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| - I ended up in this place because of the Indie Coffee passport, and this has been the least impressive experience by far (and I've tried almost all the Indie Passport destinations by now).
Upon arrival on a really cold day (-22 with windchill!), I ordered a mug of apple cider, a soup of the day (leek and potato) and a veggie panini. The barrista was quite laid back, friendly and accommodating (veggie panini was not on the menu, but he basically let me pick ingredients such as eggplant and roasted red peppers, and made me a custom one). So far so good.
Unfortunately, this is where the good more or less ends. The apple cider was, to put it bluntly, undrinkable. I ordered it in several other Indie Passport cafes (Cafe Novo, linuxcaffe, The Rooster), and each place had a different but tasty take on it. The Ground Level version, however, was some sickeningly sweet swill with some unpleasant chemical undertones. I could not finish it.
The soup was really bland. It was hot and filling, for which I was grateful, but in the taste department it was nothing to write home about. The panini was okay, but, again, nothing special.
Since I stayed in the cafe for a while, I ordered a some more stuff: A capuccino that was okay (at least I could finish it!) A tea that was also quite okay (they use decent loose-leaf teas). And a banana, which was quite good as far as bananas go. Overall, though, I was not impressed. It did not help that the place does not seem to believe in real dishes and utensils - everything is throwaway paper, styrofoam and plastic, even if you're ordering to stay.
The space itself is not bad, in my opinion. The size of the space did not bother me - I like roomy rooms. The crazy old guy who was hanging out at the cafe, talking to himself for hours (sometimes whispering, sometimes almost shouting) also was no big deal - yeah, you're in Parkdale, deal with it. However, I go to cafes to eat and drink, and when the food and drink are this unremarkable, I don't really feel any desire to return. Sorry, Ground Level. I wanted to like you. You are trying to do a noble deed (help youth with limited resources to get job skills). But good intentions won't fill my belly and impress my taste buds.
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