What’s on the menu at The Gaarden, Queen West’s new rooftop oasis

Name: The Gaarden Contact: 314 Queen St. W., 416-666-7740, thegaardento.com, @thegaardento
Neighbourhood: Queen West Owner: Ink Entertainment in partnership with Hoegaarden Accessibility: Flight of stairs at entrance; no accessible washroom

The food

The fuss-free menu offers a selection of bar snacks, as well as a few more-substantial options from the grill, like jerk chicken, a bratwurst sausage and a cheeseburger. For those craving something a little more indulgent, they serve comfort food classics like poutine, lobster mac and cheese, and house-made fries with truffle oil and parm.

The drinks

The Gaarden’s concept was established—not surprisingly—around Hoegaarden, the Belgian wheat beer that’s served here by the pint and incorporated into some of the house cocktails. Their signature Hoegaarden Beer Cocktail uses the namesake brew as a base alongside Grapefruit and Rose Ketel One vodka, lime juice, house-made grapefruit syrup and Tajin spice. There are a few other beers on tap (Stella, Mill Street) and in bottles (Corona, Budweiser), and Barefoot wine by the glass or bottle. Thirstier groups can share sangria or mojito pitchers.

The space

Situated on top of Cube nightclub, the rooftop space is a plant-lover’s paradise. Guests are greeted by a giant fiddle-leaf fig tree amongst a whole whack of various potted plants. (The greenery offers some welcome shade above the Gaarden’s communal tables.) There are also couches for guests to lounge on and some seating at the bar.