This was a lovely little bar on the main street in Coolangatta. In fact it was one that I simply…read morestumbled across as I was wandering around here during the evening. Okay, it was rather quiet when I came, and it is probably more a restaurant, though they do have a bar area out the front where you can sit with your drink. As well as having a nice selection, I also found that the staff were really friendly. Yeah, I actually really liked this place.

I had a negative experience with this business. They franchised a location in Columbus, OH. This…read morelocation closed, but they sold my mom a gift card a week later. On behalf of my elderly mother, I have contacted the primary Gold Coast location about this at least 5 times over the past 6 months. They have never emailed me back. However, I noticed that they always watch my stories on Insta so I called them out and eventually they did respond to me on insta saying they will "look into it" and trying to blame the franchisee. Obviously, the Columbus location is closed and the right thing to do is for the primary business to return my mom her $80. They apparently just want to take advantage of senior citizens.

Enjoyed my meal here. It's a Hare Krishna place, which means it's low-cost Indian-inspired food,…read morecooked for the masses and served buffet-style. Lots of curries and things like that. You pay one flat fee and it's all-you-can-eat. Govinda's is a bit more special than most Hare Krishna places, though, in that it's a little bit better quality and has way more of a range of options. It has one bar devoted to salads and their dressings (fresh green mixed salads, couscous salads, quinoa salads, etc.) and one bar devoted to hot foods (pasta, several types of curries, samosas and other fried snacks, and a sweet dessert). Govinda's is also one of the only vegetarian places in Surfers Paradise, and as it is 100% vegan, you don't have to worry about sneaky dairy or egg ingredients when you order. The downside of all this is it is more expensive than most Hare Krishna places -- the ones in other cities tend to be in the $9-12 range (even as low as $6.50 here in Melbourne). We paid $16.90 each here at Govinda's! We were hungry so it was worth it -- we filled our plates once at the salad bar, then went back and filled our plates again at the hot cooked food bar, and then finally a third time for dessert. Some of the options were better than others. I really loved the satay peanut sauce at the salad bar -- I drenched my quinoa salad and green salad in it. Delicious stuff. I also enjoyed the lentil curry, and the fried pakora was super yum. I wasn't as wild about the pasta -- it was very plain. But in general, everything was tasty. The dessert was halwa (semolina pudding with sweet sauce) -- not very pretty to look at, but tasty. If you don't want to spring for the all-you-can-eat, you can also order individual plates of things, but it didn't look like it was as good a value for your money. You can also order at an extra cost any desserts from their display case and any extra drinks as well. (Free tap water otherwise.) Service was a bit blunt as it often is in this type of place. But not too bad. Atmosphere-wise, very similar to lots of Hare Krishna places, although this one had very little religious messaging on the walls, very unobtrusive -- most people would never guess it was a Hare Krishna place. Nice enough seating and decor, and very clean. I loved all the colorful throw pillows against the benches. Definitely recommend if you're in Surfers looking for a healthy, filling meal that won't break the bank.

Excellent food! Very happy every time I go Nice variety of…read moreproducts and very tasty!!

Nice vegetarian hare krishna food on Coolangatta's main street. $9 gets you one curry or salad with…read morerice, $14 gets you two curries or two salads with rice, $19 for three curries or three salads with rice. The lasagne/moussaka and kofta balls are priced differently. Most things here are vegan except for the moussaka, kofta balls, a couple of the desserts, and the mango lassi. I had a yellow curry, a lentil dahl, and rice for $14, and it was mild and somewhat bland, but hearty and warming nevertheless. I also had a vegan samosa with chutney for $6, which was honestly overpriced. (The chutney was really nice but the samosa was too heavy and greasy.) My boyfriend had the kofta balls and a quinoa salad thing with rice. The quinoa salad was AMAZING and easily the best thing on either of our plates. I would honestly go back just for that. Decor was nice in a rich, heavy-handed sort of way -- pleasantly dark with typical Indian pictures and accent pieces, including a cheesy ornate door frame with a man seated in the lotus position. Tall sturdy wicker-inset chairs. In spite of the cheesy touches, it actually seemed classier than a lot of the hare krishna places I've been. Service was nice but she seemed pretty tired. It was just her and the cook running the whole show. It was empty when we got there, but got busy with sit-down and take-away customers shortly after. Nice place, nice food, decent value for money, although some of the menu items are hit or miss.

