3.5 stars ... willing to come back to try another time
Not many places are open past 5 pm so when I spotted HotBlack open till 7 pm... AMAZING. It's hard to find coffee in Toronto that isn't a corporate bland cup later in the evening. This cafe is quite small and busy ... there's very little spots for anyone to sit down longer than a few moments. It is SQUISHY tight as most seating is back to back bar stool style (and I mean back to back... it's literally 3 inches from the person behind you).
This place had a lot of drinks to try .. menu is different and quite innovative. The staff here is super friendly and very patient. My thanks to them and I really loved how they went to the customers who had a hard time walking (crutches) instead of making them wait in line standing. Just all around great people. I would say the staff and vibe here is hipster cool and friendly without any pretentious vibe. With so many choices, I went with their recommendation of the Russian tea and a Chai Latte. They also have a lot of assortments of baked goods, bottled smoothies, and also sandwiches so it is more of a true cafe than just a drink spot.
Russian Tea - Earl grey infused with apricots... like actual real fruit. This was a great tea and it had the nice sweet tangy flavour of the fruit with a touch of light black tea. Overall really great to enjoy when it's so cold outside. 4/5
Chai Latte with almond milk - They had the tea leaves steeping for a while and then we let it steep for more and .... it still tasted like watery almond milk with a hint of ginger. Not the best to say the least. 3/5
I would definitely come back because the service here was just all around great and would try an espresso drink. I'll stay away from the teas... they're just alright.