger Sewing Machine stands.
There sandwiches, which my coworker had, looked really quality, and were in the 7 – 8 dollar range, and are all served with chips and a pickle.
The pie case looked amazing, though I didn’t have any of that either – more and more to try next time.
As I said, for some standard healthy lunch fare, come here if your in Occoquan.

3.5 star.
This restaurant is located in Historic Occoquan at walking distance from the Mill House Museum.
The restaurant has a dine in or a carry out option.
You can either eat inside the restaurant or at the terrace, (the latter I found very peaceful and enjoyable)
Went here for lunch after a tour at the Mill Museum. I chose to eat inside because it was a little windy outside despite the nice weather. I had their special which was made of chicken salad sandwich, potato chips and a bowl of soup. For soups options they have vegetable soup, cream of broccoli soup or crab soup. I chose the crab soup which I absolutely did not like. It did not tasted to me at all like crab soup. At first I thought they made a mistake and served me vegetable soup instead, but no, unfortunately it was not a mistake. However the sandwich was really, really good.
Since this place is also known for its cakes, I decided to add to my order the key lime cheese cake, it was absolutely delicious. To my palate it tasted like goat cheese but not too strong to take over in flavor. I enjoyed the cake very much.
The service was a little bit off, the server was not very attentive to my needs so I was a bit disappointed with that.
I recommend this restaurant for their sandwiches and cakes, and it is located in a very nice walking area in Historic Occoquan.

I’ve only been here once or twice and the food was tasty. It is deffinately made well. The one thing I’ll recomend though is that if you’re on a budget, watch what/​how your order because they tack on charges for every little thing! But yes, definately tasty & thus, recomended.