Balzac's Guelph — Restaurant in Guelph

Many people in Guelph love this coffee bar. I don't enjoy how tightly packed together the seats and tables are. I dislike that the proximity of the tables and chairs means having to shift and move every time a person near to you arrives or leaves. I didn't enjoy how noisy the place was between coffee and drinks and food being made and people talking and chairs scrapping across the floor and tables needing to be shifted to accommodate the variant numbers of arriving or departing people at those tables. I had been invited to Balzac's for a meeting on a Saturday after the Farmer's Market had closed, and found it very challenging to find a reasonably priced item on the menu. After settling on a tea, there was a very long wait time for my beverage as few people were working that day and several lattes were in the works ahead of food needing to be plated. Narrow passageways meant a lot of shifting and negotiating space with people arriving to the counter and pile ups as the line grew with waiting patrons. As staff moved around and people attempted to exit or wait for the restroom, things felt increasingly disorganized. When I finally found a spot to sit and the meeting began, it was incredibly challenging to hear what the other person was saying and all the shifting was disruptive. My visit occurred on a cold winter day and the patio was closed, so it is likely that the place was more populated than normal, but it was not a comfortable visit. I have not been back since that visit and have no intention of returning. The in-store menu did not seem to have a lot of suitable options for me as a gluten free vegan, and the website doesn't give a clear indication of what to expect in store. The prices were unappealingly high and the congestion sealed the deal. If I was the type to work at a laptop in a café, this would not be the place I...

Consistently good. The Balzac's Guelph is also helped by the café company and product being great. Good service here, and it has a nice environment. However, it must be pointed out that in the corona era, there are people dining inside Balzac's in groups of more than 2 or 3, and who are not putting on their masks once they are finished with their beverage or food or when remaining at the café. Many places now implement and share a reminder to guests to put on their masks once they aren't eating or drinking for a while. Balzac's must do this as well, for health and safety.

The location is also small, which comes at a price and means more protocol. There are still people camped out with their laptops (which happen to be plugged into the cafe outlets) for a lengthy time. Sorry, but those days and behaviours are done. It is not fitting and is out-of-place in the new normal or pandemic era. There are places these days they could go to that are office space centres designed specifically for hourly or daily rentals, with good rates, a kitchen, and designed with distancing protocol in mind. We all have to do our part, otherwise we won't have places around such...

Disappointing Experience at Balzac’s Guelph

I was really looking forward to spending some time at Balzac’s in Guelph with a friend, but we were kicked out before we even had the chance to order. I still had less than half of a Tim’s coffee left, and even though we were about to buy food and drinks from Balzac’s, the staff told us we couldn’t stay because of it. Keep in mind we are students and we were opening our laptops and setting up and warming up before we ordered anything.

It felt unwelcoming and unnecessary and money hungry especially considering we were planning to support the business. Instead, we went next door to The Found Café, where the staff were friendly and accommodating. The food and service there were far better, and they actually seemed to value new customers.

Balzac’s ended up losing two paying customers that day. I definitely won’t be coming back after that experience, and I’d recommend The Found Café instead for anyone looking for a warm, customer-friendly...