TLDR: Hidden gem, tucked away in the Queensway Corporate Campus building. They sell breakfast and lunch items at pre-pandemic prices! In addition to sandwiches, baked goods, and regular cafeteria items, they also have hot Asian meals (General Tao Chicken, Crispy Pork, Kung Po Shrimp, etc.).
So anyone who knows me, knows I love hidden gems. I love discovering eateries tucked away in industrial parks, office buildings, etc. Minda Cafe is both in an industrial area and in an office building.
They are only open Monday through Friday 8am-4pm, so I'm only able to go on a day off work. Guess where this girl went on her staycation? Lol.
I got the large hot meal ($9.09). Options change daily and are more or less on a weekly rotation. I got to choose 2 proteins and I got the Thai Chicken and Crispy Pork. I got to choose noodles, rice or pasta. I got the noodles. And I also received vegetables with the meal.
The noodles and pork were so greasy, but in that tasty North American Chinese Food kind of way, lolz. The Thai Chicken and vegetables were less greasy and I did enjoy those more. The pork was indeed crispy. It almost tasted like chicharrones, except spicy. The noodles were a bit al dente and surprisingly not salty despite their dark colour. I thought it was drenched in soy sauce due to the colour, but it wasn't, it was just really dark. The vegetables were zucchini, cauliflower, carrots, onions and bell peppers, and they were nicely al dente too. The Thai Chicken was my favourite. Lots of lean chicken breast meat with bell peppers. The flavour was mild. Such a great deal for under $10. Quality is better than food court places like Manchu Wok, Shanghai 360, etc.
Since my husband had to go into work that day and the next, I was on my own at the visit, but I bought him a little lunch combo to bring for lunch the next day. It was a cute tray with a cold cut wrap, a small chickpea salad, a thick piece of cheese and some crudites. All for only $5.49. Wow, what a great deal.
He had it the next day and enjoyed it.
They had lots of grab and go items. Different sandwiches, wraps, salads and desserts too. The husband and wife running the show are friendly. There's some utilitarian seating inside the cafe if you want to eat in. There are benches outside of the building too if you want to eat outside.
The food is excellent for an office building cafeteria and prices can't be beat.
Cash or debit only. No credit cards.
I went back a few weeks later on a day off to grab some combos for my parents. I got a Crispy Chicken and Chipotle Chicken with fried noodles and vegetables, and a Teriyaki Pork and Kung Po Shrimp with Singapore Noodles and vegetables. My parents loved their meals, especially my dad. He couldn't get enough of those fried noodles. My mom really enjoyed the Crispy Chicken.
The parking situation is bad though if you don't already work in the building or nearby. There's very limited visitor parking at the front of the building (not where the entrance to the cafe is) which is often full. At the back of the building, where the entrance to the cafe is, it is reserved parking for building employees only. And there's no street parking nearby :(
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