The Butchart Gardens - The Dining Room

We travelled to Victoria from Seattle on a beautiful midwinter day. It was sunny, and large piles of snow decorated the ground. The little fountains popped out of glistening white. We were seated by a warm fireplace, then brought to our table. Our server, was informative and kind. She looked very professional, and knew all the teas and reccommended the berry tea. It was delicious. I REALLY enjoyed the savory platter at high tea. My partner and I gobbled everything up, but the savories were tantilizing. I ordered a black cosmo and felt charmed by it's sweet berry hints. The plants were real, and smelled lightly sweet. All of the deserts were tasty too. We came for Valentine's Day, and found the restraunt to be romantic AND LGBTQ friendly.

Afternoon Tea has become an annual event for my daughter and I to celebrate her birthday . We look forward to it . This never disappoints. Thank you for helping us make such beautiful memories. Susan Mcmullen

This was our first time at Dine Around Victoria at Butcharts. It was absolutely magnificent and such a pleasure having the chef come to the table to explain how that particular dish was made and answer our questions. The waitstaff were also very knowledgable about the food and especially the wine. I highly recommend the suggested wine pairing, which adds to the bill, but also adds to the pleasure of the meal. I do have a suggestion for Butcharts, which I hope they take in a positive approach. It was a treat to have a 5-course meal and the culinary experience of such wonderful food can't be beat. But, really, a 5-course meal, ending with a rich dessert (don't take that away), is too much for a body to fully enjoy. One comes away feeling so full of decadent delights. I highly suggest you offer a 4-course meal, which will be very satisfying and slightly less expensive for the meal and for the wine-pairing. Everyone wins!

A couple of the dishes were extremely salty but other than that everything was outstanding

Lovely experience. Beautiful setting. Vegetarian options were great

Took my mom to High Tea!
The food was delectable. The service was top notch.
We were running a little behind schedule (i had booked an 11:00 spot). When I got to the admission gate they updated our reservation to 11:15 and said not to worry.
Amazing venue. Fresh flowers, white linens, comfy chairs. The only part that disappointed me, was that the tea cups were all white. I love the ambiance at high tea, of different tea cups... but overall an amazing experience. High tea done wonderfully.

The evening, meal, service was excellent. The dining room was lovely. A very enjoyable evening.

A lovely outing with five lady friends. A visit to the indoor Spring Prelude garden beforehand was a joy to behold, followed by a delicious, unhurried high tea. Two of our group, with smaller appetites asked to share the tea and were graciously accommodated. Butchart Gardens never fails to please!

Quite nice "high tea" - though being served at a rather weird time - lunch/early afternoon. High tea is traditionally served after 4pm!

Overall, we loved the experience, food, and tea at high tea. We were disappointed with the salmon roll and with the curried chicken sandwich. Otherwise, service and all other food/beverages were great.

Food and service was excellent. Unfortunately there was an infant (very cute) that was very noisy.
The parent did her best to keep her quiet but the tea room at Butchart is not really the place for very small children. Most people who come for tea do not expect noisy children.
But that is not Butchart fault, and as usual it was an excellent tea.

Pretty room for an afternoon tea. Overall very good; creative flavor combinations enhanced traditional tea favorites.

We have be going every January 5th for 8 years. This was absolutely the best!

A lovely meal in an even more lovely environment. We took in the magical winter lights with our 9 year old and included dinner in the Dining Room. It was lovely on all fronts - atmosphere, service, food. Yes pricey but we felt well worth it. In particular the piano was such a refreshing accompaniment for dining. The volume was perfectly in the background and it enhanced the over all environment so much, we really appreciated it. Many other restaurants could take a page from here - patrons actually do not enjoy being blasted with music at a volume that makes it a challenge to hear your companions and the server. No, it does not create a "lively atmosphere, just something we never want to experience again. The Dinning Room has got it right, thank you - we definately recommend making it part of your visit to the garden, and we are looking forward to our next visit!

Food was done to perfection! Service was professional and attentive but not overly so. We were pleasantly surprised and impressed. During Christmas lighting is was very special. We’ll be back!

Our dinner was wonderful, sitting in the dining room felt like being nestled into all of the fabulous Christmas lights outside in the gardens. We were surrounded by colour and twinkling which felt so festive. The live pianist in the background was elegant and lovely. The food was delicious and the service was exceptional. A stroll around the stunning gardens and Christmas displays beforehand was a bonus to a perfect evening.

