Cafe Madeleine

Hands down the very best in Sunday brunch. In an old greenhouse surrounded by palm trees and busts of classical composers you will be in an Amazonian rainforest of food delight. From beef, chicken, smoked salmon to quiche, waffles, bacon and citrus salads this is a foodie dream. Romantic and playful you can wear a formal or jeans it’s all about you being comfortable. I think the price is a bit low for the quality and ambiance but good for them they have a jewel.

First time here and we definitely enjoyed our experience. This is a buffet style brunch in the green house of Tower Grove Park. You are able to park directly in front of the house on both sides of the street or you can pull around by a statue right behind it and walk about a hundred feet to the door. The space is awesome – lots of greenery, high ceilings, and the buffet selection is a good one! They have an omelette station, an entire dessert bar and some signature breakfast dishes such as biscuits and gravy, bacon, breakfast potatoes, etc. There was a selection of roasted chicken and a rice pilaf of a sea bass with a pesto penne pasta. That pasta was amazing! Not too much pesto but deliciously creamy. The attendants at the buffet and omelette station were friendly and helpful, however our service was rather slow. For someone who only had to serve us drinks and clear some plates every now and then, he was rarely around. It is pricey, but as are most good buffets. Next time, I’ll come hungrier… think it was about $ 27/​person? I could be wrong… but definitely around there! However, I will definitely be back!

If you like a brunch buffet this is a must. Best I have been to in a long time. Venue is beautiful. Service was great. We will definitely be back.

This place if one of our fav spots to celebrate occasions (anniversaries, birthdays, or family visiting from out of town). The atmosphere is more than amazing and relaxing and the dining area is really charming. The food is so delicious and have lots of options. my only complaint is deserts, it not impressive. Service is great and quick. Parking is never an issue since it is in the middle of the park.

I have never heard of Madeline’s but I’m glad my husband saw an ad for it. Tucked away in Tower Grove Park, Madeline’s (a former greenhouse) is only open for brunch on Sunday. They will cater other affairs there. It’s tough to find a parking spot. $ 27.75 for adults, $ 11.75 for children and 3 and under are free. It is a brunch buffet lovers delight. A beautiful elegant inside setting and you need to make reservations.
A place to have your special omelet made, bacon, sausage, waffles, biscuits and gravy, beef tenderloin, pasta and so much more. Everything I chose was delicious. I wish we could have sat there for a few hours.
There were quite a few different dessert selections. Some looked homemade, some didn’t. They also had Madelines (a sponge cake cookie) however they were large and did not have powdered sugar nor was one of the edges dipped in chocolate. But I’m being picky.
Would I go back there? Yes, in a heart beat.

A lovely space, inside and out, that has a huge spread of a near-​infinite amount of delicious food. Drink service at the tables is spot-​on too. When you go here, you will want for nothing! This old former greenhouse can even keep its occupants warm in February! If Madeline’s has a parking lot, it’s very small, so you’ll probably have to park in the park. No biggie.

Café Madeleine in the Piper Palm House at Tower Grove Park is surely one of this city’s best-​kept secrets. We had lived here more than 17 years before I even heard of it. I made a mental note to try it out for a special occasion, and I’m glad I did. Father’s Day brunch yesterday was delicious, full of way more great options than we can take advantage of in one sitting. There were the omelet station (did not try — there was nothing spicy!), cold salad table (I’ve got to remember all the components to the spinach-​strawberry-​dried cranberries-​marinated pear-​red onion salad!), BBQ (tasty, including the sauces), a hot table, and a pastry table that kept changing out as quickly as people emptied the trays. As others point out, it’s expensive (brunch for two, with one special beverage apiece, and tip, came to $ 80). That said, service was excellent, the setting is very pretty, and it was a real special treat.