OMG, The best... YUMMOOOOOOO This is the second time we have been to "Bamboo Flute" and we loved…read moreit. Loved every dish, The Curry Lasagne, Moussaka and salads are beautiful. Now the kids are older we will start going out to dinner a little more and The bamboo Flute will be on the top of our list.

The food and service were both subpar. My family and came and ordered take out at this cute…read morerestaurant tonight. The inside was cute and intimate. However, the food was extremely bland for Indian cuisine. I ordered vindaloo shrimp (prawn's is what Aussie Call shrimp), garlic naan and rice. My Vinaloo wasn't extra spicy like I requested. It was mostly saucy with only one potato in it, and My naan wasn't garlicky. My cousins both got mango chicken which both said was too sweet and mostly sauce with no meat. My big sis was the only person who was somewhat satisfied with her veggie curry. For my meal to be $42 it definitely was a waste of money because I wasted most of it. Disappointed we didn't like the Indian food in Gold Coast cause I'm on vacation from California. Had to write this review since I can't get a refund...

I bypassed several very nice alternatives to try this restaurant, including Tian Ran Vegetarian…read morewhich is a couple of doors down. This place is not exclusively vegetarian, but they do ask everyone if they're vegetarian/vegan and offer separate menus, and there is quite a bit going for it from a plant eater's perspective. It's a small place, and has oddly blue mood lighting (blame them for the picture quality on my food pics), but nice enough and not far from the end of the light rail line. What I got was a lentil soup, which was pretty tasty but not that substantial or filling for the price (wouldn't order it again) and a bread and chickpea combo. The latter wasn't all that great of a portion either. Those were some grade A chickpeas though, the medium spiciness level hitting the spot perfectly. The potato-filled bread to dip them in was not bad either. If I came back again (which I might), I'd order a main dish. I might also get takeout, as there's a 10% discount, and I could get food from here and Tian Ran for the same meal, which sounds awfully appealing. Anyway, as Australian Indian restaurants go, this one seemed competently run and I liked what I got.

I went here the very first week they opened, so there were maybe a few teething problems, but I…read moreenjoyed my meal and I'm pretty sure good things will come of this place. Orchid's tucked into a little shopping arcade in between the beach and Surfer's Paradise. Not the most charming atmosphere, being in a sterile shopping arcade, but the cafe itself is cute and has nice decor. Everything here is vegetarian with a few vegan options. I would have preferred to see a few more vegan options, to be honest. I got the vegan shepherd's pie and it came with mashed sweet potato instead of regular potato -- a nice surprise. Everything tasted nice, although I felt the portion size was a little small for the price. It also took them forever to serve me -- again, I'm sure it was just teething issues as they'd literally just opened and hadn't even have their glassware and stuff delivered yet. I also got a vegan cookie from the display case containing baked goods -- average but OK. What really stands out here is the service. I'm not sure if the lady serving me was also the owner/manager but I suspect she probably was and that this place is a one-woman shop. She was incredibly sweet and friendly and very apologetic for the wait. Her awesome attitude alone would make me want to go back. It's honestly great to see another vegetarian place in Surfers Paradise besides Govinda's so definitely get out there and show her some support if you're in the Gold Coast area and want some healthy plant-based food :)

Had a chance to be at Gold Coast in dec 2017 along with my wife. We were quite eager to try out a…read morenew place for dining and were searching for a 'All Vegetarian' restaurant. Were were delighted to know that what we were searching for was just 50 meters away from where we were staying and we thought it to be a blessing that we will be able to eat all 5 days at an 'All Vegetarian' restaurant. But it was a weird moment for us when we saw 'Poached Egg' on their menu.Upon inquiry, the lady owner gave a lame response 'it is just served as part of our breakfast menu' , we are 'All Vegetarian' for the rest of the day. We could not get across this response but still we tried to ignore it for a while as we were super hungry. we had a quick glance at the menu she had put for us on the table and then chose to eat pizza.I requested the lady owner if she could bake us a Pizza but she need to make sure the cooking ware she will use doesn't have any traces of egg or items that contain egg. She didn't understand what i meant and kept on clarifying what exactly we needed. We decided to let her make pizza for us , her own way. While she prepared to bake pizza for us, we realized, she didn't had the raw material to make Pizza for us and she did quite a few rounds to the shop just next door (a Sudanese shop that sells every possible meat based delicacy) to gather the mozzarella cheese, chilli sauce. We asked for Chilli flakes, she said she doesn't keep those. And we wondered what sort of restaurant that was.The pizza made for had a pizza base with a weird taste and smelled like a rotten veggie. We somehow managed to eat what was presented as Pizza but we ended up with an upset stomach. I strongly suggest not to visit this place unless they change their definition of a 'Vegetarian Restaurant'

Amazing food, very tasty! I was delight with the flavours and the place. Definitely will recommend…read moreto friends!

