Cafe Unwind - CLOSED

Cafe: Cafe Unwind
Address: 68 Wales Ave.
Phone: 647-352-7724
Store Hours: Mon-Sat 8 AM - 5:30 PM, Sun Closed
Website: www.cafeunwind.ca

Wi-Fi?: No
Study Appropriate?: No
Stamp Cards?: Yes

Interior

Menu

Drinks - Soy/Almond/Lactose-Free Options?: Yes to all
- Chai made in-house
- Offers French toast latte during the winter (using a secret recipe!)
- Coffee beans from Merchant of Green Coffee and then roasted at Fresh Coffee Network
- Tea from Pippins Tea Company Inc.

Food - Vegan/Vegetarian/Gluten-Free Options?: Yes to all
- Everything made in-house
- Muffins made every morning
- Gluten-free cookies available
- Offers a chili special every week during the winter

Japanese Treasure Tea, $1.86

Review

Choice of Drink: Chai Latte, $3.10

Located outside of Kensington Market shopping district is Cafe Unwind. It is conveniently beside the Toronto Western Hospital, which makes it a hotspot for the workers to drop by in the morning and during lunch.

When I arrived to this cafe back in March (I know, and it took me this long to review!), I was taken by the size of it. Similar to Fahrenheit Coffee, ten people would completely crowd out the space. Whilst I was there, I got to chat with Maddie, the barista. She was absolutely sweet and talkative and I learnt that she was going to Peru for community work sometime this year (best of luck to her!). When I asked if the cafe used stamp cards, she pointed to the tear-outs taped against the wall under the menu. Since there was really no use for Yellow Pages anymore, the owner turned them into stamp pages for the regulars. Another fun thing they do is that they have two tip cups, each one with a different food or snack written on a paper attached. The cup with the most tips will have that food made as a special for the following week!

The chai latte I had was simple, but not as sweet as I wanted. However, I thought their Japanese Treasure tea smelled heavenly. It was very light and had a bit of peach to it, I believe. Their high chairs were not the most comfortable since the tables were a bit higher (or it was the chairs being a bit lower than it should). With no Wi-Fi, it was not exactly the most ideal place to work either. I do think that it's a nice place to be early in the morning since it's so tiny and quaint. You would be able to sip on your tea or coffee and observe the outside in peace as the day begins.