Cafe Garré

Quite a secret discovery on a back wine trail in Livermore Valley. Beautiful setting, indoor and outdoor seething with a menu of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, pastas and wood fire pizzas. Something for everyone.

This is easily my new favorite on so many levels.
First of all, its in Livermore so I can get to it in less than 20 minutes and no major roads. Secondly, the food is top notch. The kitchen consistently puts out quality dishes.
We had a party of 12 and came in at 5:30 on a Sunday. The wonderful lady at the front did not bat an eye and happily sat us immediately. We ordered bottles of 2010 Primitivo and the duck confit pizza for starters. Everything was prompt and accurate.
Short Ribs are not available on Sunday, but the Jambalaya is a good replacement. Also recommended at the table was the burger, and even though it came well done it was still super delicious. The Carbonara was excellent, as was the kids chicken and cheese pizza.
From beginning to end, even though they closed halfway through dinner, we never felt rushed and always felt attended too.
I can only imagine the dinner we will have there in years to come as the kids graduate, get married, etc. This is a real Livermore gem.

Nice variety of food and wine of course!

This was a last minute close-​by dinner option that turned out to be very good. The warm crab dip was excellent, and the wine selections broad enough to satisfy any palate and food choices. The service was attentive but not overbearing even though there was a wedding reception there at the time. I would love to return and have lunch outdoors on their patio.

Despite the trendy-​sounding menu, the cooking here is more comfort food than pretentious bistro. If you are wine-​tasting in Livermore, this is a worthwhile stop vs. Wente’s overpriced and (with the new chef) overrated restaurant (where we had just dined the month before this lunch).
Note: Lunch @the Café closes PROMPTLY at 2p. Diners are allowed to linger as long as they want, but the staff won’t seat anyone for lunch past 2p. You are forewarned!
Drive all the way straight to the back, turning left and then right into the parking lot where the giant convention/​event building is. The Café is on the LH side of the building, with a pretty outdoor patio that faces west. Bring your sunglasses & hat; not all tables are well-​shaded by umbrellas.
Tuna tartare and fried olives were big hits. Carpaccio was tasty but someone had sliced it with the grain instead of against the grain, so it was too chewy. Roasted cauliflower was pretty but not quite cooked long enough; the padron peppers were a glossy bright red contrast to the multi-​colored florets, and gave the dish their delightful spicy-​sweet flavor.
Smoked Chicken Carbonara (actually an Alfredo) and Steak Risotto were creamy, cheese-​laden, and delicious if rich. Seafood Rigatoni was tomato based but also lots of cheese, with a very generous amount of seafood. Burger was tasty but overcooked to medium well instead of MR.
Desserts are simple, nothing unusual, but well-​executed and the coffee is good (not great, but good enough).
We would definitely return. Garre misses the 5-​star mostly due to service. It’s willing, but not well-​trained or particularly efficient. Still, when you’re on a sunny patio, eating good food with a nice glass of wine… well, who wants to hurry out?

Food was good… but never take a business lunch there. I know it’s a winery and all, but everything from ordering to getting the check took way too long
Pizza is good

I have eaten lunch four times here, it was good food so I kept coming back. Today however I ordered the special ’ fish tacos’ again (like i did last time) and it was a big disappointment, it was bland, and soggy, the green side salad dressing also had no flavor to it. Not sure why there is such a huge difference in food flavor/​quality one time to another. Today I felt that I was way overcharged for what I consider ’ bar food’ .
I did tell the waitress in a kind manner of these findings, she said sorry, but there was no follow up by restaurant leadership. The prices at Garre should guarantee consistent quality.

My wife and I went there for our weekly date night. We wanted to visit another local Livermore winery that offered small plates for dinner. We were happily surprised by the quality of the food, their new restaurant building and the reasonable prices! We went on a Friday night and the place wasn’t crowded or noisy, which was exactly what we were looking for. We sampled the wines and found the Petite Syrah and Primitivo to be very good. The food was great and we were happily surprised to see they served entrees as well! The seafood Jambalaya was a very tasty entrée topped off with the blood orange gelato for dessert. This was very comparable to another of our favorite places the Concannon Underdog Wine bar minus the noise, the crowded eating area and the higher prices. We will definitely be returning!

Gabby is a great server with a personality, which is always a plus. My parents adore her! I had the Baby Spinach Salad and the Chicken Sandwich. Um, can I have the recipe to the orange champagne vinaigrette? DELISH!!! My mom splurged and had their burger because it’s her favorite. :) I will definitely be coming back.

Being located out in the middle of Livermore’s wine country and not downtown, I don’t think Café Garré gets the attention it deserves. The ambiance in the new dining room is great. The food is fabulous and the service is good. The menu offers a wide variety of food that would appeal to almost everyone. My favorite is the wine county salad with seared salmon and the salmon is always perfectly cooked. During a recent visit I tried the chipotle honey glazed prawn appetizer and the Thai salad, which were both great. Although the outdoor dining area appears to be under construction, you can sit out there and on a warm day it’s a wonderful place to be.

