Koko Black - Royal Arcade — Restaurant in Melbourne

Shame when an establishment such as this is not on top of policy and protocol to allow rogue managers to tarnished a hard earned reputation.

Hate writing poor reviews, but it's important for proprietors to be made aware of what their money is being spent on.

Arrived an hour before close, no tables, great sign to see it's busy. We were offered take away cups, but elected to wait for a table (because personally, I enjoy drinking out of a normal cup), about 25 mins later we get a table. All is well to this point. We order and are told we can only dine it but be served drinks with take away cups 35 mins before closing.

Honestly rediculously. After justifying how ludicrous that sounds, the manager huffed and puffed before agreeing to service it in normal cups. Now there are 4 or 5 tables free 20 minutes before close, I can only wonder if other people were put off by that attitude when it was packed with people waiting before...

I wasn't even going to write the review and let it go. But then when our drinks arrived we most courteously said thank you, trying to bring back a better energy to the interaction... Not a word, just a stern face, our drinks placed in front of us and that's it. Not a your welcome, or hope you enjoy your drinks. Just a awkward parting energy. And this was again, service from the manager.

So sad after this being a regular destination visit on every trip to Melbourne.

I hope ownership reads and gives the appropriate resources/training to ensure other customers don't end up...

Koko Black still have fantastic chocolates but really I have tried to give your hot beverages a chance a few times now and really since covid, the hot beverages have gone very downhill in the quality.

I used to order a pot of chai tea and it was so beautifully made, now it’s just watery and not frothy anymore.

Staff are generally still nice on the whole and I can’t say I have ever received bad service.

I came the other day and although these things happen, the dishwasher had broken down and we had to have our hot beverages in takeaway cups. The staff member did explain this and was upfront to her credit. We wouldn’t mind if the beverages were actually nice, but the hot chocolates were all so watery, had no froth and were made WAY too hot, they definitely were well above the recommended 60 degrees. We had to ask for a disposable bamboo spoon and napkins to get that ugly layer that develops in your hot drink after a few minutes.

What happened to the old baristas? Koko Black used to really make such a nice chai tea and hot chocolate.

Higher up management, please take on this feedback, I would love to have that same quality back. Perhaps a barista coffee course and latte art would be worth investing money in to train your staff. It really is just a stop in place to get some takeaway chocolates which is a shame because I loved the ritual of...

📍 𝗞𝗼𝗸𝗼 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 ⭑.ᐟ

❤︎ 𝗠𝗼𝗼𝗱-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱: chasing warmth in a cozy cup ❤︎ 𝗙𝗮𝘃 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗵: signature hot chocolate ❤︎ 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿: chocolate lovers, cold weather comfort, little solo treats ❤︎ 𝗩𝗶𝗯𝗲: elegant yet relaxed, warm cocoa scent in the air

ꫂ ၴႅၴ

People always say that Koko Black has the best hot chocolate in Melbourne—so I had to give it a try. I went for the signature hot chocolate, and yep, it really delivered that deep, rich chocolate flavour. It felt luxurious and creamy, almost like drinking melted chocolate.

For me, though, it was a little too thick—more dessert than drink. Still delicious, just a bit too intense for my taste. But if you’re someone who loves your chocolate strong and rich, this will definitely make your heart (and taste buds) happy.

ⴵ 𝗪𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲: pretty quick, around 3 mins 𐀪 𝗖𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗱: calm and quiet ☼ 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱: Saturday morning ‎𐂐 𝗢𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿: signature hot chocolate

𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻? Maybe! I’d love to come back to try their iced chocolate or some of the chocolate treats on...