Red Oak in St. John's
9 Bonaventure Ave, St. John's, NL A1C 2G1, Canada
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Went for the afternoon tea a few weeks ago with my nursing classmates. We have gone here for lunch many times and really enjoyed it. The afternoon tea was 34 dollars each. There were 6 of us. We got 2 -3 tiered trays. So one for 3 people.The majority of the contents was sweets and cookies, there were actually two crustinies with egg salad on each tray, split between three people. That was the only sandwich type on the whole tray. I have been to and heard of many afternoon teas. They have all consisted of alot of sandwiches and a few sweets. We were all very disappointed with the afternoon. I think we also expected some music o piano playing as well considering it was so close to xmas. Let's just say it was our first and last afternoon tea here.
With a gorgeous view of the harbour had a delicious helping of their Seafood Chowder! Most hearty! What an awesome pairing! The staff was most professional and curtious! So pristine! I felt I was in paradise! Thank you! Jackie!
I was looking for signs of Red Oak and it looks like they call themselves The Rooms now. The seafood stew was good but I would put a little less spice as it tasted only pepper towards the end. I liked the cod the most. The portion looked small at first but was actually decent as the bowl was a tall one - hope there were spoons that go with the kind of bowls.
A very popular spot on weekends, this was a great lunch spot for my group after being in the museum for a few hours. We all had breakfast options, which are available all day on weekends, and it was well worth it! The food service was in good time and all of the food was fantastic. From french toast to eggs to hash browns there wasn't a bad word said about anything had. The servers were friendly and visited regularly to ensure everything was good. With other tables they even helped people to move closer to the view when tables became free if they asked for it. This was definitely a popular lunch spot, worth it as a trip on its own, or a great stop if you are in the museum all day.
3 course late lunch was delicious and we enjoyed a perfect harbour view. Pictured: Pavlova, cod bake, duck confit with wild foraged mushrooms It was a celebration for my Mum's 81st birthday and it was handy that the facility has wheelchairs available (that you can't pre-book but they are free)
This restaurant is fine dining. The atmosphere here is absolutely wonderful, with a beautiful view of downtown, in all its resplendent beauty. The service here is great! Our waitress was very friendly and attentive! Our food came quickly! However, the food was a let down. The portion sizes were tiny, and the food was very expensive. It tasted okay, but definitely isn't blow you away level. I'll come back here again just for the atmosphere, to try the brunch.
YOU HAVE TO GO. That's what some reviews said so I tried it not really knowing what they were serving. I went for breakfast and I was in Awe. It was DELICIOUS! I had the french toast which is the best I've ever eaten. It was filled with a brown sugar cream cheese, served with a few fresh rasperries, real maple syrup and home-made whip cream. Listen, you have to go. My boyfriend had the salmon sandwich with the chowder on the side and OMG it was perfect. It's not even expensive, the price range is really good! You don't have to visit the museum if you don't want to. You can just eat there. Also, the view from the restaurant is stunning.
Great view (when the fog hasn't rolled in), and excellent food. You can't make reservations, so there may be a wait when it's busy -- and it can get busy, especially around lunch time! Nice to go here and then check out the exhibitions at The Rooms. I usually get the Warm Root Cellar Salad or the Fish Cakes -- highly recommend. They have Tea at times, too, with multiple desserts for sharing. Great staff as well -- helpful and excellent.
Wow! A gorgeous restaurant with amazing views. It s been awhile since we were there, so i can t remember what we had but the whole experience was great. Highly recommend.
Best view of St John s
Very tasty, great view. I was expecting a typical museum cafe but its way more.
Just had coffee and tea while seeing the art gallery and museum displays at The Rooms. The coffee and tea were nothing special and reasonably priced. The view of the Harbour was worth the price. They have very strict times in terms of what is served. Dinner does not start until at least 5:30pm, so if you want to eat actual meals there, make sure you find out when the appropriate times are.
After walking 25 minutes uphill from Downtown, my husband and I sat down and took in the beautiful views of Red Oaks dining room. A server brought water and menus. That was the last bit of service we were provided. We waited at least ten minutes with our menus closed as five servers leaned against the counters having a chat. I even made eye contact and nodded at a couple of them. They went right back to their conversation. We walked out. I wasnt prepared to be ignored any longer in an empty restaurant serving $21 french toast. Go to the Nook & Cannery on Harvey instead!
The view there was unbelievable, food was so so.
Delicious salads and friendly service
If you havent eaten at the Rooms, give it a try. Best views of the city. Great food and service Wheelchair accessibility: Accessible
I nice place to stop for lunch. Great view of the harbour and clean open dining area. The menu has a good selection including vegetarian and vegan options. Wheelchair accessibility: Its a little bit of a trek from the parking but good access including a ramp to the door and elevator to the restaurant.
Pleasantly surprised at the good food :)
A Holiday Taste of Home.
