Is Cafe Trois your average cafe or something more?
At the base of numerous chain restaurants stands a small but inviting glass door that opens to Cafe Trois. At first glance, I felt somewhat of a homey sort of vibe in this establishment; everyone was sitting in their seats, talking, while the layout gave the place a nice energy to it. My sister and I realised no servers were going to tell us where to sit, so we walked around, seeing stacked shelves filled with foods, pastries, sandwiches, drinks, and plates for serving. I understood the message; this part was self-serve, so I got myself a plate and picked out some foods that looked the most appetizing. I got an Olive bread, a chocolate sufiyaniot, and a lemonade. I paid for those, and then I got an order of French toast to share with my sister. The employee was friendly, she assisted me with my needs with no hesitation or any hostility. The energy wasn't loud, but it was friendly, an environment where people sipped their lattes while catching up with some old friends over brunch. While looking around, from what I could tell, everyone was enjoying their food, and I saw not a single complaint so far from a customer.
My sister and I sat down at a two-person table, which was pretty clean, with no crumbs or stickiness on the table or chairs. We sat down and talked, enjoying the energy surrounding us. The chairs were inviting, allowing me to relax once sitting, even if they were made out of wood and wood alone. We waited for the French toast while munching on our appetizers and side meals. It took a while, so I started looking around, noting my findings. The entire restaurant was quite clean. Once a table was left, the customers got a fellow goodbye, and an employee would immediately go to clean the table. Even if no noticeable mess was left. The floors were spotless, tables were clean, chairs were organized, and yet, it didn't look suffocatingly clean; it looked pristine yet homey.
After a while, we got the French toast, I noticed the server merely dropping off the food with a curt nod and leaving to attend to a different table. When the server dropped off our food, I didn't feel any hostility or rudeness. I just saw a worker trying to be efficient in their movements, which I respected. I did not mind; I prefer it when a server just drops off the food, it's more efficient that way and also makes me have to talk less.
The food looked appealing to the eye, its plating was neat and welcoming, inviting us to take the first bites. Before my mind thought about taste, I thought the texture was soggy and somewhat sponge-like. And not in the way French toast should taste, no, its taste was also overloaded with cinnamon and soaked with egg to the point it made me nauseous, it felt like eating an eggy sponge covered in cinnamon. I swallowed my first bite, already regretting it and letting my sister have the rest, which she did not eat.
Once we both finished our food, we asked for a to-go box for our leftovers, which we wanted to share with our brother. A nice staff member gave it to us and offered us help. Although we respectfully declined, it was a nice gesture that I do not see too often in many restaurants. We finished up our notes, which we took individually, and wrapped up our food. At Cafe Trois, you pay at the beginning, allowing you to leave whenever you see fit, so it allowed us the privilege of leaving whenever we deemed fit. I did notice they had many payment options, and even allowed someone to pay half card and half cash, an option I didn't need. I noticed people in front of me using this since they were short on cash and whatnot. We paid swiftly at the beginning, which we used to our advantage to leave. We took our leftover food and my to-go lemonade, which I had previously ordered at the start, and headed to leave.
While paying the bill, I had noticed some items were priced lower than I initially assumed. I paid under the money given to us for my entire meal, drinks, and tips included. I did not expect this. The energy of this entire establishment is expensive since most of the pastries look pristine and classy. But the price of most dishes made complete sense, which caught me off guard. I fully thought when I walked in that I would pay more than I wanted to, but I was quick to realize that was not going to happen. I paid 13 dollars total, including my tip, which was less than I thought it would be, going off the energy at this establishment; it was modern but with a classy touch, making me (at first) feel as though I would end up spending a lot of money.
Overall, if I were to rate my experience at Cafe Trois, it would be around an 8 out of 10. I enjoyed the energy and setup of the establishment, it was quite welcoming and inviting. It was all pretty clean and pristine, nothing out of order, and everything was stocked. However, I felt as if the French Toast was a huge disappointment compared to its pristine photo on the menu, it was like an egg read more