Greasy Seasonings!
Filed under: Acting, Cafe Critique, Food, I'm not sure, Life, Literature, Mates, Politics, Remembrance, Yada Yada Yada, nostalgia, poetry
To all who have visited my site (mispelt ’sight’), and even those who haven’t, may your seasons be unmentionably pleasant.
Happy Holidays
Rant-ina
This is my 100th entry! Here goes…. If there’s one thing that ticks me off, it’s when the cafe I go to plays music that is A. Inappropriate and B. TOO LOUD!!! There is no time when I’m ok with it. Two days ago it happened. The music at the Cantina in Beaufort Street was both A. and B. I asked 4 times for this to be rectified – yes folks … 4 TIMES – and the waiteress made every motion like she actually gave a damn, however after this I noticed not a change in the music or it’s volume. So I left.
I thought I’d go back there today. I entered the cafe, listened to the music that was playing, which was playing oh-so sweetly in the background, and decided to stay. Two minutes later, after I’d ordered something, crap nightclub boom-boom. Well, it sounded like it to me. I don’t frequent night-clubs these days, but you get the idea. Read more
Back To The Coffee Future
After my last disappointment, I decided to frequent a cafe that is new but I have been there before. This place looks like a cafe should look. It’s clean, and it has a rustic, Mediterranean feel and you get the feeling the coffee has been brewed there for 100 years.
This is Mt. Lawley’s Cantina, and the care the manager, Alex takes plus the friendly greeting from the staff makes this cafe something that other cafes should take time out and have a look at.
The coffee tastes like these people know how coffee is meant to taste. But that’s only part of the experience. I think I must have been there 2 or 3 times maybe 4 months ago, and as soon as I walked in, Alex greeted me and asked if I’d like the ’skinny long mac’. He remembered ‘my’ coffee , and I received it straight away, like he was expecting me to walk in! This is bizarre, I know, but it’s true. This remarkable feat of memory is part of what makes this cafe special, but what it really says is, “You are a V.I.P.”. This is something you don’t get in some other establishments.
I have one criticism: the music. It’s just a bit too loud, it doesn’t fit with the ambiance created by the decor, and because not one corner has been overlooked, there are speakers placed where you can’t avoid the sound.
But, putting that aside, I rate the Cantina very highly. Probably one of the best in Perth.
Cafe Wha?
Have you seen those loyalty cards cafes have, where you get them stamped and after a dozen or so stamps you get a free coffee? They’re pretty good, right? A few coffees and then you get a complimentary one. Not bad. What happens when you have, let’s say 20 out of the 24 stamps needed, and you roll up, buy a coffee and they can’t find your card? This happened to me today at a Caffissimo Cafe in Mt. Lawley. And as busy and as seemingly understaffed as they were, they didn’t make an effort to explain or look for this card. They seemed quite resentful at my question of where the card might have gone. Like I was a troublesome person.
I don’t know how to run a business, but I would assume that customers are somewhat important to the running of one. And a customer who feels that asking a question may be seen as troublesome, is probably not going to like his coffee. And a cafe “Where the coffee is not enjoyable”, well… doesn’t sound like much of a slogan. Read more
This One Counts
I go to cafes. Not just sometimes. ALL THE TIME. And I have been in cafes all over the world. So I think I know what I’m talking about. When I am greeted with a friendly welcome, and the ambiance is pleasant, the music at a background level, the tables and floor are clean, the coffee is served promptly, I’m in my second home.
In the past the village pub was the closest thing you had to a community environment, where you’d listen to some music, have a feed, meet with your friends, discuss the world and relax and share a joke. Now, it seems people are a little more sophisticated and they want to do these things as well as get on-line and discuss business. Where they can do their work outside the confines of the office, and not have to worry about the booze-bus when driving home. Where they can be with their thoughts when all around them seems too much. Read more
