Artigiano Burnaby — Restaurant in Burnaby

It WASN'T a very pleasant experience. I ordered a drink then sat down and waited for my drink for a very long time. A lady in red dress suddenly came to me and asked if I had ordered a drink there. I did freeze a little and reply her my order. At that moment, I felt like I just got questioned about my honesty. This DIDN'T sound right at all, and that was very RUDE. She didn't even say anything but went to check if I had ordered the drink with the barista then went back to her seat, among of whole bunch of old men.

I figured that she might be the owner; and she DID NOT get trained!!!!!!!!

This experience told me that, this cafe might be a family run business that CAN'T even forgive a single customer not order anything but occupying their seats by proactively questioning their potential or even actual customers' honesty and even double checking it. So if you get hit by a truck right in front of their store and you need emergency help from them, they WON'T help you, because you did not spend a penny there.

A simple solution to their curiosity on people's honesty is that they can just ask their staffs first, before approaching their customers with very rude questions like above. Or they could have just gotten back to me about my drink to make it a bit less obvious.

Not to mention that, this cafe was full of old people when I was there. Not being age discriminative here, just telling what I saw. Anyway I am HIGHLY NOT recommending this place to anyone who look less honest like me. There are many other cafes around, like JJ bean next block, and Waves...

On a sunny day, working along the good side of Hastings, in Burnaby, I felt like going for a walk. Not only do I love walking, but I love me some caffeine. I thought "Hey, I love drip coffee, and I've heard good things about Caffe Artigiano." So I walk in, this long-haired hipster dude gives me a weird look when I order the drip coffee. That should have been my first clue. It smelled decent in the café, and everyone else was drinking something, so I figured "Yeahhhh I'm excited for this!" This all dissipated once I actually took my first sip.

On first sip, my mind instantly had flashback memories of the smell of burning motor oil. It tastes like Tim Horton's decaf and stale Ethical Bean coffee had a nasty group love affair with various inedible products, and this is what came out. Most coffee at least scores some points for being drinkable, but this coffee feels like Alex Burrows goal total this season. As for the price point, I could have had Starbucks for less. Either way, I feel like the Canucks scouting staff, picking Patrick White over P.K. Subban in the 2007 draft.

My recommendation: Stale Instant Coffee Caffe Artigiano Drip Coffee. I should have walked the other direction to get McDonalds...

I’ve been a regular here for a long time, and the service is always outstanding. Keegan and Taliyah are incredible — they remember my order before I even say it and strike the perfect balance of friendliness and efficiency.

The coffee is consistently great (I usually get an Americano), and I’ve always loved that they carry banana bread and lemon loaf from To Live For, a popular local bakery. But recently, the slices have been cut dramatically thinner — sometimes less than a centimeter — while still priced at $4.95. Since To Live For doesn’t pre-slice, this appears to be a head office decision.

Other cafés that carry these loaves serve normal, thicker portions — so this change feels like a profit move, and a disappointing one. Muffins and other items are pre-portioned, so only loaf customers are affected.

Keegan and Taliyah are the reason I’ll keep coming back — their service is exceptional — but I hope management reconsiders...