This is a nice place worth a nice atmosphere. Service was very friendly and attentive. The dining area is beautiful. The food, which was catered, was really mostly just okay. I liked the wide variety of lighter fare that was offered.
My main complaint is that the clientele can sometimes be too self-​absorbed to be anything other than rude/​insufferable. But I think you encounter these people everywhere, so…

I went to this place expecting great things today and was quite disappointed. We arrived just after noon so, maybe we were a little late? The potatoes I had were lukewarm to cold and so was the bacon. The sausage I tried was quite dry and it obviously had been there for quite a while. I tried a bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese and even the bagel seemed dry! The beef tenderloin was actually flank steak and, although it was flavorful, it was well done and again had obviously been sitting for a long time. I did have a freshly prepared omelette and it was okay-​nothing terribly special. I am aware that buffets are very difficult to do well but, as I said, I was disappointed especially for the price. Positives remain the beautiful setting and the building which is pretty amazing. Given the beautiful setting and the potential of the building I want to recommend this place but, I can’t recommend this place given the food that was served today.
My search for a great St. Louis breakfast spot continues!

Every day is Mother’s Day at Café Madeleine. Had a fabulous, amazing, wonderful, incredible brunch here the other day. This place is perfect for a special occasion, even if that special occasion is just lunch with your mom.
Let me paint you a picture here: My mom is the grouchiest, pickiest woman on the planet. She got her grouchmones early and is prematurely senile. If I call her on a Friday night, she will talk to me for over an hour about the quality of the Chinese food she had delivered, and then will talk to me about it again the next day, and probably two more times after that, each time adding new things she hated about the place, including the number of seconds she was on hold when placing her order and the tone of voice of the person taking her order, and then a list of all the other places she could have had dinner instead of that place. And this is shitty Chinese food that she knew was going to be shitty before she ordered it. I absolutely hate going out to eat with her anywhere, because her formerly annoyingly permanent state of Polyanna has been replaced with a fricking one-​man Statler and Waldorf show. This is a woman who once refused to go out on a date with a guy who was PERFECT FOR HER IN EVERY WAY because when she called him to arrange the date she DIDN’T LIKE HIS VOICE.
Upon arriving here, I immediately tried to get my mom plowed with liquor, but of course this led to a 5-​minute bitch-​fest/​lecture about alcoholic beverages for breakfast, and who are we trying to impress, and what’s the point, and it’s so expensive, and tuned her out. I just sighed, gritted my teeth, and prepared for a very very expensive disappointment of a brunch.
Luckily for me, it was just a very very expensive pleasant surprise. My mom freaking LOVED this place. She had not one negative thing to say. NOT ONE NEGATIVE THING. Was I dreaming? Was this Fantasy Island? My mom bounced around to the omelette station, the waffle station, the mushroom ravioli, the andouille sausage, the dessert table, raving about it all. She got a finger sandwich that was clearly just cream cheese, sliced turkey, and cranberry preserves. She cut it in half gingerly, pushing half off to the side, and stuck her nose in the air, preparing herself to hate it. She took a bite and literally GASPED and then ate the other half, wondering out loud what was on it that tasted so magical.
Things were going so well that I decided to make the most of it and started just pointing to things in the room and saying, «Look, a _​_​_​_​_​_​.»
«Look, stained glass.» My mother ooooohed and aaahhhhhhed over everything I pointed out.
«Look– a palm tree.» My mom was dumbfounded halfway through lunch when she realized the plants in here were REAL (Ummmmmm, it’s in a place called a palm house???).
«Look– mini pies.» Ohhhhhhh! Mini pies!!!
I realize this isn’t exactly a review, and more so just a recap of my utter shock at being able to for the first time in my life impress my mother. But isn’t that in itself a glowing review of this place???
It’s freaking expensive, and when I say expensive, I mean overpriced (for what it is). It is fancyish. It is decent service. It is good, solid food, but the price was too painful for what it was, and did not include beverages.
Tips:
–Make reservation ahead of time.
–Don’t wear jeans.
–Come hungry.
–Prepare to walk– parking near here is tight so you might have to park in the… park.

