Govinda’s Garden Vegetarian & Vegan Café

I have to give this place 5 stars! Not only is the food OUTSTANDING but there is also a positive spirit and energy that flows throughout. The service is warm, accommodating and friendly. I wish I could bottle this place up and take it back home to Virginia with me. They have an all you can eat Vegan and gluten free buffet that will knock your socks off all for the price of $ 13 Just go here and eat healthy and I promise you will leave smiling and feeling great.

I loved it! No pressure to leave, and buffet style serve yourself! Everything is vegan! It was all delicious.

AMAZING! Incredible Place! There so welcomeing an inredible food! I love the vegan food here!
It is a Buffet and you would think not good but it is fresh and GORGOUS!!!

I wanted something healthy for lunch the other day and remembered I had this place bookmarked to try. I got here a little after 1 PM, after the main lunch crowd had left. All-​in-​all, I had a pleasant experience. I ate outside on their patio listening to some very relaxing music. I found the people who work here and run the place to be very nice and accommodating.
I’m not vegan or vegetarian, but I found the food to be tasty. It was all extremely flavorful, but maybe a bit too much so. Generally I’m not one to complain about flavor since I seek out flavorful food as a rule, but I wouldn’t have minded something like some plain steamed veggies to balance out the offerings that had some really strong flavors. For example, the day I went the items on the hot part of the buffet were a pasta salad (it was almost gone so I wasn’t able to try that), papadum (lentil crackers), black bean soup, curried chickpeas, creamed mixed veggies with thyme, collards in a mustard sauce, and rice. Again, everything was delicious on its own, but together as a meal, the flavors were overwhelming for me. I like a little more balance. I was also surprised that there weren’t more items to choose from, but maybe it was just the day I went.
Again, this was a very pleasant place to relax and have some lunch. I’d be inclined to stop by and try it again.

Govinda’s is very unique and a wonderful flavor adventure! The chai is the bomb. I would return just for that.
We went here for my birthday since I’ve wanted to try this place for years. A nightly changing all vegetarian buffet with vegan and gluten free options? It must have been made for me.
We came on Greek night and the special entrée was Musaka which is a Greek dish normally filled with meat. Govinda’s version was made with lentils and they had a dairy free version as well as a dairy one. This meal was superb with a powerful flavor and satisfying texture.
The chickpea stir fry was also phenomenal (I love chickpeas) and the green beans rounded out for a great meal. They had a light pasta with some herbs that was to die for.
I’m not sure how they come up with what mix to serve together. When looking at the buffet it seemed a little hap hazard, but when it was all on my plate it just worked together.
I had the chai to drink, as I do everywhere. They make their own and it is fantastic! Perfectly sweet and spicy. I probably had five cups.
The staff at first seemed kind of stand offish. They didn’t come over right away and so we jumped right on the buffet. I think this was mostly due to it being a busy night. After our waitress did come over she was pleasant and after asking her a few questions I was able to get her to talk a little bit.
The only downside for me is that this place is very far from home. While this will make trips here difficult I will definitely be back and try the other tasty creations they come up with.

The lunch buffet was fresh and light, the perfect meal for a mid day energy boost. The flavours were all well balanced and delicious, the atmosphere was relaxing and the couple who runs this restaurant were genuinely kind and attentive. As a non-​vegan, I highly recommend it and didn’t miss the bacon at all.

Diet changer for Carnivores
This review is about my first experience in a vegetarian restaurant in which I am not familiar with this type of food serve in Govinda’s Garden Café, a Laid-​back, spiritual spot preparing seasonal vegetarian & vegan specialties. I entered and automatically was greeted, not as a customer but as a friend, very friendly staff, caring, lay back, and happy. So far I like this place. I went in the evening and did not had to order, everything was in a buffet style with about 14 types of food, just enough to keep you satisfied. I picked a nut loaf, cream sauce steamed veggies, garbanzo curry, dale bean soup, basmati rice, and a lot of vegetables of course.
I returned to my seat and notice the soothing meditative Indian music in the background and paintings of different gods, adding to the chill, relaxing, and calming vibe I get from Govinda’s. The nut loaf was full of nutty flavor with a little sweetness, very few condiments but just enough to enhance the flavor, delicious in other words. My tamarind cold tea was exceptional, especially because it didn’t feel over sweetened and you can actually taste the tamarind. The cream sauce steamed veggies is even better, thoroughly steamed veggies with a green cream sauce that adds a lot of flavor. The garbanzo curry was my favorite, the sauce, texture, and flavor of the garbanzos was on point, leaving me begging for more. Unfortunately the basmati rice was a little dry, but with some garbanzo sauce poured on top, it becomes amazing. It was an amazing place to eat and if all vegan/​vegetarian food is like this I can see myself quitting the carnivorous life-​style!
Tea: $ 1.50 Buffet: $ 12.95 Total cost: $ 14.45

