Minstrel Cafe & Bar

We went there today and ordered three appetizers: Baked Brie, Thai Pork Ribs, and the Chicken Tacos. All were really, really good. Zero complaints. I’d have everything again except I want to try different dishes next time. I’m very much looking forward to that.
We sat outside on a beautiful patio. It was very relaxing. Great service and the prices aren’t crazy. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Dropped by for a glass of wine and mussels. Enjoyed the live entertainment. Great night!

A wonderful place for lunch that was recommended by a friend. So glad we came what a great place.

Love the décor and atmosphere at this gem. The back patio makes you feel like you are in a friend’s beautiful backyard.
Our service was great and everyone was very nice.
My spouse had the burger and thoroughly enjoyed it.
FYI the house garden salad is amazing! The spiced nuts kick it up a notch above your average garden salad.
I had the shrimp tacos. The garden salad and the avocado/​corn salad were both delicious. After receiving my tacos I saw that the shrimp are actually slightly breaded. I don’t believe it said this on the menu. This did not add anything to the dish and actually I felt like it made the shrimp slightly mushy. I think spiced sautéed shrimp would be much better. Also the peppers/​sauce were sautéed very soft so I found the tacos to be very soft. I added the avocado/​corn with sprouts on tops and it added a bit of texture which was nice. With those two tweaks I feel the dish could be amazing.
I know there are new owners and lots of tweaks happening. I’m sure they will all be sorted and I will be returning to try other items.

I love everything about this place. The food, the servers, the location, the wine, the music. Just can be hard to have a conversation when the band is playing.

Busy Friday night w blues band. Full house. Last minute reservation in the lounge & good view of the stage. Chicken fusilli was delicious & quick service. Tried more local wines. Small parking lot. Great to have large doors open for the summer breeze. Cime back again soon.

We dropped by Minstrel for dinner while vacationing in Kelowna. This is a well appointed café with interesting décor and a nice outside patio. Service was fast and efficient but not overly friendly. My appy and main were good but my wife could not eat her veg curry, it was just too hot. The waitress waived the cover charge when we mentioned this, which was fair. We lucked out with band, Todd Wolfe band, who were excellent. He is the former lead guitar for cheryl crowe. Overall worth the drive south of downtown and recommended.

This is my new favorite place in Kelowna. Great food, service and atmosphere.

Dropped by for lunch. Nice place and the food was very good. A feature is definitely the patio. There is a music them to the place. They have a stage and looks like they have good venues, but none while we were there. That said, the background music was very good, tasteful and just the right level. Anymore, when you go into restaurants, the music is blaring and fast, but you can tell this bistro has some musical taste! It’s definitely worth a visit.

This is one of Kelowna’s best kept secrets.
The food was good, but that’s not why you go there. The service was friendly, but that’s not the point either. There even seemed to be a good live music schedule, but that’s not what I loved the most.
What got me was the huge 140 year old Sycamore tree in the back that provides shade to the loveliest patio I can remember.
We arrived at Minstrel on a warm summer day in late August after a long walk along the Myra Canyon bridges and testles. We were hot, tired and hungry when we stumbled upon an oasis under the Sycamore tree.
We discovered Gray Monk Pinot Gris that afternoon and enjoyed a wide variety of the menu’s lunch offerings. I can honestly say that everything I tasted was very good.
I highly recommend you check out this spot on a warm summer afternoon. Sit on the patio and enjoy the tree.

NOT THE BEST…
OMG,
My boyfriends and I went there for dinner on saturday night.
We both ordered the hamburger. It was just fine…
The bread was a bit too sweet for me.
The burger came with mushrooms, bacon, cheese, and fried onion/​onion rings.
With and option of green salad, caesar salad or roasted potatoes (I know, roasted potatoes? wtf)
I ordered mine with the caesar salad.
The caesar salad was just ok. nothing special and my boyfriend ordered his with the roasted potatoes. He said the potatoes were a bit dry…
Bit mediocre I say.
Service was ok. not very good. They gave us a glass of water that was chipped so! not very careful either.
Dear owner,
Please swap the roasted potatoes for fries/​chips!
Thanks

We were enticed to this place by the evening keyboardist entertainment (someone my boyfriend knows from Vancouver). Our table of four was first sat near the door so we asked to be relocated closer to the entertainment. They sat another table then we were sat near the fireplace. Our drink order was immediately taken but then we waited over twenty minutes before getting wind of anyone once again. It’s not that the wait staff was absent per say, more that those viewable were moving at mock speed around the edges of the room. Our waitress suddenly popped up and took the food order from the table behind us, promising to take ours next as she relieved her heavy laden drink tray. She left, wandered over to the bar then disappeared into the kitchen, then reappeared looking frazzled at the bar. She seemed to shake herself then come to as she headed over to our table, taking our food order. Bread magically appeared then was replenished. Food arrived and wow! Two of us enjoyed the half rack ribs, Deb enjoyed the ravioli and my boyfriend Steve (being Vegan) got a yummy vegetable laden plate of tomato pasta. The ribs were super tender, unlike anything I’ve ever tasted. Paired with an Asian styled ‘slaw’ noodle concoction along with sea salted perfectly cooked baby potatoes-​what more could a gal ask for? (besides the bigger portion that is)
We delved into a peanut butter crunch dessert for me (to share with steve) and a four scoop serving of mango sorbet for steve (to share with me). I gotta say that I enjoyed my dessert but wished throughout the whole thing for the small peanut butter segments to have been bigger than the fudge. Oh well. A wonderful and unexpectedly awesome evening after all. (The live music rocked!)

Food satisfactory. Service mediocre. Wine glasses removed while wine left. Fork returned for re-​use. Service charge for band that never appeared.

This is a nice bistro restaurant with crack staff, well run kitchen and good wine selection favoring locals.
The great assets are the outdoor patio under an ancient, massive and impressive tree. AND that this is a live music venue! A rarity anywhere. This establishment supports musicians both local and touring and should be visited and supported for that reason alone.
One issue is the use of the word «tapas». I don’t know what you expect when you order tapas, but I was not expecting an enormous portion piled on dinner plate. Even if they were called appetizers, they would still be large… I guess that’s not really a complaint, I just think they should drop the word «tapas».

There aren’t very many small restaurants/​bistros in Kelowna that I would describe as excellent, but this place is an exception.
The following is a list of things that I love about the Minstrel;
— I love the courtyard/​patio (There’s an amazing Plane Tree around which the whole courtyard revolves. Yes, it is «just» a tree, but I wouldn’t mention it unless it was impressive — in a «size matters» kind of way)
— Great Pizzas
— Decent venue for live music
— Friendly staff
Whether you are some crusty old wealthy WASP type person, or some kind of wakeboarding hipster hybrid, you will likely find something to enjoy about the Minstrel.
My only criticism would be their limited draught beer selection.

Nice menu, food, and atmosphere. I hear the lamb is fantastic, I tried the Mahi Mahi, and it was superb. Would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a casual evening out. Fairly priced, automatically billed cover if live music is present for the evening.