Cafe Mosaics — Restaurant in Greater Strathcona

TLDR: Poor attitude/service, overpriced, burnt food, cold restaurant, won't return

My girlfriend and I went for brunch on a Saturday morning. It was ~11:30 am when we arrived and were seated (after waiting 5+ minutes when there was a table available and plenty of staff around) at a two person table in the corner by an out of service door and the windows.

The spot was a bit drafty so we noticed an open table where a couple had been seated at previously and had left and chose to move there. We alerted our server of the change and she gave us the OK. Once we moved locations we had a new server that told us the table was reserved for "4 toppers." I've never heard that term before so I asked for clarification. She stated that the four person table needs to stay open "in case it gets busy." I was puzzled by this as a couple had been seated there previously and the restaurant was just as busy now as it was then. Eventually we were given the OK to stay there. My thoughts are you should always tend the the customer in front of you, not a potential customer that may never arrive. I felt that interaction was rude. However, it is not the servers fault and she was simply the messenger.

To start, we ordered the coconut chai and a cacao matcha drink. The cups were small and the drinks were a tad lacking for $7.50-$8 each. For food, we ordered the matcha pancakes with chocolate ganache and the scrambled eggs with hash browns, vegan sausage and toast (with eggs, not tofu.) When the scrambled egg dish arrived, nearly all the hash browns were burnt: they were black and inedible. Additionally, the eggs were tofu, not eggs and also burnt. In other restaurants you get jams/jellies on the side for your toast; that was not the case here. The matcha pancake dish was OK, but it is served with frozen blueberries, not fresh which is a bit disappointing. However, the chocolate ganache was excellent. The syrup they serve (if you ask) is good as well.

When our server came by to ask about the food, my girlfriend politely indicated the hashbrowns were burnt, and the server half-heartedly asked if we wanted new ones. The place was busy and it already took a while to get our food so we said no but it was evident that we were unhappy. Our server quickly left our table. It took until we were ready to get our bill that another server asked about our meal. He seemed genuinely concerned about the burnt potatoes and rushed to the supervisor and the kitchen to communicate that a discount was required. Our server did not relay the feedback to the kitchen when it was first brought up.

In summary, I felt frustrated with Cafe Mosaics and I won't be back. But I applaud the male server that intervened to try to smooth things over and the chocolate ganache was...

Cafe Mosaics is hit and miss. Since moving to the neighbourhood, I've been here several times. However, I finally decided to leave a review after having lunch here earlier today.

As it was Good Friday, I tried to look up if they were even open. Nothing on the website, or social media for that matter. I called the phone number listed on the website, and so it rang... and rang... and rang. It would be nice for them to at least have a message indicating holiday hours.

After going for a short drive to see if they were open - turns out they were. Thankfully we got a table right away. If there were more than two of us we may have been waiting for longer.

We sit down, the server takes our order for both food and drinks. Now, it shouldn't take 20 minutes to get a simple black coffee and a tea. The food arrives about 10 minutes later. One of the pancakes is mostly burnt. Not just browned, burnt black. At this point I'm not waiting for another one or made, as they're clearly understaffed already.

When the server comes past our table to ask how everything is, I mention that one of our pancakes is burnt. It's not a huge deal, as my partner doesn't mind eating it instead. I suggested mentioning it to the kitchen as something to note. Silence from the server. I'm not sure if she did speak with anyone from the kitchen, but that's beside the point. It would've been nice to at least get some sort of apology.

Almost 50$ (including gratuity), only to leave disappointed in the service and food. I would be willing to pay that much if the experience was worth it, but it wasn't. Either have more staff in the front and back of the house, or lower...

I love Cafe Mosaics. I would normally give this place 5 stars. But yesterday I went in and my service was pretty horrible. I went in to grab some quick pancakes to go as I had somewhere to be. I've done this in the past and I only had to wait 10-15 minutes tops. When I arrived I stood at the front desk where I waited for 3 minutes as an employee just continued to work and completely ignored me. Finally she asked if I needed help(?) then took another 3 minutes just to write down my order. Her attitude was not friendly and she acted like helping me was not her priority. Then I had to wait for my pancakes for 30 minutes. 30. Minutes. I even considered leaving without my food because I was going to be late for my appointment. No employee came to tell me what the hold up was. They all just ignored me as I was sitting there alone wondering why it was taking so long. Last time I waited they offered me water, I wasn't offered any this time. I noticed people who arrived after me were getting there food before I was. When half an hour passed I finally got my pancakes and the same girl who took my order was acting very b**chy and unfriendly as she gave them to me. The pancakes weren't even hot like they had just been made, they were luke warm and soggy like they had been made 10 minutes before I got them. And because of all of this I was half an hour late to my appointment. I am not happy with this experience at all and I probably won't be going here again for...