Excellent food and service. The vegan fish sticks and tartar sauce doesn’t taste anything like fish socks or tartar sauce, which is a good thing! You really just feel good after eating here, vegetarian or not.

Had a very good meal on Saturday night. The lasagna and the garbanzo curry were fantastic. The employees were very helpful. I give it a 10 on a 1 to 10 scale.

The food was amazing. The staff is cheerful and welcoming. The atmosphere is homey and warm.

My husband and I love this place. Food is delicious, people are friendly, and it has a nice atmosphere — they had the fireplace going the night we were there. Highly recommend checking them out. We’re looking forward to going back soon.

This has become one of our FAVORITE places to treat ourselves to dinner. We have even brought friends and family here, we love it so much! The vibe is so peaceful and loving, the food is delicious (vegetarian buffet with tons of vegan fare), and we always leave feeling full (in the best way possible). Every meal we’ve had has been so worth the trip. The tamarind tea and the vegan chai are out of this world good and every salad is amped up with the delicious almond dressing.

AMAZING owners and amazing food to go with it! What a steal for $ 13 all you can eat buffet!

I am not a vegan or vegetarian. However I love this place. nice atmosphere and very yummy. The tamarind lemon drink is my jam! very good price healthy, delicious food.
but eat everything you put on your plate. wasting is bad karma.

You won’t find the 5 star fancy cuisine here. However, you will find the most creative, tasty and wholesome vegan food here. On top of all that, the hospitality of the staff will make you feel like home.
The restaurant is cozy and the dinning wares are clean. The whole dinning experience was simple, comforting and enlightening… yes, enlightening.
I’ll be back.

Really enjoyed our trip to Govinda’s this evening!
The buffet was hot and delicious with all sorts of yummy vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, and dairy free foods.
The BF and I really loved the Shephards Pie with Gravy, the coconut kale and yams, and the soup was quite delicious! He couldn’t get enough of the Pappadam (Lentil Wafers).
I’m not usually a fan of salad bars, but I went back for seconds for that Tahini dressing, man was that good!
Overall, great experience and great atmosphere! The owners were really lovely and even gave me a hug and thanked me for coming in!
Thanks Govinda’s! :D

Very happy with my experience here. This is a buffet. The food is fresh and healthy and you can tell they are really passionate here about their culture. The bread is fantastic and the tamarind tea was excellent as well. We even ended up buying a loaf. They were extremely nice. Decently priced for lunch only 9.95. The outdoor patio was quite pleasant.

I like the ambience and the effort. Everyone there works their butts off. But it’s not as good as Kalachanji’s in Dallas. The food isn’t as good, but that doesn’t mean it’s not good. It’s good.
The food is home cooked and sometimes changes each time you go up, which is good to me. It’s entertaining and different. If you’re a food nazi that might not be cool but it’s an overall cool experience.

This is an extremely easy review to write. I’ll keep this short and sweet. The food was delicious. The workers were extremely kind and helpful. The price was I think 10 bucks a head for all you can eat. They do all or mostly organic. Didn’t use any toxic oils like canola or soy. No headache following the great meal.
I recommend this place to anyone who likes Indian food or is in the mood to try something new. It’ll be my first stop visiting Denver again!!!
Thank you guys for the wonderful experiences!!!