Took my wife here for a Valentine dinner. Food was ok but could tell it was prepared prior to our ordering. It was a price fixed menu paired with their wines. We were seated in the foyer away from the restaurant and the ambiance was terrible. They also put a 20 percent tip on the bill. Another lesson learned not to go out on holidays. A $ 220 lesson!

I don’t even know where to start. Food is ok but Management is a joke. Servers can’t even make even make change.

One of the worst service experiences I have ever had. Now, I understand how it can be difficult with only two servers working, but there were only 4 tables! It took at least a half hour for us to receive our wine, and my friend who cannot eat meat and specifically ordered a pizza without meat was given one with duck. When the error was discovered, they apologized, but did not offer to comp the meal or bring an alternative. I will never patronize this place again.

Amazing location. so beautiful, had a champagne brunch with 15 people, the food was amazing, the service was great. went for wine tasting and played some bocce ball… love the bubbles. then decided we wanted a pizza. had a great Molinari pepperoni out of their wood burning oven… it was a beautiful day in the sun with friends and apparently somebody was there having a huge wedding…

If you’re out wine tasting in Livermore, the dining options among the wineries is extremely limited. The best bet has always been to taste and then head downtown for some great food options. The opening of Underdog Wine Bar at Concannon broadened things a bit but as far as real full-​service dining, Garre Café is a solid choice. They only serve their own wine and offer a full menu of artfully prepared dishes. The fairly new dining room is very pleasant and the service was warm. With a few touches, 5 stars is not out of reach. As it is, the option of real dining while in the middle of wine country is enticing.

Café Garré has relocated from a small, quaint structure, to a new modern restaurant and event center on the same property. The new facility provides upscale ambiance, befitting an established Livermore Valley winery. I’m usually in attendance for some type of workplace celebration, ordering Nona’s Gravy (spaghetti) with meatballs. It is standard fare, perfectly delicious, but lagging the ambiance in quality and sophistication. This restaurant provides free WiFi, if you ask your server for the password.

Stopped into the Café for lunch today. As always, we received amazing service from Gaby. We’ve never had a bad plate and today was no exception. Ordered the deep fried olives as an appetizer, Cowboy burger and smoked salmon flatbread. Can’t go wrong with the Primitivo wine either!

Much has changed since I was here 4 years ago! The café moved much farther back from the tasting room and is huge! Large outdoor dining area, dining room and a large space for weddings. Perfect spot to stop for lunch when out tasting. We had complimentary bread, glass of estate chardonnay ($ 8/​glass) special risotto of the day ($ 16) with prawns, mussels, and calamari. Everything was good and service great!

came here for Friday lunch with coworkers. parking was plentiful and we got a table right away, even though they appeared to be busy and were preparing for a couple of events.
I had the citrus-​braised pulled pork sandwich with tomato bisque soup. the bottom bun was a slightly moist from the meat juices, but just flipped the whole thing upside down and ate it. it was delicious and filled me up. all for $ 12.
service was quite good. the server took our drink/​food order right away. soon after, we got our drinks and bread… food came 10 minutes later. we were done quickly enough that we then had time to walk around and explore their property… all within 1 hour.
I want to come here again and try some of the other items on the menu. everyone around me seemed to enjoy the various entrees they ordered.

The food is good and the staff seems ok if you can find someone to serve you. Both times I have been here they have been busy and not had the staff to service the place. Both times I had to ask for menus after sitting for 5 — 10 minutes and that’s with a reservation both times. Not ok, but doesn’t seem to be a big deal to them as they didn’t even acknowledge this. Very disappointed they aren’t better staffed as they clearly need it to provide appropriate and timely service.

Nice little find in the quiet Livermore wine country. As part of a winery, Garre café is a pleasant surprise! Warm environs include super-​friendly Gabby. She sold me a glass of wine with her non-​persistent charm, even though I was about to go wine tasting I surrendered. Flatbread was straight out of their wood-​burning stove. Can’t wait to come back and try their dinner (weekends only).

Went there for lunch on a Saturday. Our server Rosie was terrific, along with the other wait staff who never let our drinks get low. We ordered a couple of appetizers, one which was the calamari. Delicious! I had the chopped salad and my husband the salmon. It was so good! Not to mention everything was plated so beautifully. I am hoping they will expand their patio to allow more seating and hopefully heated for winter time. Can’t wait to go back!

I came in on a Tuesday afternoon for lunch. They looked a little under staffed, so I was a little weary about how good things were going to be. I got Kelly as a server and let me tell you, she was amazing! Not only was she extremely attentive to our party, but I also saw her answering phones, seating all of the guests and scanning the restaurant to see if anyone needed any assistance of any kind. As a restaurant owner myself, I was extremely impressed with how she handled herself and the WHOLE restaurant. I might have to steal this girl so she can run my restaurant! I will be back again, you can count on that, but only on Tuesdays when I KNOW Kelly will be working!

great ambience, fantastic food, great wine. I like it!

