Café Costumice — Restaurant in Da'an District

I had an extremely unpleasant experience at this restaurant. I arrived in the late afternoon and noticed that there was only an outdoor table available. The waiter seemed reluctant to seat solo diners, which was off-putting. Eventually, I chose a corner seat outside, but I got a big mosquito bite on my forehead. I then had to request to move indoors.

Once moved to a table indoor, I was trying to finish my drink quick, but my experience was further disrupted. The waiter opened the fridge door twice while trying to get to the wine, interrupting my time at the table. The entire experience became so unpleasant that I felt the need to rush through my drink and pay just to leave. When I was paying at the counter, there was an additional delay as the waiter struggled to find the table number associated with my bill.

While the restaurant itself and the atmosphere were nice, the service was not up to standard. The staff appeared poorly trained, especially regarding seating arrangements. It also felt as though solo diners were being treated differently, which made the experience even more frustrating.

I’ve walked past this café several times and finally had the chance to pop in for a drink today. Unfortunately, the experience was disappointing. The staff member who greeted me and showed me to my table was not being considerate at all. I was seated at a corner outdoor table, which was swarming with mosquitoes. Although it was my choice to sit outside, I believe the staff should have warned me about this issue beforehand.

The first table I picked was for two, but it seemed the waiter didn’t want to seat a solo diner there, which is why I ended up in a mosquito-infested area. Even the mosquito killer lamp didn’t make much of a difference. A bit more consideration for customers would have made the experience...

UPDATED (5-3 stars⭐) Went back two more times and started to see the inconsistency in both service quality and coffee making skills... In the most recent visit, it seems like the barista is less experienced and the milk didn't froth well... I pointed it out to the server and a more experienced barista made us a new one.

Regarding service, the male servers are usually fine but there's this female server who seems like she doesn't care at all...

FIRST VISIT (5 stars⭐) Flat white with Ethiopia beans is so good! It's a medium light roast with very floral notes but without the acidity. Highly recommend!

There were many seats inside and plenty of charging outlets available. WiFi is free and reliable. Great for working (if you don't need to be...

BEWARE: don’t waste your time going there if you have a kid. We were denied a table by the manager, claiming that the environment at the outdoor seating was unsafe for children, which is utter nonsense. Genius of the year award goes to the manager for making up the worst excuse ever for refusing guests. I guess they only want the Instagram bragging crowd as customers, if which is the case they should put up a large “no kids allowed” sign instead. They probably allow dogs though, they are trending. There’s a bunch of nice cafes in the neighborhood with outdoor seating, I would recommend anyone that appreciates genuine and friendly service to take their...