Turner Pavillion Teahouse @ Royal Botanical Gardens

Review summary

1. C

   Carolyn

   Toronto

   1 review

   2.0

   1 review

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 2

   Service was very slow- waited for 25 mins for the beverages (tea, lemonade). Waited an additional 60 mins for the food towers. Bathroom which is outside was unavailable due to frozen locks. Room was cold due to the exterior door opening directly into the tea room. Not a great experience and will not be returning.
   

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2. R

   Racheal

   Toronto

   1 review

   3.0

   1 review

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 4

   We booked the Mad Hatters Tea party as part of the Alice in Bloomland experience. Upon arrival, I clicked the address in the booking which told us to walk across the street, which we started to walk only to see that the entrance was closed and had to walk back to the main building. There were no instructions telling us to go to the main entrance. So we lost about 20 mins due to this confusion. Then when we arrived, we sat for over 45 mins without any food and the booking said it was for 1 hour. This was a pre-set menu that you pre-book for and I expected to have food pretty soon after arriving given that we had to pre-pay. They made the "sandwich towers" based on when people arrived and because of the poor entrance instructions we were one of the last ones to arrive. The food was okay, but it was clear staff were overworked and they needed more staff as almost no one was checking on customers. Its not a good experience to have 10+ tables all arrive at 11am without having done some level of food prep in advance. I'd recommend that they stagger people to give staff the ability to check on customers. The ambiance was nice but definitely was overshadowed by the lack of service. Also note, the bathrooms are outside so you'll need to wear your jacket to use the restroom if going there during winter. I'd love to visit in the summer to compare the experiences.
   

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3. E

   Evelyn

   Toronto

   3 reviews

   2.0

   3 reviews

   Dined 4 days ago

   1. Overall 2
   2. Food 2
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 3

   I have had tea at the Turner Pavillion at the RBG four times, this was my fifth. I thought this was going to be special as it was a themed tea but it didn’t even meet the standards of previous visits. I don’t agree with the 18% gratuity paid in advance, a tip is supposed to reflect the customer’s satisfaction with the food and the service. In our case, the server was wonderful, there were other issues. It is the only restaurant I have visited where you have to pay for your food in advance, when you book your reservation. Our tea was lukewarm when we received it and cold by the end of our meal. Tea is supposed to be served hot! Our table was much too small, we had four people but with four place settings, four water glasses, four teapots, four cocktails not to mention the tea towers, it was a set up for a spill which was exactly what happened, one cocktail went over. I noticed a larger table at the back of the tea room that remained unused for the entirety of our time slot for tea and we were the largest group at the time. I didn’t think the food was anywhere as enchanting as the menu made it sound. It appeared that a few items had been prepared too far in advance, a version of a devilled egg was a little dried out on the edges of the piped filling and the pea sprout paste made the bread soggy, you needed a fork and forks were not part of the place settings. Not all items easy finger foods. The amount of clotted cream allotted for each person’s scones was pathetically inadequate maybe about a tablespoon for two people and four small scones? The carrot cake … that was carrot cake? It was so soft and crumbly, definitely could not pick it up to eat it. All in all, I found the experience of the Madhatter’s Tea Party very disappointing.
   

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4. D

   Dalia

   Toronto

   4 reviews

   4.0

   4 reviews

   Dined 5 days ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 3
   4. Ambience 3

   Small charming venue. Exit door to washrooms made it cold inside when opened. (This is February in Canada!) Staff was friendly though somewhat disorganized with many patrons entering the front door at the same time. The food and tea was enjoyable and attractive.
   

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5. D

   Diane

   Toronto

   2 reviews

   5.0

   2 reviews

   Dined 5 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   The tea was creative and delicious. Highly recommend.
   

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6. c

   christine

   VIP

   Toronto

   13 reviews

   3.0

   13 reviews

   Dined on 9 February 2025

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   We arrived for our reservation on time for our Mad Hatters Tea. This was a timed seating at 1.00 for one and a half hours. Our server Lily promptly asked for our choice of tea and was served within probably 10 minutes. It was a pre-booked menu. We were served our tiered Afternoon Tea of lovely scones, tea sandwiches and sweets after 45 minutes. At about 2.15. The mad hatter came by our table, as well as others, offering take away boxes and reminded to us that our seating was over at 2.30 If our food had been served promptly, we certainly would’ve enjoyed our afternoon tea experience to the fullest, Instead we felt rushed to meet the 2.30 deadline. I mentioned to the person at the door when leaving and I got the usual. ‘Oh, sorry about that’.
   

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7. M

   Maria

   New York City

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on 8 February 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 5

   We had the best experience for tea today! Would definitely come back :)
   

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8. K

   Kelly

   Toronto

   2 reviews

   1.0

   2 reviews

   Dined on 8 February 2025

   1. Overall 1
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 1

   We drove for an hour to go to what was advertised as a special Mad Hatter’s Tea Party - with images on the website of “Eat Me” treats, “Drink Me” teas……so, we were expecting beautiful botanical decor and cookies with “eat me” written on them, and a whole themed room, etc. But in actuality, there was no decor (a few cards hanging from chandelier), no messages on cookies as per website, and nothing that made it any different than a regular afternoon tea. Which I could have had much closer to home without the commute to this place. I took my daughter there for her birthday because I thought it would be special - but it was not special at all. Very disappointed.
   

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9. M

   Marg

   Toronto

   2 reviews

   5.0

   2 reviews

   Dined on 8 February 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   First Impression, lasting impression! Enjoyed Mad Hatter Tea while attending RBG Alice in Bloom land and the theme was well played including server in character outfit. The day was complete and memorable. Would attend the Pavilion Tea House again. Efficient, friendly and attentive. Overall, relaxing experience.
   

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10. L

    Lisa

    VIP

    Toronto

    8 reviews

    5.0

    8 reviews

    Dined on 7 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    This was such a fun experience, combined with the Alice in Bloomland art exhibit. Fantastic food, and very creative. Highly recommend!!
    

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