Bamboo Buddha - Full Menu

Several months ago I was guided to a place in the green hills north of gosford in Holgate, to a haven of tranquility and good...no....great food appropriately n... read more Several months ago I was guided to a place in the green hills north of gosford in Holgate, to a haven of tranquility and good...no....great food appropriately named the Bamboo Buddha. AND to state this cafe-come-restaurant come-substitute for heaven is one of the best vegetarian restaurants in the current solar system would be skimming the surface. I have gone back and back again with family and friends (good idea to book on weekends) and it continues to impress ! The setting is so peaceful u could almost hear a lentil drop! The staff are just superb, the management takes time to have a chat on weekends and even the koi in the ponds seem to smile. Try the lentil vegetable curry, the crispy risotto or the famous buddha burger followed by a slice of orange and almond cake with ice cream. Open every day except Mondays which is a rest day for the Buddha and the koi. Yum!!

My sister lives on the central coast of NSW. She has often told me of this wonderful little spot in Holgate called the Bamboo Buddha. She described the setting... read more My sister lives on the central coast of NSW. She has often told me of this wonderful little spot in Holgate called the Bamboo Buddha. She described the setting as "very peaceful". She described the food as "healthy and enjoyable", and the owners as "beautiful people".On a recent trip to the central coast to visit my sister and brother in law, it was a given that we would visit the Bamboo Buddha . My sister was excited for us to go there as she has been telling me about it for a few years. You know that feeling when you are excited to share something you really like with someone for their first time? Well, that's how my sister felt. Upon entering the Bamboo Buddha, my sister immediately sensed something different. Where were those welcoming beautiful owners she had told me about? It had always been a welcoming experience entering the Bamboo Buddha but not today. We walked around the grounds in search of a table that was somewhere near a heater (it was quite cold) and throughout the search nobody assisted us. We couldn't help but notice a woman scurrying around, holding plates with food on them. Her body language and the look on her face suggested that she wasn't in harmony with life on this particular day (let's hope it was just this day) . She seemed quite a bit older than the young staff that was working there, so we assumed she was either a manager, or heaven forbid a new owner. After finally finding ourselves a table we sat down. The ambiance of the Bamboo Buddha is indeed very "yogi" like and I was looking forward to enjoying an afternoon catching up with my sister and brother in law. We went to the counter to order and we were eventually met there by the same women described above. (actually she stood about 5 steps away from the counter and addressed us from this position and never bothered to come to the counter to speak with us) My sister placed her order only to be told that what she wanted wasn't on the lunch menu. She chose something else and this time the woman said in a rude manner "Read the menu it's not a lunch item" We were taken aback by this. My sister explained that she had been there many times and was only ordering based on her prior experiences and suggested to the woman that there was no need to be rude.. After some unsettling moments my sister ordered a meal, but the look on the woman's face as she wrote down the order, was enough for us to say let's go somewhere friendlier.Well, by now my sister was totally embarrassed for having brought me to the Bamboo Buddha . I told her the only one who should be embarrassed was the restaurant for being so poorly represented. We left and enjoyed a lovely afternoon in Terrigal around smiling faces and people who were enjoying their work and seemed in harmony with life. My rating of this restaurant is based on the described experience. I cannot comment about the food given we left without eating. If you feel you need to project your negative vibes on people who are there to enjoy themselves, then perhaps you should find a job that you can do from your living room where you don’t have to come in contact with the public.