I hate giving a place with such great potential such a low rating, but it has to be done. Hopefully the management can make some improvements and I can amend this review.
Normally, I start any place I visit at 5 stars. I believe each place has to be judged independently of anything else. Quality and expectations change from region to region, and to me, it wouldn't be fair to review any other way. So with that being said, a place has to work hard at losing stars. On to the review:
Upon first walking in, the decor was great looking. It had an industrial / hipster / steampunk vibe, yet with all of the trappings of technology and modern day streamlined look. So far so good.
After figuring out if my lunch partner and I had to seat ourselves or be seated, we finally sat at a table that had a view of the whole dining area. The first thing I noticed as I sat down was the amount of flies buzzing around the room, and more specifically, our table. Now, this is a coffeshop, so it's not unusual to have a fly or two. But this was full on flies everywhere, to the point where I literally saw two flies spinning together in a fly mating ceremony. You have to draw the line somewhere, and I draw the line at flies mating in front of my face. Also, the anxiety created at having to constantly shoo flies away from your table, silverware, napkins, lip of your drink, straw, and eventually, food, is the basis for an awful experience.
The front door was left open, and this no doubt contributed to the fly problem. If you're going to leave the door open, you need a fly zapper stationed somewhere to curb this problem. -1 Star for crazy fly problem
So we finally order food from a sturdy woman after looking over the menu. The food choices on the menu looked tasty and I was excited about getting some good food. I ordered a chocolate / banana shake and pot pie; lunch partner ordered a coffee along with a Ruben sandwich. The shake and coffee came out first, and this is where this place shined. The shake was excellent. It was a milky shake as opposed to a thick shake and it was mixed perfectly and tasted great. The coffee was also outstanding and I think that this is one of the things this place does really well. Their specialty if you will.
However, when the actual food arrived, it was cooked and it was hot, but in all honesty it was mediocre at best. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. It was middle of the road 'ok'. This combined with having to bat flies away constantly from my food contributed to a slowly declining experience. -1 star
By the time I finished eating the pot pie, I was ready to get out of this place. I didn't finish the hastily assembled greens on my plate or the chips that came with the meal. At this point the flies were getting infuriating because I didn't know if they had landed on the tip of the straw that I was drinking my shake from. I had already caught them numerous times on the lip of the metal shake container. My lunch partner went to the loo before leaving, and that is the basis for the last star being lost. The door to the bathroom is right next door to where the kitchen is. Now, I understand that you have to make use of the space you have. But when you're walking into the bathroom and can literally have a conversation with the cook making your food, that isn't right. Bathroom particles shouldn't be anywhere near your food. -1 star
I genuinely hope this place can improve. Like I started this review with, I feel like it has amazing potential. Thank you for reading this. read more