You do not have to be a vegetarian to love this place. Based in the centre of Broadbeach the…read moreCardamon Pod Resturant does not disappoint! With selections of hot meals to accompanying side salads you will be spoilt for choice. Great for groups or a catchup over a coffee to get the low down in all the gossip, the truly is a place to be. Friday and Saturday nights are always busy so if booking for a group make sure you speak to the friendly staff about group bookings.

Not much to say as I didn't order much (just some sushi). I was happy to discover that there is a…read morevegetarian spot in this massive shopping center. They have a bar of various asian fusion dishes, with tofu and faux meats, as well as the sushi. It's at the Western edge of the shopping center, in front of the two major grocers. I enjoyed the seaweed inari I ordered, and I'll probably update with some substance when I get around to stopping back again.

They made really good vegetarian food. Tasty & healthy. Friendly staffs. Will definitely recommend…read moreppl to go & have a try!

I managed to locate this rather under the radar vegetarian place (at the northeast end of the…read morestring of shops on this island), only to find they weren't offering anything made to order. Instead, it was a cafeteria-style place. They had printed menus to that effect, and I am a bit baffled as to how someone else was able to review a place with this name and this location that was completely different. Did they change business models? I may update if I find out. But rating it for what it is rather than what I expected it to be, it was still kind of a disappointment. A large platter yielded several basic offerings-lentils, vegetables, potatoes, and noodles-none of them bad but all of them relatively banal. The highlight was probably a salad that came on the side, but even that had been sitting out a bit too long. All of which makes this kind of an off-brand Govinda's, which isn't great because there is a Govinda's a few blocks away and closer to the beach. They had some special deals for students and, interestingly enough, cab drivers. To all of Gold Coast's Yelp-reading taxi drivers, you might want to check this place out.

A lovely lunch stop for a Masala Dosa with Jaggery tea. The…read moredosa arrived with all the accompaniments full of simple subtle flavours. They even included Semolina Halwa which finished my lunch perfectly along with a sweet jaggery tea. Would have loved to try one of the lassi on offer ... next time. This is not an up market high priced sort of place but offers simple, flavousome, ayurvedic vegetarian indian fare ... and thats just fine by me.

The staff was so kind and helpful. They provided was a heater because we wanted to sit outside. Our…read morefood came out fast and was very yummy. The food portions were greatly sized and the presentation was amazing! Best food I've had during my time in Australia!! Also great gluten free options too :)

This is a truly authentic Persian Restaurant and the amazing customer service from the owner is one…read moreof the main reasons why my partner and I keep coming back here. They have such a huge menu with all different variations of salads, kebobs, soups, stews, drinks and many other items. My favorite is the Joojeh Kebob which is a boneless chicken skewer. This dish is offered among several different options however we try to avoid rice as much as possible so our favorite plate is the Noon-O-Kabob. The dish usually comes with a side salad but we can't eat the dressing due to dietary restrictions so the kind owner has always been willing to accommodate. The Shirazi salad is also a favorite and is full of delicious flavors. The food quality is fantastic and I know this first-hand as I grew up having a Persian best friend and her mom's cooking is something I always miss. I'm so glad they have reopened as we were able to dine at their restaurant for lunch today. My partner has very limited days off but the time he does have off he always requests we get Shiraz for lunch or dinner. Definitely recommend this place to others! Plus if you're visiting as a tourist their prime location in Surfers is super convenient. We commute from Robina but it is definitely worth the drive!

This is the quintessential Aussie cafe/bakery. I loved the ambiance of sitting in the garden,…read morechoosing the potting shed, or inside the cafe. The young man who took our order was witty and fun. Service was superb. Four of us dined on a variety of menu items and drinks. We all left totally satisfied. I will definitely visit again!

I used to come here all the time during law school, and the atmosphere and food never disappoint…read more It's probably the most quintessential Aussie café/bakery, and their baked goods are absolutely to die for. Whenever I'm in the Gold Coast, I always recommend Paddock it's my go-to spot for fresh, delicious baked treats. Everything is made fresh, the meals are fantastic, and the coffee is top-tier. I'm no longer on the Gold Coast but I do still miss it this place is superior.