Little Sister Coffee Maker — Restaurant in Winnipeg

Let me preface by saying the coffee they served was one of the best cups of coffee I've had in a long time. Kudos to y'all for this.

The interior of this shop is so unique; white tiles, teal painted bricks, a borderline-code-violating low ceiling. Every item on the shelf that was there was color matched with the teal backsplash. The whole thing is a very Italian looking - they even had a La Marzocco espresso machine to top it off.

When I first descended into the cafe, the first thing I thought was 'bathroom-core.' Between the bathroom tile theme and the thick smell coming from the dingy public toilet that someone had clearly just used- and used well, I felt dirty being inside. I cannot stress this enough: proper ventilation and self-closing doors on public bathrooms are a must in a tight space like this.

We ordered a drip coffee and a latte of sorts. During the order, the front counter staff person coughed several times into their palms. I was appalled but hopeful that they might wash their hands before serving me my coffee. My hopes were quickly squandered as she gave me my coffee without skipping a beat.

While we waited for the latte to be made, we both noticed that the longer you stayed, the more grime you noticed. For example, the tables were stained and sticky, the bar itself was unkempt, grimy, and littered with disorganized odds and ends. The milks, alternative and regular, were sitting out of the cooler or fridge they had, and seemed to have a permanent location on top of the bar in the cafe.

As we made note of all of this, we realized we had been waiting for about ten minutes and had not received our latte. We got up, waited by the counter, and eventually the server asked if she could help us, or if we were waiting on something. We explained we had not received our latte yet.

Instead of hopping-to and prepping the drink, the barista and the server gobbled at each other trying to figure out if they had swiped the drink away from their POS machine. Eventually they came to the conclusion that they forgot about it, and slowly made our drink.

The drink was delicious, and so was the coffee I ordered. It was a nice surprise after the experience we had.

If you take anything away from this review let it be this: If you are willing to sacrifice a bit of germophobic sanity and stand in a coffee stained public washroom for a few minutes, I highly recommend...

Little Sister Coffee Maker is a fantastic third-wave coffee shop located in the lovely Osbourne neighborhood. Living in Minneapolis where third-wave coffee shops are abound, I was initially skeptical as to what Winnipeg what have to offer. Immediately upon entering, I fell in love. They have a lovely space with an exposed stone wall that balances the bright white subway tile throughout the long linear space. With Eames chairs, built in benches, and Blu Dot bar stools - Little Sister has what I could easily argue the best coffee shop vibe I've seen.

They have a serious coffee program with a brand new La Marzocco espresso machine and knowledgeable baristas. When I visited they were using 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters and offered both Fetco-brewed and pour-over brewed coffee. Their coffee program is complemented by phenomenal pastries. I always remain dubious of chocolate almond pastries because most times bakers skimp out on adding enough chocolate to make the pastry enjoyable. Having said that, Little Sister served the best chocolate almond pastry I've had. With plenty of butter, the pastry was crisp and flaky with plenty of chocolate inside. The pastry paired well with the coffee I had.

If I wasn't crunched for time, I would have stayed longer. I know that this undoubtedly would be a regular spot for me if I lived in Winnipeg and I can't wait to get back soon, visit Little Sister again, and other third-wave coffee shops...

The stairs weren't sanded and there wasn't a sign to let people know that it was slippery. My mom had mobility issues and fell really hard while going down the stairs. We went inside to warm up after the whole ordeal and so she could get something warm to drink.

Talked with the baristas about putting a sign up at least and they immediately defended themselves saying they couldn't find sand this morning. They put up a small sign after I told them it really isn't that hard to get a piece of paper and at least let people know. We had some lovely kids who ended up putting sand on the stairs, but this should really be the responsibility of the café. It's not difficult to foresee the weather and winter in October isn't unexpected here.

The overall air was just very inconsiderate. Other than 1 barista who gave us ice, no one asked to see if we were okay and I had to go up to them myself and tell them to be more considerate of people in the area and to do better as a small business. For a business that advertises itself as a "safe and inclusive space" and as having a community vibe, this was deeply disappointing. Having people gawk at you while struggling to walk and then being ignored while you're in pain really speaks to the culture of this café. Basic safety is something even children understand, so either the workers and manager here are out of touch with reality at best or purely profit driven with no consideration for the...