Cocoluxe is a cute little pastry shop tucked away in the charming town of Peapack. They offer a…read morevariety of pastries, soups, coffee, and teas. Unfortunately, while the shop itself is inviting, my experience was rather disappointing.
I ordered their savory scone with scallions and cheese, which I was told also contained bacon bits. However, I couldn't see or taste any bacon at all. The exterior had a beautiful golden-brown crust with a slight crunch, but the inside lacked the flaky, tender, and moist texture I was hoping for. Overall, it was just okay.
I also tried their lemon chicken orzo soup. While it was hearty and comforting, it lacked the bright, citrusy flavor I was expecting. Honestly, it tasted more like a regular chicken noodle soup with orzo replacing the noodles. It wasn't bad, but the lemon flavor was practically nonexistent.
The biggest disappointment was their matcha latte. The first cup came out an extremely pale green with absolutely no foam on top. I could barely taste any matcha, and it honestly felt like I was drinking plain milk with a little green coloring. I ended up sending it back.
The second cup looked slightly better with some foam, but unfortunately, it wasn't much of an improvement. There were clumps of undissolved matcha powder in almost every sip, making it obvious that the matcha hadn't been whisked or mixed properly. To make matters worse, the matcha itself tasted rather low quality, leaving an unpleasant, overly grassy aftertaste. As someone who appreciates a good tea latte, this was particularly disappointing.
Another major issue was the incredibly slow service. I happened to be served by one particular staff member who seemed to take an unusually long time preparing my order. I was actually the first person in line, with about 6-7 customers behind me. My order was fairly straightforward: a premade soup, a scone from the display counter, and a matcha latte.
Yet somehow, all the customers behind me had already been served by the other two staff members and left while I was still standing at the counter waiting for my food and drink.
What made it more frustrating was that she didn't even think to warm up my scone before starting on the matcha latte. Another staff member eventually noticed that I had been waiting for quite some time and stepped in to help warm up my scone and move things along, which I appreciated.
Unfortunately, by the time I finally received everything and sat down to eat, my soup had already gone cold from sitting there for so long.
I understand that service can vary depending on who's working, and perhaps I was just unlucky that day. However, between the underwhelming food, poorly prepared matcha latte, and painfully slow service, the overall experience left much to be desired.
It's a shame because Cocoluxe has the charm and atmosphere of a lovely neighborhood pastry shop, but the quality and service simply didn't live up to my expectations.