The Hide Out Café
By Gurneev Panesar, Contributor
Rating: 1/5
When I walked into The Hide Out Café across from the courthouse in New West, I felt like I was going to suffocate from the smoke because they don’t have cooking ventilation. The service was really slow and there wasn’t a kitchen, which is rather unprofessional for a café that’s been running for five years. I think it should be toned down to a bistro. The tables were wonky and I was scared of typing because I didn’t want coffee all over my laptop
Caffe Mocha – $3.19
I thought this cup was overpriced, and it didn’t give me the bang for my buck that I was looking for. The flavour of the coffee didn’t really contribute to the drink either: I could taste more of the chocolate, which threw me off. It tasted like an instant coffee, and there was a hint of barbecued coffee beans in there if my tastebuds haven’t failed me!
Espresso – $2.39
The espresso was painful. I felt like I bit into a rose stem. It was horrible and smelled pungent. I like to drink my espresso without cream or sugar so that I can do justice to the bean, but this was super strong and left a nasty aftertaste in my mouth.
Dirty Chai – $3.74
I hoped this would taste as devilish as it sounds, but I was disappointed again. It looked so inviting, but there was no “va-va-voom!” to it. It kind of stopped after the first “va!” The cinnamon was definitely the only thing I could taste. It came with a chai spice black tea bag in it, which made me feel like I was being ripped off—perhaps because it’s something I could make at home. For any of you who order this, make sure you ask for sugar because this wasn’t sweet at all! The owner redid this for me when she asked how it was, but a first impression is a first impression.
Hot Chocolate – $2.57
I was saving the best for the last, but alas—instant hot chocolate! Once again there was nothing authentic about this hot chocolate; it tasted like the usual stuff you get from a store. A total waste of money, honestly. It was rather milky, and not chocolatey.
All in all , I was disappointed drink after drink. Definitely not dropping by here again.