An escape from the norm as far as STL brunch goes. Lay any anxiety about it being «buffet-​style» to rest; in the case of Café Madeline that has no bearing on the quality or presentation of the food. It’s all great.
Indoor/​Outdoor seating, lovely scenery inside & out.

File this under «you get what you pay for». Yes, $ 57 is a bit decadent for brunch for two (with an iced mocha bumping the price up a little) but holy begeezus was the food good! And the atmosphere is beautiful and relaxing being in Tower Grove Park near the lily ponds.
Every single item I tried was well prepared and had great flavor. Standouts were the orzo salad, beef medallions, and the waffles. The waffles are made in front of you, then you dress them with fresh berries, butter and syrup. I chose raspberries… om nom nom. The beef was tender and tasty with a green chimichuri sauce on a bed of rice pilaf. The orzo salad was so good it graced all three of my plates.
There are four tables to choose from, cold salads, hot foods, desserts, and the waffle/​omelet bar. Looked like a lot of options on the omelet bar but I skipped it as I’m not a big omelet fan. I ended up having three plates and a nice walk through the park after.
This isn’t something I’d do every weekend but as a splurge or a special occasion you can’t beat it! Reservations recommended.

What a wonderful little gem of a brunch tucked away in Tower Grove Park at The Piper Palm House. Café Madeleine is only open for brunch on Sunday’s from 10 am — 2 pm. Because of that, I recommend making a reservation. There was a line when we arrived (with reservations) at 10 am.
The building is beautiful. It’s like sitting in a giant green house, very bright with lots of glass, white tables and chairs and giant plants throughout.
The brunch is $ 23.75 for adults. I have to say, when I walked in I was not that impressed with the variety. There is a small breakfast area with omelet station, waffles, biscuits and gravy, then a variety of cold salads on one side and a variety of hot items on the other side. They also have an area with small desserts. The price does not include coffee or drinks, so adding a mimosa and coffee like I did does bring up the price.
That being said, it all tasted so much better than it looked! Everything we had was fantastically tasty and we all left very full and raving about our meal. Standouts were the beef medallions, the quinoa salad, the tortellini, the decadent biscuits and several of the desserts like the lemon bars and mini oatmeal cream pies.
I don’t think I would come on a regular basis, but I definitely recommend this place at least once a year for a nice brunch or to celebrate a special occasion. It really does make for a lovely day.

You can’t beat a classy brunch in a beautiful, historic location like the Piper Palm House. Especially when that brunch is to die for! There was a HUGE selection of everything you could hope for at a brunch, and more. Everything from green salads to pasta salads, made-​to-​order omelets, beautiful fresh fruit, pastries, smoked salmon, biscuits and gravy, and beef tenderloin. Oh my! And everything was cooked/​prepared perfectly.
It is a little pricey ($ 24 before any beverages), but it was well worth it for a nice treat or special occasion. Highly recommend!

What a gem! Hands down the most scenic patio in St. Louis.
Headed here for brunch today and was very pleased. It was a little pricey at $ 23.75 a head, but the food was pretty stellar. There was nothing I ate that I didn’t like, and I sampled a lot of it. There were plenty of options of savory lunch type items — particularly salads and pastas — and lots of pastry desserts, but I was disappointed in the lack of sweet breakfast items. I would have loved to see some pancakes, waffles (they had some, but no bigger than a sand dollar), crepes, something! Really, their only truly «breakfast» items were the made-​to-​order omelets, smoked salmon, and Bs&Gs (that’s biscuits and gravy for you less cultured folk!). But that’s alright. Everything else was so delicious that it didn’t matter! They kept everything full and hot, too, so that’s nice.
The drink selection was nice, too — I was expecting the standard mimosas and bloody marys and that was it, but they offered more than that. I enjoyed the «French 75» all afternoon: It was basically gin and champagne flavored lemonade. Delish! All their cocktails were only $ 6 a pop, too — score!
I see complaints about the service but I didn’t have a poor experience with that. Our waitress was pleasant and the staff kept our waters full. Since it’s buffet style you kind of take care of yourself, so there’s not a whole lot of need for waitstaff anyway.
Man, that patio — fabulous! Overlooking a scenic little lake/​stream area and a pathway that was really great for people watching. Also, a horse and carriage guy hangs out here, and I was quite tempted to go for a ride, but I settled for petting the horse instead. It was just so incredibly pleasant. I’d go back for sure.
One thing to note is that apparently they are pretty much reservation only for inside the house. At least they were today. And the patio, while awesome, had nooooo umbrellas over their table, so you are straight up sitting in the sun. Which I loved. But some people might not.
Definitely one of my favorite, if not THE favorite, place for brunch now.