I’m going to give the café another shot but here’s my current feel…
+1 star for fun casual modern ambiance. Real wood is always classy:)
+1 star-​Seated straight away with a reservation
+1 star-​Taking our orders straight away
–1 star– For reading your specials way too quickly and quietly for a very boisterous atmosphere
–2 stars for the 45MINUTE wait on our food. Seriously?!? Were the chefs out hunting my pig & catching the chickens? If so– you really need to consider your prep time.
Note to café: you need more well-​prepared servers & kitchen staff if you want to keep up with your LunchCrowds
+2 stars for the Caramelized-​Onion-​Focaccia bread — This café’s saving grace.
+1 star for my pulled pork sammich. I didn’t taste the citrus and I can see where you wanted to go with it but 30mins wait is a little too long for a sloppy-​Joe-​w/​Raw-​Red Onion on a soggy bun look-​alike.

Second time here. First time was awesome. Today not so much. My friend wanted a glass of Chardonnay. The one she wanted on the menu they were out of. Only had one other option which did not meet her liking. So minus one star there! A winery that’s out of wine! I ordered a Sandwich and salad it was good not great but good. My friend had the special salmon and it had no flavor at all minus another star. The 3 stars are for our waiter Alexis. He was awesome and took the fish off the bill. Will we be back? Not sure? We will see!

Star demotion! Whaaaa whhaaaa whaaaaaaaaa! The foccica bread they make in house is still delicious. The food is still great. The new facility is beautiful. The vineyard is still gorgeous. But the service!!! Oye the service! The staff is friendly enough but you wait for an eternity for drinks, food, the check. Ugh! I don’t have all day to sit around and not eat and drink stuff! So yeah, one star demotion time. Of course I am going to go back because the food and wine are great but ya’ll better get it togethaaa… this is a 4 to 5 establishment!

Out wine tasting today and we decided to stop at Garré for some food. We were sat outside and had a pretty view of the vineyard. But no one came to take our order. There were about 3 parties also outside and they all looked terribly neglected. We decided on which wine we wanted as well as food. Waited for about 20 minutes and the only person who came to our table was the woman who put down the place settings and olive oil and balsamic for bread. Which never came either. I understand if they’re busy but they should have said something. No one should be sitting at a table that long without even seeing a server walk outside. The 2^nd star is because the food looked SO good. We unfortunately left and went to Underdog, where we knew we would get service.

Very friendly staff in the wine tasting room. Played bocce ball also here. Fun times, would recommend this place to anyone. Had a great time.
At the café, had the flatbread mushroom and also the salmon bread, they were ok. The patio could use more landscaping to make it a little more comfy.
Overall enjoyed this place.

I went to this place with my friend on the weekend. We didn’t have any reservations and we just walked in so I don’t know if that had too much to play into everything but I felt that being a walk in shouldn’t have downgraded us.
Overall the service was okay. The food and the seating was nice. The staff were friendly as well.
My main concerns about the place that I didn’t really care for was the length it took to get everything. We were seated pretty much immediately which was nice and we knew what we wanted right away but it was 20 to 25 minutes before we got even our drinks or the complementary bread with vinegar and olive oil. then it was an additional 20 to 25 minutes before we got our food. So from the point where we sat down to the point where we got our food it took approximately 45 minutes. It took us 10 minutes to eat the food. It was a long wait for a grilled cheese sandwich. And while our server was friendly, there wasn’t that many checks on how we were doing. She would briefly come by to let us order food and then deliver our drinks and that’s about it.
Overall the place is nice and if you’re out in the area it might be a good stop to get some food but expect a longer wait and plan to have enough time to eat there. I will probably go back to it sometime but I don’t have a burning desire to go back there immediately.

My partner and I went to this restaurant on 9÷27÷14 without knowing they redid/​moved everything. We expected a couple of simple vegan items because of his past experiences at this café but they didn’t have anything free of animal products on the new menu. They did kindly accommodate us and make a vegan pasta dish with olive oil and veggies, but it was $ 15 and it was barely enough for one person to eat, let alone share. We ordered a candied fig/​pecan salad (without the cheese), which was pretty good, and the focaccia bread with caramelized onions was to-​die-​for, but overall the quality of the food was just «ok,» especially for the prices. Their iced tea was really great. We shouldn’t have been surprised that food wasn’t up to par for such expensive pricing at a winery, but we obviously had different expectations.
I would actually give them 4 stars but we overheard the manager being unnecessarily rude to our incredibly kind and sweet-​natured server, which really made the whole experience much less enjoyable. Knowing we were in an establishment where the servers, who work their butts off all day long, are treated poorly was disappointing. If you treated your staff as nicely as your customers, everyone would be a lot happier and the place would have a more welcoming energy. Also, lose the TV! I’m pretty sure most people don’t go to a winery to ignore their friends/​family and stare at the game.