The Arrow - CLOSED

Cafe: The Arrow

Address: 1164 Dundas St. W. 

Phone: 647-772-2030

Store Hours: Mon-Wed 8 AM - 4 PM, Thurs-Fri 8 AM - 6 PM, Sat-Sun 10 AM - 6 PM

Website: www.thearrowcafe.com

Study Appropriate?: Yes

Wi-Fi?: Yes

Stamp Cards?: No

Interior

Menu

Drinks - Soy/Almond/Lactose-Free Options?: Soy and almond
- Roasted coffee beans from Detour Coffee's Punch Buggy
- Offers freshly squeezed lemonade in the summer
- Offers coconut water

Food - Vegan/Vegetarian/Gluten-Free Options?: Yes to all
- Sandwiches from Foodbenders
- Red velvet cupcakes from Cafe Neon
- Offers muffins and banana bread

Large Mocha, $5.50

Review

Drink of Choice: Double-Shot Latte, $4

The Arrow is located in Little Portugal and offers not only your espresso-based drinks but a variety of freshly-made ice creams as well. Sadly though, I checked out the cafe back in February and the weather was still too cold for ice cream. I remembered there was only one flavour available at the time, for anyone who was keen enough for a cold treat. It is $2.60 for a single scoop, $3.65 for a double scoop, and $5.55 for a triple scoop. Apparently, the ice cream at The Arrow is to die for. However, not having a chance to try any, I am unable to comment on this. 

The premises that The Arrow is on was originally a newspaper printing press that was there over half a century ago. When the cafe was under construction, the owners discovered the original logo after they removed the carpeting and used it as an inspiration for the cafe theme and name. 

Overall, it's a nice cafe. It's not one that really sticks out in my mind though. I think what would make this cafe much more memorable for me is if had the gelato. Cause really, who can pass up on delicious gelato?

Full of Beans Coffee House & Roastery

Cafe: Full of Beans Coffee House & Roastery
Address: 1348 Dundas St. W.
Phone: 647-347-4161
Store Hours: Mon-Fri 7 AM - 7 PM, Sat 8 AM - 9 PM, Sun 8 AM - 5 PM
Website: www.fullofbeansroastery.com

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

Interior

Menu

Drinks - Soy/Almond/Lactose-Free Options?: Soy only
- Coffee beans roasted in-house everyday
- Cane sugar available

Food - Vegan/Vegetarian/Gluten-Free Options?: Yes to all
- Everything made in-house
- Pate made in-house
- Gluten-free muffins available
- Offers quiches

Single Shot Cocoa Latte, $3.67

Review

Drink of Choice: Double Cafe Latte, $3.67

I stopped by Full of Beans Coffee House & Roastery last year for the previous Indie Coffee Passport. I remembered I wasn't able to use the outlets, even though there was Wi-Fi available. That is still the case today. This is a great location to sit and get work done, however, warning for those planning to bring their laptops: bring a fully charged one.

I came in around 4 PM for my second visit and it was quite empty, with no more than two to three customers every hour aside from myself. Before I sat down to start studying, I got to speak with Lori, the owner of the cafe. She recognized me as one of the cafe's Facebook fans! It is always so nice to be recognized, haha (the power of Facebook!).

Everything sold on the menu is made in-house, including the pate spread (I don't know about you, but I love pate!). They roast their coffee beans everyday as well. The cafe hosts open mic every Saturday night and some live music on the weekends. Live music doesn't happen consistently every weekend, but would be booked randomly from time to time. Another event called the Brockton Series happens on the first Wednesday of every two months (next one happening on March 6th!). This is a writer series in which readings are done by published or ready-to-be published authors. Going on with the book theme, the cafe also has a take-a-book-leave-a-book corner. Artwork by local artists are sold and changed every month.

All in all, this is one of the locations I would recommend for those who would like some quiet time to get work done (when the cafe is not hosting during the weekends). It has an overall nice atmosphere and comfortable setting.

i deal coffee (Ossington)

Cafe: i deal coffee (Ossington)
Address: 162 Ossington Ave.
Phone: 416-543-7700
Store Hours: Mon-Sun 8 AM - 7 PM
Website: www.idealcoffee.ca

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

Interior

Menu

Drinks - Soy/Almond/Lactose-Free Options?: Soy and Almond
- No syrups offered
- Extra 25 cents for paper cup to go
- i deal coffee roasts their own coffee for sale
- $8.50/half pound of coffee and $9 for coffee of the week
- $16/pound of coffee and $18 for coffee of the week

Food - Vegan/Vegetarian/Gluten-Free Options?: Vegan and Gluten-Free
- Gluten-free macaroons
- Muffins, scones, and squares
- All baked goods from Desmond and Beatrice

Review

Drink of Choice: Mocha, $4

If you go to enough cafes like I do, you would probably recognize i deal coffee. i deal coffee has three cafe locations: Ossington, Kensington and the recently opened, Yonge and Lawrence. I will be reviewing the Ossington location in this review.

i deal coffee  is known for selling their own coffee beans. The coffee beans are roasted every Saturday at their Kensington location, so they are always fresh. They like to keep their focus primarily on their coffee so you won't find any syrups here.

I ordered a mocha. Whenever I think of mocha, or anything chocolate-like, I would automatically assumed it is sweet but this one was bland and I had to sugared and honeyed it up before I was satisfied.

The cafe's design is lacklustre for my taste and I felt could've been better decorated. It has that worn-down and mismatched look that just didn't strike me. However, I do prefer this one over their Kensington's location. Though what lacked in the interior decorating department is compensated in their customer service. Heidi, the barista, is a perky happy girl who answered my questions regarding the cafe. She even took back my mocha and added more foam to make it more appealing for picture-taking purposes.

The cafe definitely had its peak time, I noticed. I was there from approximately late 3 PM till it closed at 7 PM. The peak time was around 4 PM before there was a slow-down. More people came to buy a bag of coffee, rather than staying at the cafe. For any of the purchases of either half a pound or pound of coffee (check menu for price), you will get any free drink or coffee of your choice!