Had a Groupon and went to try it out with a friend. The short version of the story: the food was okay… nothing special. The egg dish on the buffet was terrible; I swear those were powdered eggs. The salads were yummy (thus the 2 stars instead of 1) and flavorful, except the jicama and melon… yuck!
The omelet and waffle station was pretty good, very messy on the customer side. The chef was nice.
The bad stuff, and the reasons I will never return: The servers were not polite; not necessarily rude, just not nice. We had a reservation, arrived early and were seated right away. The room was hotter the hades in summertime. It was cooler outside. Mind you, right now in STL it is 107 each day so you tell me if sitting inside a friggin greenhouse where THEY DIDN’T HAVE FANS ON or sitting outside was worse. I’ll take outside. To make matters worse, they didn’t refill the water until we flagged one of them down.
When returning to the buffet line, there were never any plates. When we got them, they clearly had just been washed as they were too hot to handle. Not the most appetizing thing to put your cold salad on a scalding hot plate.
They clearly have some major business matters to deal with. Why are there not enough dishes if this «rush» isn’t anything new? One of the staff said they were always that busy. We drank out of PLASTIC cups and other tables had stemware. When I am paying $ 50 for a mediocre brunch, I for darn sure do not want a friggin dixie cup for my watered down juice. People kept having to ask for silverware too.
In summary: I will never go back. The room is unbearably hot (a family with 2 babies had to leave less than 30 minutes after the were seated), the food is so-​so and overpriced, you have to wait a significant amount of time for plates and utensils, and the service is lousy.

Delightful brunch experience! We were sat quickly even though it was crowded and we had no revs. The palm house is beautiful– bright and lovely with the many palms, plants, and sculpture surrounding the tables. A bit hard to have a conversation as green house acoustics are pretty much non-​existent, so it is pretty loud. First thing I noticed on the menu: fresh squeezed juice brunch cocktails for a reasonable price… yum. I tried their bellini, which had fresh peach purée, so was not overly sweet as I have had with artificial mixes. Also a French 75, which was maybe too potent for brunch in all honesty, having a fair amount of gin (love a brunch buzz!), but still tasty. The BF had a mimosa and coffee, both delicious.
On to the food… The buffet is large and varied. Standard breakfast items to hot meat dishes to cold salads, plus an omelet/​waffle station, then a dessert table to finish the meal off. Highlights were biscuits & gravy, bacon, sausage, strata, a beef medallion dish, pea salad, broccoli salad, peanut butter cookies, and bread pudding. Nothing was outright bad– which is actually unusual in my experience with buffet style setups. It’s hard to keep up the quality on every single dish. Some were just okay, or not for me, which is expected!
It’s also reasonably priced. Not cheap, especially with cocktails thrown in, but less expensive and better quality than some of the higher-​end bruch spots in the area– like the Ritz, the Chase, Bevo Mill, etc, which were once outstanding but have gone downhill (in quality, uphill in price!)