By far the most overrated, disappointing dining experience I had in Newfoundland - bad service and underwhelming food. I wish I had read some of the more critical, no hype reviews before coming here. Let s start with the food. I ordered the fish stew. Although it was supposed to come with mussels and garlic bread, it came without either, with cold white bread in place of the garlic bread. The server took it back to the kitchen. The replacement stew was alright, but I found the use of frozen imported seafood (hello, shrimp!) instead of fresh local seafood to be pretty disappointing, not to mention that I also found the portion to be less than it should, especially for $26. But the worst part was the service. For one - and it s not the restaurant s fault - you should be prepared to wait at least 20 min to be seated on weekends, because it s apparently popular for the views (more on that below). Worse though was the long wait I had before anyone came to my table to offer me water or to take my order. At any given time you can see up to 5 wait staff behind the bar, some engaged but others not. When finally seen, I asked the tall server if I could have a glass of water without ice, which demonstrably put her out, as judged from her unfriendly and curt responses (perhaps the underwhelming meal that I was served was in some way connected to this service?). I then felt uncomfortable to be there. The male server with the shaved head was professional and considerate throughout and offered to serve me a drink on the house because of everything I described above, which I declined because I don t drink. When the first tall server brought my bill, I therefore expected to see a small correction, but instead I was charged the full amount. I raised this with the male server who said that there should have been a correction and that there had been some mistake. He offered me a token refund, which I sincerely appreciated all things considered. I have no clue why this place is as popular as it is. Many people suggest to come here for the views. Hot tip: you don t need to dine here to walk to the viewing platform adjacent to the restaurant that has better views than what you can see at your table anyway. In fact I found the dining area to be poorly lit and dark. I don t enjoy being negative, especially in a place I enjoy as much as I enjoy St. John s, but I would strongly urge anyone thinking of dining here to consider the many other great establishments in the city before coming here.
Had the fish cakes and some tea, and I gotta say I was really impressed with the garden salad. Very refreshing. The cakes were good too of course. Prompt and friendly service.
The root cellar salad was probably the best dish Ive had my whole visit. Cod cakes were really nice in the salad it came with. Service and view were absolutely lovely.
Food was alright, service was excellent. A nice view if youre sat by the window.
Excellent food and beautiful view of the port.
Food was delicious. The view was fantastic.
Can only speak to the French toast, I ve had I a couple times and it always hits the spot, amazing, worth the price, views are some of the best jn city, kid friendly,
Always tasty
Friendly staff, great location, delicious food. Quiet vibe for a date night or a trip out with your grandma.
Great food, experience and view!
We took friends from Ont for lunch. They came back again the next day. That tells the story. Delicious food. Great service. Fair prices.
A very nice lunch at The Rooms Café. The Warm Root Cellar Salad was excellent and exceeded my expectations. With a fantastic view of St. Johns, the Narrows and Signal Hill and a good menu selection, its worth checking out.
A great experience. The food was very nice, beautiful flavor and superb service. The view is amazing!
Limited but tasty choice. Pleasant service
The food is so tasty, the price is fair and the view is the best you can get in St Johns. Highly recommended!
Atmosphere and view were great BUT food was a rip-off. I ordered a seafood stew, for $29.00 we got a bowl of watery dish with 2 shrimps, 3 mussels, some small loose pieces of cod, and a few extreme small bay shore scallops + couple cubes of carrots at the bottom of the bowl. 80% was broth and there was NO salmon at all as stated on the menu, when I mentioned to our server she just rolled her eyes and played innocent without reporting this incident to her superior and to the kitchen. We will not go back for sure and this meal gave us bad experience and our feedbacks for this restaurant and their management are: Please do not order any seafood dish, it is highway robbery and customer service is definitely not up to par for a famous tourist spot
Great food, great value, place empty on Friday night so COVID social distancing a non issue. The god awful racket of a probable government funded performance on the floor below could cause permanent hearing damage.
Location and view is the real deal, I like the tea time they offer. Its definitely a unique experience, highly recommend if you like to try new things. Regarding food, taste is good at the bottom tray and reduces as you go up. Some of the selection changes with time. I didn t personally like the sweets they offered (top tray). I think there is room for improvement since sweets is an important element of the tea function.
Name is misleading as this is actually a restaurant and not a tree
Great view of downtown...and consistently good food and service
Amazing food, and amazing views. The atmosphere is great for a group of friends or you and your nan. Take her out, she deserves it. The food is like a home cooked meal but with a restaurant flair that makes it all worth the visit.
Pay for the ambiance, then get out while you still can. Waited for a half hour just to get a table, although you can browse while waiting. Restaurant prices for subpar food, with the wrong ingredients, over or undercooking abounds. Polish it off with a meringue, berry and whipped cream monstrosity that was inedible due to large chunks of hard, unbreakable meringue and tooth-destroying sweetness on all fronts. Look, we didn t come out to have a bad time, but nothing was impressive about the food here. Even the view is easily achievable by going outside right next to the restaurant, but they had it locked. Was it to create a captive dining audience?
Food was delicious and the view is unbeatable. A bit pricy but reasonable for the quality.
Really enjoyed our meal!
Fantastic food and presentation. Great homemade soup followed by salted beef and fresh veggies in a Yorkshire pudding... wow. Very friendly staff.
A pleasant surprise tucked into the corner of the 4th floor of The Rooms museum. Its not your run of the mill museum coffee shop... This is a bonafide restaurant offering freshly prepared dishes. There are specials of which the friendly staff will inform you when you get to your seat. The seafood chowder is packed with actual seafood, and the cod cakes are crunchy on the out and filled with cod on the inside. The only downside is that the price point is quite high... Even factoring in the quality of the dishes. Nonetheless its a good treat to round out a museum day.
For sure one of my better dining experiences! Amazing food complimented by the atmosphere along with friendly and prompt service. Cant wait to return! Recommend to all!
Enjoyed another delicious meal at The Rooms. Such a great place to spend a relaxing lunch with friends.
