Cafe Bibliotic Hello! — Restaurant in Kyoto

I read all the lukewarm reviews and decided to go anyway, since I accidentally napped through my intended dinner time and this cafe was one of the few places still open within a few blocks.

I walked in, greeted them in Japanese, and then asked if I could sit anywhere (second floor was closed off, no big deal since the place was mostly empty at 10pm Monday). Ordered a glass of wine, the cheese plate, and the Wagyuu beef stew. Food tasted wonderful, if pricey.

Suspicious of whether I was being ripped off for being a foreigner (albeit a soft-spoken Asian woman foreigner), I checked my receipt over and yes, flat rate tax in Kyoto is 8% and being raised to 10% in October 2019 (extortionist). When I asked about the lack of organic fig stuff on my cheese plate as indicated in the menu, I was told that it was sold out. With good service in America, I expect to be asked whether this is alright and with great service, be offered an alternative to a sold-out item as apology, before my food arrives. Maybe they just practice lukewarm service, because my glass of water never got a refill after I emptied it nearly immediately after being seated (and the customer two seats down did get a refill, halfway through my meal).

tldr; late-opening hipster cafe with good cozy food and ambiance, but don't expect the famed Japanese...

A+ for atmosphere! Also love the fact that this cafe is open late, unlike most cafes in the area.

We visited this cafe with two toddlers in tow. The staff was accommodating as they could be (though the lady helping us didn't seem too happy about it), letting us come in with our (relatively small) tandem double stroller. There are no high chairs or anything of that nature for children (it might be mentioned that there actually WAS a high chair in the store but it was being used to display flyers--the staff didn't seem to even realize it was a high chair). There were, however, children's books and toys on the shelves, which helped keep our toddlers busy.

The menu was surprisingly varied, with everything from cake to steak. I get the feeling the menu changes relatively often, possibly seasonally. We ordered the pesto pasta and the ham and blue cheese baguette sandwich (the bread for which I assume comes from the attached bakery). Both were enjoyable. The latte was also quite good.

While I personally liked the shop for its style, I got a bit of an unwelcome vibe thus the...

The look of the place is outstanding with okay food, however, the rest is garbage.

Our waiter was one of the rudest waiters I've ever met. My friend kept trying to ask her something and she'd just walk away and say "just wait". Half the menu is sold out and the other half is restricted til a certain time. If you get something from the far more reasonably priced bakery, then you must buy a drink to stay there.

So to go with your actually reasonably priced muffin, you must now drop at least double to triple the price on an abysmally small drink. 850¥ (8$) for a tiny smoothie that frankly wasn't terribly impressive? The atmosphere can't save my opinion of this place from that. There were also strange restrictions like I couldn't buy one of the muffins because it was take away only. Why it'd be take away only, who knows. Why couldn't I just buy it and not eat it there, again, who knows.

I'd really avoid this place. It's by far the worst service I've had in Japan and I've lived here...