We arrived without a booking and the cafe was very busy. We had lunch, which was good without being amazing. Service was efficient, food came out quickly, just not overly friendly.

Great food at a Cafe in a relaxed atmosphere with the Garden’s as a backdrop. We noticed there was a bus in the rather full car park - we selected a table outside and placed our order. We expected a long wait - we’re pleasantly...surprised that our meals and coffee came out in a very timely manner. My melt was very yummy and my wife selected prepared sandwiches- all the food was very nicely presented and very yummy.More

Went there because we were told it had (appropriately) some good Japanese food. What we found was the worst kind of 1960s era Australian food. Changed hands.- Nothing on the lunch menu without chips. My husband had the top of the range prawn "twists" -...prawns coated in some deepfried cardboard. I had what sounded like an edible option - crepe with spinach, bacon and chicken. Lumps of tasteless chicken, tiny amounts of bacon, almost invisible spinach, floating in a sea of some white sauce over disintegrated crepe. This beautiful garden and Cowra's 2ndWW history are international tourist destinations. This cafe food is a disgrace. What a waste of a wonderful opportunity . At least the customised iced coffee was nice!More

Cowra Japanese Gardens Cafe is part of the Japanese Gardens and Cultural Centre. The staff are really friendly and it is a good place to have a drink or lunch to break up the visit to the gardens / cultural centre. An adult ticket to...the complex is $18 and one can go in and out of the gardens, to the cafe and the cultural centre with the same ticket. The toilets are clean and the gift shop has beautiful origami cards and a good range of socks and Japanese bath salts, etc. The air con in the gift shop was also wonderful on the day I went as it was 36 degrees C. Dogs are allowed in the gift shop and in the gardens (on a leash of course) and on the outdoor terrace of the cafe. They are quite strict about dogs walking through the restaurant to the outdoor area (go through the gift shop). The staff at the ticket desk will help unlock the gate from the gardens to the outdoor terrace area. The cafe has a lovely view of the gardens and does quite nice food. I was pleasantly surprised that the side salad on my chicken, mushroom and bacon crepe was fresh and didn’t look hours old. It had a nice dressing on it too. No insipid tomatoes here! I used the bechamel smell sauce from my crepe dish as a dipping sauce for my chips. My husband had the squid (perfectly cooked not chewey!) with chips and salad. The only thing is the tartare sauce comes from a packet (which is fine, but that was the only weak link). The outdoor area has big umbrellas over the tables and also a small awning. If it is sprinkling it would be ok to sit outside but if it was raining you will probably get wet. The gardens themselves are nicely manicured and there is a bonsai hut. I even saw some small bonsais for sale ($40 each). We fed the koi (buy fish food for $1.20 at the ticket office). We stayed 2.75 hours including lunch. The roads from Murrumbateman via Boorowa and then back to Murrumbateman via Young had some pot holes but a lot had been fixed recently and there were a lot of signs warning drivers of ‘rough surface’. It was a good day out.More

We had walked around the gardens and timed our visit to the gardens so that we could have brunch at the cafe because the Devonshire Tea had been recommended to us. You can imagine my surprise when Devonshire Tea was not on the menu. Not...to be daunted I asked one of the staff if they served Devonshire Teas and was told no. I noticed scones in the cabinet and asked what they came with and was told jam and cream. I asked if I could get a pot of tea and was told I could so I ordered 2 x scones and 2 x pots of tea. We ddi spend a bit of time laughing at our table before the Devonshire Teas came out. The scones were excellent and the jam tasty but it was the artificial cream which was a bit disappointing.More

Visited with family and had six meals between us, we enjoyed them all. A blackboard menu with a good variety although gluten-free was not indicated and very hard to find! The outlook out onto the gardens makes dining a special experience, with the option of...outdoor dining, as well.More

Small but selective menu. We had BLT's and they were delicious. Cake selection was impressive. Can recommend.

Beautiful views over the gardens while having an excellent coffee and eggs Benedict- staff very friendly

We were lucky to get the last free table without a reservation - who knew this out-of-the-way cafe would be so popular on a weekday for lunch? The blackboard Fisherman's Catch item was perfect for both of us and we weren't disappointed. The properly fried...but not at all oily selection included prawns, Tasmanian scallops, fish fillets, salt and pepper squid and a generous serving of real chips - not the straw type fries that are served at fast food places!More

Nice café, food price is reasonable and pleasant. Good view, very relaxing, relaxing to sit out side, friendly staff.

We went to the Japanese gardens today. It was very picturesque and the gardens were immaculate. There is a cafe attached to the gardens, so you can have breakfast or lunch there. The food was good and the service was fine. Cost was $18 each,...and seniors got a $3 discount. There are also golf carts to hire if you are not comfortable walking. I would definitely recommend going there if you are in Cowra.More

Meeting older nursing friends to do lunch, we left Cowra in the mid 1989. Nice clean surroundings, it was good to see the staff promptly wiping down tables as customers left, shows that they are “Covid” aware. My husband and I can thoroughly recommend the...Seafood mornay crepe and the Crumbed Chicken and Chilli wrap.More