Critic's Review
I can't tell you why I went to this place. But I did.
As I walked into the place I thought about Energy Kitchen; the place that was in the Salsa Fiesta space that we ridiculed the day they opened. This place is owned by the founder of Host.net, Jeffrey Davis. Somehow I have to think that there''s a wife or girlfriend involved in the froofy concept.
The place is green, because Gardens are generally green. Plastic furniture and lots of delusional people eating not-so-good looking food.
There's a counter with stools where you can sit if you're uncomfortable sitting at a table. I was thinking that the place would be fast-casual, but it's full waitress service. Great, another $2 for tipping.
I did find it interesting that a place owned by an internet guru has no wireless service.
Someone came over after a couple of minutes and took my tea order; I asked if they serve breakfast all day, but they do not. I kind of snickered at the food; they call this health food but it's mostly breads and grains, which are the worst things for you. I was trying to find a soup and salad, but they don't have any salads under $10.
I ended up ordering black bean soup and guacamole, fearing that the soup would come in a teacup. The "organic" tea is $2.50, and they have real Stevia #BreakingBad.
The music was predictably bad, with Jason Derulo the only thing recognizable. The soup came out in a much bigger bowl than expected.
The "soup" wasn't really a soup; it was like they took an immersion blender to a can of black beans, and it tasted similar. Very bland, no real flavor. Avocado is bland by definition; the only flavor in the soup was provided by the Feta cheese, which worked better than expected. The Guac came out when I was about 1/2 done with the soup.
The Guacamole was OK, not great but of course salty chips work nicely with Guac. These were just baked pita points, which I don't get at all. They were just hard and tasteless. I decided to take the guacamole home and pair it with something that tasted a bit better.
I got my check and out the door I went, never to return. Obviously "Gourmet Garden" is an oxymoron.
Conclusion
These overpriced "organic' health food places are opening up all over the place; it's a great business idea because
1) Meat is expensive
2) You don't have to know how to cook
3) You can charge $12 for $1.50 worth of food
People who eat this junk have decided that taste doesn't matter; as long as they can convince themselves that they're eating healthy you can put just about anything in front of them and they'll be happy. Of course these are the same people you see on weekends with Martinis eating Truffle Fries. When you're used to tasteless food, those french fries are super tasty.