The setting was wonderful. The decorations were festive. Just as we finished tea the holiday lights came on. We were then able to walk the gardens and enjoy all the lights, which were delightful. Especially the laser lights under the pines and the tree of enlightenment. This was followed by live music with carolers and a brass quartet. It was a very enjoyable experience

High tea at 2PM. OUTSTANDING in every respect. The room furniture and seating are ever so slightly crowded but not objectionable. The crowd at 2PM was light; however, by the time we left at 4PM it was full. Excellent menu and variety of offerings. Far better value for the price that high tea at the Fairmont Empress.

I really enjoyed the dinner. The food and the service was wonderful even in the rain.

loveded it even in rain Christmas lights great work incredible well worth it in value

Excellent afternoon tea, strange how they serve the trifle first and then scones. Savory always first then sweets

High Tea at Butchart Gardens is always a treat during the holiday season. My husband doesn’t drink tea and had coffee, I took off one star because the server never refilled his coffee cup. She did after being asked, but it took a while to get her attention. Otherwise it was a very pleasant time.

The Dining Room was beautifully decorated for Christmas. A lovely, cozy place for high tea. It is expensive in the sense that you must pay the entrance to Butchart Gardens and also your tea. I would say this is a special occasion restaurant only. The ambiance and service were the best parts. The food was mixed... We all had high tea... Holiday menu. The selection was interesting but some items were not very tasty. I felt the pinwheel smoked salmon was too “fishy”, the feta flan was not enjoyed by anyone... All of the desserts were lovely and the rest of food was good.

Lovely Christmas memories, thank you! Excellent and discreetly attentive service.

This is a great spot for a special ocassion. We had the Christmas tea menu. The first two courses, the cranberry truffle and then the scones were spot on perfect. The three tiered trays included a couple of disappointments but overall was quite good with the butternut squash/feta offering being outstanding as was the heritage ham sandwich. We will definitely return!

The atmosphere was perfect for our New Year's Eve celebration! Our dinners were delicious and the service was great! I recommend this location for any special occasion!

Service was outstanding in a beautiful setting. The food was less so...not to previous visits . Over cooked and sauces not quite appropriate for entrees. Deserts however were spectacular

Excellent food and service. Not inexpensive, but worth it for special occasions.

We went for the Christmas lights which were spectacular but could have used more directional signs because in the dark and the crowds we had problems finding our way back to the dining room but overall we had a wonderful experience.

Excellent choices of tea and a tasty variety of bites on the vegetarian afternoon tea menu, all of high quality ingredients and tastefully presented.

Reserved on line - result - a miscommunication on dinner setting time. Was an hour early. Staff were fantastic in accommodating us for dinner. Ambience is outstanding as was the service. Went out of their way to ensure we had a great experience and that coat check staff received a tip. Overall cost - pricey but well worth it. Would highly recommend the dining experience.

It was a nice treat for my granddaughters (6, 12 & 15) who had never had an English tea before. However, at $25 and $42 per person, this is too pricey for most families.

Service and table settings were excellent.

I would have liked to be warned that rye bread was being used because I am allergic and so could not eat many of the sandwiches.

Children were visit BC for the first time.

A very pleasant evening meal.
Just a tad too much salt on some entries.
Alejandra, our waitress was exceptional.

We had a lovely tea and stayed for the holiday lights. It was great fun even though it was pouring rain. It was great that they had gluten free option if you gave them 24 hour notice.

Love this restaurant been coming every year over the Christmas season for the past 27 years

Beautiful setting, lovely, small rooms. Service and food do not achieve the level the restaurant claims. The captive audience is the only reason they can make the claim to being a restaurant of the level they think they are and have people continue to come at the prices they charge. Fortunately, the incredibly poor service of the hostess staff was somewhat made up for by the wait staff. The fish entrée was very over cooked and dry. The flavouring of the pork entrée was quite nice, although it was slightly over cooked. The pain at chocolat bread pudding was lovely and light but lacked a noticeable chocolate presence. We would return to the gardens, but would choose to eat elsewhere because the Dining Room restaurant is not a good value or food option.

A lovely place to enjoy the main house of Butchart Gardens. High tea is lovely.

appetizers too salty.
mains too expensive, a six ounce steak $47.00 ?

Historical spot for a nice Victorian tea
The food was beautifully displayed
A little disappointed when we were sat down at a table with a dirty side plate and dirty tea cup.