Inside Coffee Culture
Local coffee chains are sort of given a bad reputation. I’m not talking about Tim Hortons, but looking more towards Coffee Time and Urbana (Urban Chic, Urban Cool, Urban You… need I say more?). So when I first heard about Coffee Culture, a new chain which started in back in 2006 in Woodstock, I just dismissed it like everyone else. Then I was told “they’ve got free wi-fi and lots of plugs!” but so does every other ma and pa cafe. Then I was told “they’ve actually got good cheap food too!” and with that I was sold. On a side note, their US website completely leaves out the fact that they’re Canadian! Of course, it’s not that hard to find out where they originated from, but just odd that they left it out.
Coffee Culture sits near the intersection of College and Bathurst, right at the edge of Little Italy. It’s a busy little cafe and has an overall great ambiance, much like that of a European cafe. The floating LCD TVs piping CP24 give you somewhere to stare off to when your date-from-hell turns to ice. Now that I think about it, wouldn’t Starbucks be that much better (and local) if they too hung televisions from the ceiling and aired CP24? I guess not. Like Mama always said, “Television rots your brain!”, it also kills conversation. Thankfully, at least on the day I went, the TVs lacked any sort of volume and were more there for the visual aspect.
Mmmm Butternut Squash soup
Now onto the food. They had a special going on that day – for just shy of $7 you get a soup, any sandwich of your choice, and a bottled water. I choose the minestrone soup while Antony had the butternut squash. We both went with the roast beef and cheddar sandwiches. The sandwiches themselves were great, grilled with a panini press. I’m starting to learn that the most plain sandwiches become the best sandwiches in the world once they’re shoved in a panini press. I absolutely love how they get these nice crisp ridges in the bread. Bread aside (I’ve got to get me a panini press. Hey, my birthday is coming up soon too), the roast beef and cheddar was nicely done, garnished with a slice of lettuce and tomatoes. There wasn’t anything special about the roastbeef though. It was just your standard cold-cut meat, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t taste great.
Roast Beef and Cheddar Sandwich and Minestrone Soup
The soups were surprisingly good. I have to say, I’ve never had butternut squash as good as the one these guys serve. I’m not sure if they actually make it there themselves, or if it’s prepackaged, but whatever it is – it’s awesome! There’s a hint of cinnamon in it too, so it gives your tongue a happy. I’m planning to return there soon just to get some more butternut squash soup pending they are serving it that day. The minestrone was also incredibly good and had tons of vegetables in it. The broth was great too, not too salty and not too water-y. I would also recommend it too!
Hooray for places that open late!
Oh and did I mention this place also has free wi-fi, and a decent amount of plugs? Not to mention the front booth tables are really comfy. They made my 5 hour study session quite comfortable. I also had a piece of strawberry mouse cake, which was fricken huge! Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of it. It wasn’t the best mousse cake I’ve had, but it was also far from bad. I highly recommend this place if you’re ever in the area, and it’s also a great place to study at too if you’re looking for an alternative from Golden Griddle, which I’ve noticed is getting a lot students now. Coffee Culture is open until midnight (or 1am on weekends). It doesn’t quite qualify for the late night study places, but it’s not a bad alternative.
Average Price: $4 – $8 per entree
Hours: Sun-Wed 6:30am – Midnight, Thurs – Sat 6:30am – 1:00am
Address: 409 College St
Phone: 416-868-9078?
TTC Directions: Hop on the College streetcar and head towards Bathurst. Hop off at Bathurst and College and walk half a block east on the south side of College.