Calcalí Coffee - Villa Olga — Restaurant in Santiago de los Caballeros

Here is a run down of our experience:

Party of 3, arrived at 11am. Was told there were 2 tables ahead of us. We waited about 25 minutes before getting seated. They put us as a tiny, barely enough room for 2 people table. After about 7 minutes, they moved us to another table. No menus yet, and no one to tell us they would be with us soon. Around 11:40am (yes, I was checking the time) the table behind us was seated and their drink orders were taken almost immediately, as we still waited for someone to acknowledge we were there. Finally, at 11:45, someone asked if we had ordered yet and we told him no. But he still left and took a minute or two to come back. Since by now it had taken over 15 minutes (!!!!) to be acknowledged, we decided to order drinks and food at the same time. Finally ordered around 1150, almost 12.

Focaccia (to share) Hot chocolate Frappuccino Cappuccino Hashbrowns Two omelettes Banana bread

Drinks still took another 10/15 minutes to come out. Bread came out another 5 or 7 minutes later. Focaccia was delicious.

Around 1230 the table behind us had already gotten their food and they were almost done. We had nothing.

Our waiter finally came to us to tell us that there was an "inconvenience" that happened, but that our food should be out soon.

Finally at 12:45 (!!!!!!) we got our food!

The omelettes were piping hot and good, just needed a touch of salt. The bread that came with it was nice and toasted; very good.

The hashbrowns would have tasted better if they had been served right when they were made. I got a plate of cool hashbrowns. Very disappointed. I could tell the flavor was good, but nothing is good when served cold. Again, very disappointing.

I made it a point to tell the waiter that it was good, but cold. If the "inconvenience" was that they forgot our order, or forgot to fire our order completely, then tell us. AND make sure to keep the food that is cooked, hot!

The actual best thing we ate was the banana bread.

The restaurant is nice. The atmosphere is cool. The music was a bit loud for me, but still good selection.

Please, do something about...

During my stay in Santiago, I had been wanting to try the local coffee, so after visiting a nearby museum, I followed Google Maps to this restaurant. Since it was right around dinner time, I decided to have a meal as well.

The moment I walked in, I was impressed by the server’s fluent English, it’s a huge help for someone like me who doesn’t speak Spanish. She quickly assisted me with placing my order and checked in from time to time to make sure everything was fine. Truly excellent service.

For food, I ordered the Linguini de Ossobuco, Risotto de Auyama y Cama, and Croquetas de Salmon. Every dish was delicious and generously portioned, with the sauce for the Croquetas de Salmon being especially delightful. For drinks, I had the V60 Experiencia and Smoothie Fresha y Limon. The coffee satisfied my craving after three weeks without it, and the smoothie was refreshing (perfect after a day spent under the hot sun)

As for the coffee, I have to give special praise. I’m not sure if Dominican beans tend to suit a darker roast, but compared to Panamanian or African beans, the flavor felt purer, without fruity or floral notes, just the rich essence of coffee itself. This made the V60’s quick extraction an excellent choice, reducing the chance of over-extracting bitterness. I think it would pair wonderfully with rich-flavored snacks for an...

Today I experienced discrimination at Calcali in Villa Olga. We always take our out-of-town guests there for breakfast and have never had an issue with the service until today. Maybe because this was the first time we came with a group of all black people. The hostess Carolina asked us to wait until a table for four opened up, despite the fact that there was an open table where we have sat with a group of four on several occasions. As we waited, another party of four showed up and were immediately seated. When I asked if they had a reservation, the hostess said no. Then, I asked why they were seated ahead of us, she answered, "because they were a party of three." However, the table clearly had four chairs. I asked why were there four seats at the table, since she had just told us a group of four couldn't sit at that table because it was too small, and she responded with “Porque si.” The food and coffee are great at Calcali, just don’t forget your white friend when...