Wow. I’ve been treated with less regard, but certainly not by a place where you expect good service and friendliness.
We were «greeted» by a server who asked if we had a reservation. We said «no,» and then she looked all over as if figuring out where she could put us. The place was more than half empty, and we were a party of two. No one offered a «hello» or told us about the food. Nobody smiled (except for the cooks, who brought the food out). They all looked like they hated their jobs, and weren’t willing to even fake it.
The food was decent, but certainly not for how much you pay. When I go out, I tip well regardless, but I am paying for more than food; I expect to pay for an experience. I’ve had nicer buffets for the same price, surrounded by much more attentive and friendly service staff. Won’t be back gain, despite my love for Tower Grove and my neighborhood.

Went to brunch here this morning. Having heard how great it is, I had high hopes. It ended up being ok, but not my favorite brunch buffet. It was smaller than expected — the spread wasn’t huge. There were some salads, and some veggies, as other reviewers mentioned. However, most of them were pickled — NOT my favorite. The also had a fruit salad (good) and a yummy orzo salad.
I’m a vegetarian that doesn’t eat eggs (though not vegan), so I skipped the omelet bar, though it looked like a nice spread. The roasted potatoes were good, but along with biscuits, they were the only warm foods offered for a veggie.
I was disappointed at some of the baked goods — both the biscuit and the coffee cake I had were dry and not great. The bagels looked like the kind you buy in the grocery refrigerated aisle– that then sat there for a couple days.
The dessert table was quite large and had small portions of many things, so I tried a few different items. The bread pudding was very good. So was the cookie. My dining companions had some other things that looked great, like gooey butter cake and a blueberry tart.
The atmosphere is nice — it is a historic building and the surroundings are pretty.
The service was poor — our water glasses sat empty for long periods and we had to ask for more water on more than one occasion.
My family likes it here, so I’d probably go back with then and try again (in fact, I will be in a couple weeks). But when it comes to brunch buffets, my favorite ever was Nadoz.

Top 5 places for me for Sunday Brunch.
It’s hidden. It’s only open Sundays. You can basically find it at the tip of Tower Grove park. Good luck finding this place but its actually not that hard.
Despite being cold outside during the Winters, I can’t imagine a better place that is both sunny and warm inside. The large windows allow for excellent lighting. White cloth covered tables. Silverware. Waiters. Dress nice. It’s not cheap, but $ 19 brunch gives you upscale dining buffet and freshly made omelettes to order. When I want to make an impression, or I am feeling I need an upscale infusion, I come here for brunch. I am actually a frequent flyer here but surprised its not reviewed much. Its very busy here on Sundays. I recognize some of the patrons as physicians from the surrounding hospitals.
When the weather clears up, the seating outside is fun and view of Tower Grove Park superb. I love the pastries section. The service is high quality. It makes sense because the catering and the service are rented out for weddings normally. I love the Lox and omlettes.

Constructed in 1878, the Palm House is the oldest standing greenhouse west of the Mississippi River and the most historically significant building in Tower Grove Park. Over the years, greenhouse functions moved to other buildings and the Palm House underwent a $ 1 million restoration, allowing for year-​round use, day or night.
A year round brunch/​buffet (Café Madeleine), is offered on Sundays from 10:00 AM — 2:00 PM. The natural light coming in from the ceiling windows helps cure the blues any time of year. Service tends to lack, but the brunch is one of the most colorful and healthy brunches around.
Brunch is priced moderately ($ 19.95) and does not include beverages. It includes a variety of smoked and raw vegetable trays, fresh mozzarella & tomato platters, an omelet station, several hot meat and fish entrees, a variety of interesting salads, salmon, vegetarian items, fresh, seasonal fruits, and other healthy options.
This experience is well worth it when a treat is in order. Reservations are recommended. Consider a carriage ride through the park when you’re done!
When not in use for brunch, the Piper Palm house can be rented for private parties. For information or reservations for Café Madeleine, call 314−575−5658. For information or reservations for The Piper Palm House call 314−771−4410.