Ibex café + kitchen — Restaurant in Coquitlam

I would love to give this cute little café, a higher rating. Unfortunately, due to the poor service and mediocre food we received I must rate it low. I took my mother in law there for lunch at 12:30. I chose this place as we both like checking out small cafés that are local to us and there were quite a few vegan/vegetarian options. Sadly, three of the items we were interested in trying we’re sold out/not available leaving only a couple of veg options. That wasn’t too big of a deal, however, and my MIL ordered a wrap and tea and I ordered a soup and sandwich, at the counter from the male server. We sat down for about six or seven minutes and then my mother-in-law went to pick up her tea as directed. The female staff member told her just to be patient in quite a rude tone. At this point, the restaurant was not busy and there was no one before us waiting for anything. My MIL came back to the table and didn’t want to go back up to the counter to ask again. We waited another eight minutes and then I went up to get her tea which was now sitting there ready. There was no regular sugar or honey, just stevia and another artificial aeeetener, so she just had milk.

About 25 minutes later, her wrap came and then we waited another 10 minutes for my soup to arrrive. It was getting busier by this point, but that still seems quite a long time to wait for two pre-prepared items to be warmed up and served. My MIL also wouldn’t eat until my soup arrived as she is a very kind and considerate person. We had a lot to chat about so we didn’t mind too much but the food wasn’t great.

My tomato soup was fairly tasty just a bit bland. I went to the counter to ask for some salt and pepper and was told they’d bring it to me, but no one ever did. After another 20 minutes, I went up to inquire about my sandwich and was told it was coming. To be clear, the sandwich is pre-prepared and just needs to be toasted or heated. I waited another 10 minutes and then I asked the much more pleasant male server if the sandwich was coming or if I could just get a refund at this point. While I was waiting, I saw many other lunches and sandwiches go past me to other tables. There was a bit of discussion between him and the female server and then three minutes later my sandwich came out, barely warm, and it was not great either. I only ate half.

The food was quite pricey for the portions and quality received. I paid $52, including a $5 tip, for the soup (with a piece of bread), wrap, sandwich and tea (I just had ice water). I would not have tipped anything if I was tipping at the end of the meal.

The café itself is a very pleasant building that is fresh and new looking, with beautiful surrounding scenery. I was thinking I would return frequently this summer to enjoy a snack and beverages on my own and with my husband and other friends. Based on this experience, it’s doubtful I will return despite it being so close to where I live. I was disappointed that no one apologized or offered any sort of refund or way to make it right.

I do think they were understaffed, as there appeared to be two servers and one person in the back/kitchen. However, an apology would’ve gone a long way. I hope they can get their act together as there is potential to be a great...

I had come out for brunch with my aunt and my mom to celebrate my aunts belated birthday - what we didn’t anticipate was how our excellent experience at Ibex would lead us to spend almost 5 hours there. I cannot recommend this place more highly!! As we entered the cafe I noticed a carefully curated menu, which I personally love because it shows me that the owners care about quality over quantity. Yet despite that, all their options looked so appetizing - it took all of us a few moments to decide, but boy was it worth it. My aunt ordered the Contractors Breakfast - they were courteous enough to switch the cheese as per her liking and the vegetables/potatoes were cooked to perfection…my mom and I were picking off her plate as well. My mom ordered the Tartufata Flatbread which had this beautiful balsamic glaze and these deliciously earthy mushrooms. My mom is quite picky with both her mushrooms and her balsamic but these guys knocked it out of the park. As for me, I ordered the Bao Buns. While this was my first time experiencing the taste of Bao Buns, I was completely blown away by the flavour. The chicken was incredibly tender, the Korean style sauce was perfectly tangy, and the bun itself was so soft! All three of us shared the Chickpea Soufflé which brought a delectable flavour to the pallet and although we barely had any room left, we managed to save some appetite for dessert. The three of us also shared the Carrot Caramel Cheesecake. It was rich, creamy, the right amount of sweet and everything you’d imagine it would be. We even took an extra slice home for my dad. We also enjoyed some coffees after. My mom ordered the Cinnamon Maple Latte which she thoroughly loved, my aunt ordered a London Fog Tea which she enjoyed, and I got the Iced Macchiato which has become an all time favourite of mine. Beyond the amazing food, the service was also great despite the crazy lunch rush they had. Altogether it was the perfect place to celebrate my aunts birthday! Cannot wait for...

I ordered a club sandwich on a Sunday when there were only about 6 other parties of people. It was $75 for 2 sandwiches and 2 coffee drinks. I asked for no onions on my sandwich. It took 30 minutes to receive the sandwiches. When they came, both came with onions and 1 of them had like 15 fries. Neither had bacon. The chicken is breaded. This is not a club sandwich. The sandwich was 2/5 stars for flavor/value, but the fact that it is in NO WAY a club is upsetting. I asked about it and looked on the menu on their website which says it should have bacon and they said the online menu is different and they are now a halal club because they are looking out for their halal friend. I understand wanting to have halal friendly items, and am in support of this but this is simply not a club sandwich. Just name it a breaded chicken halal sandwich on a focaccia. And please don't charge $24 for it. I can't recommend this place for anything other than coffee - the coffee was good, but still a bit pricey.

Edit: both myself and my husband have had upset stomach since yesterday. I learned through another review that the breading (which is not noted anywhere in the menu, and I WOULD NOT HAVE ORDERED the "club" sandwich if I knew this) is made of cornmeal which I am intolerant of. After waiting for 30 minutes I had considered just asking for my money back and leaving and I wish we had done that. Now we just have diarrhea...