Botanical Gardens Hobart: a Royal Place!
September 9th, 2011 | 
Author: Lunch at the Botanical Gardens Hobart: we did boast a little about that on Think Tasmania’s Facebook Page, didn’t we? But we also promised to share, and although the meal has long-since been devoured, we may be able to leave you with a little inspiration. Hardly the same, I know. Sorry about that!
Royal and red: flowers at the Botanical Gardens Hobart
Lunch: Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens Hobart
The day of our outing was a little overcast, but it was warm and cosy inside the restaurant at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens. Hobart and the River Derwent were laid out providing a lovely view from the deck, and the staff were exceptionally friendly and very efficient.
Lovely Tasmanian restaurant at the Botanical Gardens Hobart
The restaurant had a lovely ambiance. The mauve-coloured walls, and the sheer material draped from the ceiling, gave a luxurious feel to the room. Images from the garden scrolled onto a flat screen TV, a nice reminder of your surroundings.
Royal: the restaurant at the Tasmanian Botanical Gardens Hobart
Tasmanian Restaurant Menu
First thing I’d mention about this Tasmanian restaurant: the serves were just as generous as the staff. Large wine glasses were almost filled, and the house bread for one with dukka spice and olive oil ($7.00) was enough for a whole tribe.
Generous serving of house bread with dukka spices and olive oil
From the main menu, we chose a spinach and three cheese filo parcel ($22.00). The spinach is grown onsite in the Botanical Gardens in Hobart and they use Tasmanian cheese. Continuing the local produce theme, we also had Tasmanian venison shanks with a hazelnut encrusted parsnip fritter ($27.00). This came with a blackberry and Tasmanian pepper berry jus.
The spinach and three Tasmanian cheeses filo parcel with garden salad
Tasmanian venison shanks with a hazelnut encrusted parsnip fritter
To round out the main course, we were served a delicious garden salad ($8.50), one of the best I’ve ever seen. Of course, when the ingredients are plucked for the iconic Tasmanian restaurant straight from the Botanical Gardens in the morning, it’s probably hard to go wrong.
A fresh salad, grown right in the Royal Botanical Gardens Hobart
Now I really didn’t want to have dessert, but as a good reporter should, I went the extra mile just for the sake of research. They had quite an array of delectable looking sweet treats, and after a long deliberation we chose a triple-layered chocolate mousse cake. I know… I suffer terribly to get the real story! Turns out, it was a pretty good choice, actually. (Again… sorry!)
A layered chocolate mousse cake for dessert, a royal treat
Royal Red Flowers: Botanical Gardens Hobart
The restaurant is located in the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens Hobart visitor centre building. After a relaxing lunch like ours, you might like to study the foyer artwork and do a little shopping. They sell lots of garden-inspired souvenirs, books and even seeds for your own patch at home.
Artwork in the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens visitor centre
Seeds from the shop: Botanical Gardens Hobart Visitor Centre
And while you’re there, it would probably be a good idea to discover the other things to do at the Botanical Gardens. Hobart and the Queens Domain are definitely places you need to keep your camera handy; especially if pretty flowers are your special interest. The conservatory is an absolute delight.
The conservatory at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
So there you have it. We’ve done our best to keep you informed about the lunch options at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens Hobart. As they say… tough job!
Map of Botanical Gardens Hobart Tasmania…
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Posted in Hobart, Tasmanian Food and Drink, Tasmanian Markets and Shopping, Tasmanian Things to Do | 
Tags: Arts, Photography, Produce, Queens Domain Hobart, Restaurants, Rivers, Tourism
2 Responses to “Botanical Gardens Hobart: a Royal Place!”
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I haven’t been in the restaurant but the actual gardens are great. I was a bit disappointed with the vegetable garden that was used for Peter Cundall’s gardening show. The beds were at the preparation stage and a bit untidy. I imagine that gardeners did most of the work & Peter fronted up for the bits relevant to the TV show.
I must say that the food looks great. (Just like the wife cooks)!
This was our first visit to the restaurant too Roger. We’d made an earlier attempt for coffee but they close at 4pm in the cooler weather and we were too late. Strengthened our resolve to return.
And we whip up meals like this at home too… all the time!!
Cheers, Tania