The Funcken Café — Restaurant in Waterloo

I’ve been going to Funcken throughout my university years, and it’s honestly one of the most underrated spots on Waterloo campus. It’s tucked inside St. Jerome’s, and a lot of people don’t even know it’s there. It’s a small, student-run café with a really cozy vibe. They always have cute seasonal decorations, board games, and lots of seating (though it can get pretty busy, especially in the fall).

Their drinks are way better than you’d expect from a campus cafe. The chai latte and matcha latte are both so good. But my favorite thing is the Build Your Own Bagel. You can customize it however you want with a little paper form, and it’s super affordable; usually around $5 for a full sandwich that’s actually filling. The pretzel bagel is my top pick, but it does sell out sometimes. My usual order is the pretzel bagel with sun-dried tomato cream cheese, honey mustard, spicy pickled peppers (I think they’re banana peppers?), lettuce, onion, provolone, and sometimes tomato. It’s seriously so good.

They also have a build-your-own sandwich combo, and I think some gluten-free options too. Just something to keep in mind—if you’re vegetarian or have dietary restrictions, they cook things like eggs and their grilled cheese on the same surface as bacon.

Service is usually fast and the staff are always kind and friendly. The wait is usually just a couple minutes. I also love the little whiteboard they put out with random names of the day. If your name’s on it, you get a deal, which is such a fun touch.

All in all, Funcken is such a great place to grab a warm drink or a cheap and tasty lunch. It definitely...

Today I went to this cafe because my friend saw on their white board that my name qualified for their name of the day free coffee promotion. Once I arrived, I was told by the barista that my name was actually from yesterday and they forgot to wipe the whiteboard and update the names. I was expecting her to at least compensate me because I came a long way, it's technically false advertising, and it's a good business practice to own up to your mistakes and compensate the customer. I left having to pay for my coffee, feeling very...

Had worst experience. It was snowing outside and we had our PD session going on in SJ2 building. We got 10 mins break and me and my colleague wanted a coffee. We went to the cafe running and waited for 10 mins to order, the Indian lady kept on making her orders and was talking to someone - headphones on. We waited additional 5 mins and ran back to our session which already resumed. No good customer service. Ignoring the customer and just working on your own without even letting us know if its gonna take...