Guylian Belgian Chocolate Cafe

7 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  8      Service  7      Value  6     

Surprised to hear so many negative reviews. I've been hear a few times and while I haven't bothered getting a dessert after the first time, the milk chocolate hot chocolates are yummy. Yes, it's super expensive, so is everything else on this strip. It's a convenient place to get a good hot choc after a show. Never had any service problems.

Jul 31, 2009 

5.3 Average

Food  6      Ambience  6      Service  6      Value  3     

Ambled into Guylian recently, with hopes set high given the rather enticing promise of chocolate shakes and sweet nibbles on the menu.

I settled for a creme brulee and Guylian shake. The brulee was fine, maybe a little heavy on the cinnamon, with a smooth texture and tasty berries, but the shake was quite tragic. It was anaemic, no strength to the chocolate despite repeated stirring, and it was altogether rather disheartening for $10. I did see another table who had presumably ordered the dark chocolate version of the same thing, and that looked rather better.

Undoubtedly targeting tourists with stronger currency than our own, everything on the menu comes with an eye-watering price tag. I might one day give it another go, but am rather suspicious of a chocolate cafe that injects no measure of flavour into what was a very expensive glass of milk.

Update - Having purchased a sampler of takeaway cakes from Guylian recently, I was impressed to find that they were not lacking in any way, and the friends with whom I shared the brownie, lime tartlet and (well, something very chocolatey) also agreed that they tasted great. I adjusted the food score upwards on this account.

Jun 24, 2009 

6.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  7      Service  6      Value  6     

When I dropped in recently I ordered the raspberry buche and an iced chocolate. Both were nice. The service was OK and the location across from the harbour is excellent.

May 25, 2009 

3.3 Below Average

Food  4      Ambience  4      Service  2      Value  3     

I tried the one at East Circular Quay. As others say, it is pricy but if the food is good so is the service, it may worth it. However, the surcharge on normal weekends on top of dull and slow service, I end up disappointed in my last two visits to this place. I will go somewhere else with more enthusiastic service next time.

May 20, 2009 

4.5 Below Average

Food  5      Ambience  5      Service  5      Value  3     

Pleasant but not fast service. Great hot chocolate but pricey. Nice for a cake and a Hot chocolate. Skip the coffee. Rocks is nice place to sit back and watch the world go by with ships coming in and out of port. Night time its a bit too close to the Orient hotel and people walking in and out of the licensed premises. Plenty of security around the place with Rangers in the area means its a nice safe place to stop and visit

May 10, 2009 

5.3 Average

Food  2      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  1     

I had high expectations about this place, and in the end wound up with nothing less than a high bill. The so called Belgium waffles are paper thin and tasteless. The ice cream wasn't too bad but ultimately you're paying for the view and proximity to the Opera house. May be better off just having a coffee and enjoying the ambience.

May 03, 2009 

5.3 Average

Food  6      Ambience  7      Service  6      Value  2     

Despite what anyone says here, I'm sure all the chocolate lovers out there will go and try! I've also tried their desserts, expensive but quite nice. Its expensive, and I know thats what you expect from a place in Circular quay anyway but hot chocolate, chocolate pieces should never cost this much! I've had other drinks here and its just not worth the price, a choc/banana shake was mainly banana.

Despite the world recession, chocolate prices are at a premium. How people can pay for this even when there isn't a recession is beyond me. I don't mind chocolate but I can live without it and I can live without this place.

May 02, 2009 

1 Not Recommended

Food  1      Ambience  1      Service  1      Value  1     

This place is shocking. The waitress kept on being a smart and mucked around with the other wait staff. They charged me 9 bucks for a tasteless chocolate concoction.

The Belgian Waffle had “Seasonal Fruits” which included banana pieces, rockmelon and pine apple (being Autumn, how are these seasonal fruits?) was a huge disappointment. It was 90% air! A kit-kat can is a better waffle than this one. This cost $18!

All up, a drink and a thing they dare call a waffle was $27. I will never come here again. The other Cafe up at Martin Place is 100 times better. On top of all this they charged me a surcharge because it was a weekend!

Apr 29, 2009 

5.5 Average

Food  6      Ambience  6      Service  5      Value  5     

Snooty staff members, overpriced food and drinks and poor quality sandwiches, truffles and hot chocolates. I can forgive mediocre sandwiches at a chocolate cafe but pre-mixed chocolate milk as your signature hot chocolate? The piece of chocolate at the bottom of the cup is a token idea that doesn't really work either. I tried the Trufflina drink and there was hardly any drink to keep the whipped cream afloat. The truffles weren't very nice either with the same filling for the three (white, milk, dark) varieties.

The cold drinks are the other thing worth having. Cakes appear overpriced. Ambience is okay if not a little tacky with the giant chocolate seahorse decor but the staff aren't particularly friendly and keen to keep table turnover going. A bit unfortunate to say that if you're prepared to be ripped off, there are better ways of doing it in Circular Quay.

Apr 27, 2009 

6 Average

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  3      Value  3     

We stumbled upon the one in the Rocks one afternoon and thought it was the cutest little place! We ordered the smoked salmon salad with avocado and baguette. It was nice. But the real icing on the cake was the waffle with belgium chocolate. It was one of the lightest and crispiest waffles I've ever had! Yummm.... Only downside is I told the waitress our ice cream (comes with the waffle) tasted like it had freezer burn. She said she would tell the chef but never came back to do anything about it. Pretty poor considering the price of salad, baquette, dessert and coffee came to $60.

Apr 14, 2009