Our first night at Govinda’s was incredible. I can’t believe we hadn’t been here until tonight.
My husband is not a vegetarian, but loved all of the choices for dinner. I am a vegetarian and I was in heaven. The salad bar was huge, very fresh, and healthy. All of the warm dishes were unique and tasty. We both really enjoyed the tamarind tea (caffeine free).
The atmosphere was relaxed and unpretentious. Although it was February, we sat on the porch and were very comfortable with heaters. The staff was very friendly and warm.
We will be back!

I hate writing low star reviews. I carefully choose my restaurants so that I don’t stumble into places I’m not going to enjoy. So this is painful for me. Especially because I support vegan businesses.
But the owner sealed her fate when she gave me a bill for full price. I supported her monetarily without protest and so this review will happen.
Thanksgiving is my birthday. As a vegan this less than ideal. Stuck out of town with a huge family that is not vegan can make things tense. When they suggested the next day that we all go to vegan food. I was thrilled and wanted to ensure they all had good experiences. I chose what Unilocal assured me was the top choice for vegan eating in the area. And for 20 people a buffet was just icing on the cake.
I called as we were leaving the house and found out that because it’s black Friday they are doing a $ 10 «pizza, pasta, salad» buffet… no ordering off the menu. I tell them that we have a party of 20 and they say they’ll set right up.
We arrived and the owner tells us about the great tea and water. And the kids all start to get food. By the time I settle in the table and get to the buffet 5 of our first wave of people have plates. I find out the entire buffet is a pre-​made salad (not a buffet style salad bar with many toppings), three dressings, one tray of pasta with minimal chopped veggies cooked in, and two pizzas. And the pizzas were not vegan. Also the sign says endless buffet outside. But there’s a sign on the buffet that urges you to only take 2 servings. As an added bonus two independent members of my party saw the staff touch with bare hands the pizza on the buffet.
Let’s recap: as a vegan for $ 10 I can get 2 plates of salad and mediocre pasta. Let’s be real: this is a situation many vegans find themselves in when dining with meat eaters at non veg places. But at a veg place? Why I never.
So I called the cars which were late and redirected them to native foods. Then I approached the owner who was busy explaining why they didn’t have a real buffet to another couple who promptly left. I informed her of the situation: I want to eat really excellent vegan food for my birthday. She was obviously embarrassed about her restaurant’s current state and kept telling me about how she «told the chef to make vegan pizza but he must have forgotten.» Then she hugged me and suggested she would only charge me for the kids since just about everybody else only had a bowl of salad. And nobody had gotten a second plate. Then somehow she decided giving me a free cookie (regularly $ 2.50 — not included on the buffet, but super delicious) was discount enough. She tried to finally serve my family water and tea (she’d been too busy talking to would be customers ever since she described the buffet to us to serve beverages before) as I was trying to get them up and out. I got her back to the counter for her to hem and haw and say «I’m going to have to charge you full price» and she whips out a bill for $ 100. I paid it. I even left a small tip — just because they were pitiful that night doesn’t mean I get to be less of a person. On our way out she shoves menus into everyone’s hand and keeps telling us this isn’t the norm and to please come back. She offers no incentive.
I understand having a bad night because of unforseen circumstances but this looked like they half-​assed dinner because they expected too few people would show to make a full buffet profitable. But I can’t respect that. I would have respected a «we are closed for the holiday to spend time with loved ones» sign. This? This is preparing to fail and scrambling to look like you’re normally better.
We had a lovely time at native foods and the staff there told us that normally govindas is quite good. I’d love to return on a normal night but I probably won’t since I live out of state and my Denver family isn’t vegan. It’s a damn shame.

I came here with my boss for lunch and we did not leave disappointed!
We were greeted at the door with a warm welcome. Looking around, you’ll see statues of Buddha and Bodhisattva. The room is filled with a peaceful ambiance. The restaurant is attached to a Radha Krishna temple, which is welcome to visitors.
Moving on to the food, the salad bar was filled with fresh vegetables. Super fresh. Grated beets and carrots, dark green spinach, bright green lettuce, perfectly prepared chickpeas, and more! They make their own salad dressings, Vegan and gluten free. They also have a hot bar filled with a delicious variety of vegetarian dishes.
I also ordered a chai, not part of the salad bar, but a great life decision. I love my chai spicy and this delivered a perfect balance of spice and sweet.
I’ll definitely be returning here, and am hoping to also make it for dinner at some point.