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| - NOTE: The Matcha Cafe usually does not have much of a line extending past the doors, unlike Uncle Tetsu's Japanese Cheesecake (same owner) NEXT DOOR.
HOURS:
Open 10am - 9pm (Opens later and closes earlier than sister store next door: 8am-11pm).
FOOD:
MATCHA CHEESECAKE $8.85: Waste of money! We threw away 3/4 of it.
I realize that this is Japanese style, but, to be fair, their Our Story section of their website describes it as "American style" so that's what I will judge it against. It is crustless.
No self-respecting American cheesecake has flour in the filling. I saw a big clear bag on the counter with the words "Cheesecake Flour" on it. See the photo and notice how it is crumbly and granular --- likely from the flour and the matcha powder. It sucked every ounce of moisture from our mouth and throat that even a glass of milk could not remedy. I put it in the fridge and tried it again cold the next day with no improvement. I imagined the cheesecake might taste like green tea ice cream, but it was an extremely muted version. Cute logo branded on the cake top.
DANGEROUS LATTE (Sml$3.09, Med$3.99, Lg$4.87): I figure a tea is the true test of a Matcha-focused business, yet this was average at best; Starbucks is 1000% better --- which is pathetic given this cafe specializes in Matcha!
No milk options (skim, whole, etc.) presented. I was terrified that someone was going to get burnt by the hot beverage because lids are by the door and there were 2 rows of people packed (about 10 people) in there like sardines with no room to pass (Fire hazard?). C'mon! I only saw yellow tube packets of fake sweetener (sucralose) available on the counter. Bleck. The packets looked sketchy with a hand stamped logo like knock-offs.
SOFT SERVE $3.98 (Milk, matcha or "mixed"): I got the Mixed. Very weird since there was no real matcha flavour and it tasted strangely fruity (hint of tropical meets Fruit Loops). It was granular with ice crystals so it is not formulated well. It left me perplexed.
MADELEINES $2.65 whether regular matcha or red bean filled matcha. Bag of 4 (buy three and get one free): $7.95. These are cupcake size and made in a fluted round tin, not like traditional Madeleine that are petite and shaped like a sea shell. The plain matcha version was incredibly dry. In the other version, there was a tiny sweet red bean garnish and about a 1-2 tsp red bean paste in the centre that lent a little more moisture to the cake. But still, neither were enjoyable save for a nice texture to the top and novel green colour. Flavours were not pronounced enough nor craveable. I also think that they should do a better job clearly stating whether their recipe contains nuts/almonds (traditional ingredient) for allergy sufferers; it says there are no nuts in the FAQ on the website, but did not see it in the store.
You CANNOT order the plain cheesecake, "angel hat" cheesecakes, or honey madeleines from next door at this location. You can only buy the matcha flavoured versions here.
PACKAGING
I will admit that their kitschy packaging with cartoon Uncle Tetsu is rather fun.
CUSTOMER SERVICE:
Painfully bad service. There is no reason why there should have been a 15-minute wait with just 2 people w/ small orders in front of me. Only one person processes orders/payment while another tends to cheesecake production and another tends to madeleine production. Staff did not help the next person in line until the full order ahead was fulfilled. Seems to be a bit of a language issue since the cashier could not understand my straight forward order and kept trying to give me the total in between items.
ACCESSIBILITY
Staff did not limit the number of people inside the building. This is the first time I am urging people with children or those with wheelchairs, canes, or walkers or claustrophobics to avoid a restaurant. It simply is not safe if an able-bodied person cannot even maneuver in the cramped quarters, and it is even worse when people have their big winters coats on.
SANITATION:
Disgusting.
The same person who handles the cash handles food.
The guy who was preparing the cheesecakes kept scratching his hair (without hand washing in between) then prepared/packaged cheesecakes --- including the paper cloth that surrounds and touches the cheesecake. An open-concept kitchen is only novel when there is good hygiene and sanitation.
There is no oven/stove hood exhaust over their counter top oven where they bake the madeleines (not to code), so it is really stuffy inside.
NO WASHROOMS for customers.
NO PARKING: Located next to busy downtown Bay and Dundas streets intersection.
CONCLUSION
Like I said above, there is relatively not much of a line here (unlike next door where there was a switch back line of 25 outside) ---- and now I know that is with good reason: the food and service are huge disappointments. Except for the latte, I did not want to finish any of it.
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