My boyfriend and I were walking along Whyte Avenue in Edmonton and this modern-looking yet cozy coffee shop that we passed by caught our eye. We looked up to see what the coffee shop is named and found out that it is the Block 1912 Cafe and Bakery. My boyfriend quickly pulled out his phone to check reviews of the place and found good reviews online so we decided to check it out.
Block 1912 Cafe and Bakery claims that they have been voted by Edmonton to have the best desserts, according to the cafe’s website.
Food:
I ordered their Ciabatta Grilled Cheese for CAD$7 and a large Ganache Hot Chocolate for CAD$5. The grilled cheese was not filling and there was nothing really special about it that makes it stand out from other grilled cheese sandwiches I have had in life. I also think it is overpriced for the quality of the grilled cheese.
I did like their hot chocolate as it was rich, creamy, and chocolatey as I want my hot chocolate to be.
My boyfriend also ordered a Ganache Hot Chocolate and he said it was too rich for him. He also ordered a Raspberry Chocolate Cake which at first, he was so excited about because he found the chocolate cake filled with raspberries inside. However, the cake was hard as a rock and he started regretting his decision of ordering it. He did not even eat half of the cake and did not even bother taking the rest home.
For a place that claims to have the best dessert in the city, that was a huge letdown. We actually were planning on getting gelato after eating our grilled cheese and raspberry chocolate cake but the disappointment we had from the food we already ordered, we decided it probably was not a good idea to even order their gelato.
Service: The person who took my order was rude and did not seem to be happy working there. She was not very pleasant at all. The guy who delivered my grilled cheese to my table was also not very friendly.
Ambience: The cafe was a bit dark inside so we chose a spot closer to the patio to give us a bit of light while eating. There were a lot of comfortable couches to sit on inside the cafe, though. I also like that they have a Take a Book, Leave a Book bookshelf.
What we did not like: As mentioned already, the food were a disappointment, and the service was the worst. Another thing is that, the condiment stand is dirty and their washroom? Don’t even bother using their washroom. It was a disaster in there. I went in there and first thing I saw was a garbage can overflowing with used toilet paper. Like it was literally a mountain of toilet paper covering a garbage can. Why would they neglect cleaning their washroom?
Do we recommend this place? Absolutely not. But to give you a different perspective, check out reviews given by other people in Tripadvisor.
Location: 10361 Whyte Avenue NW, Edmonton, AB, T6E 1Z9
Contact info: 780 433 6575
Hours: M-T: 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., F-Sat: 9 a.m. to midnight, Sun: 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.
