Cafe Patachou — Restaurant in Indianapolis

I had high expectations for Cafe Patachou based on their high reviews. I don't know if they were having an off day or what - but I was not impressed at all. I came in an hour before closing for brunch with my sister. Opened the menu and the first thing I notice is the big block in the menu saying not to complain to followers about bad experience in the restaurant. I thought that was weird. The interior is beautiful I'll give them that; it's definitely a good atmosphere to brunch in and trendy towards what is popular nowadays.

The waitress was nice but I got a little confused when she told us the coffee was self serve before we ordered. I thought she meant coffee was included or something since we did not order coffee. Thankfully I asked and she clarified it wasn't included.

I ordered a hot chocolate (steep at $4.50 but hey, treat yo' self!) and the croissant french toast. My hot chocolate came slightly overflowing which was messy but not something I would complain about... it seems a waste to have them make me another one just because it overflowed. Taste was below average, it tasted like the instant hot chocolate packs you can buy from the grocery store. I expected more for the price point. My croissant french toast tasted good I'll give them that, but the appearance was off putting as it came out as a flat hunk of dark colored something.

Overall, even though my french toast tasted fine I wouldn't recommend this place for brunch just because of the price point. Restaurants come down to taste and if I'm shelling out the big bucks for basic items they need to be out of this world. Some places can do it, sadly Cafe Patachou didn't do it for me. If their food taste and quality improved it would be worth it but sadly it didn't pay off taste wise for me. You could get similar at other places for much less money.

Oh - I don't mind cleaning, I used to work in food service after all and I know how it is, but they set up the coffee right next to our table while they cleaned which was not the best atmosphere as people were coming and going next to our table. The restaurant was mostly empty so it seemed an odd spot to put it. The smell of the floor cleaner was kind of strong for me which also made our visit less pleasant. I had such high expectations for this place and I was really sad that it turned out...

Incredible place to have a healthy meal or get take-away. Friendly servers, a clean and quiet cafe. There are always beautiful, delicious salads , and an array of properly seasoned proteins available. The menu is reminiscent of fine home cooking, with fresh approach, an update. I am well traveled, and yet the meal I had here yesterday goes on my top 10 list. Don't like kale? I urge you to try their perfectly dressed, lightly sweet, kale berry salad which is nothing like you've ever had. The marinated cucumber salad with fresh herbs , halved cherry tomatoes in a variety of colors , and carefully rinsed red onion slivers, was a symphony of flavors and textures. I'm still craving them both. I'll want these salads until I die, probably. For my protein I chose the lake trout, which came grilled and simply adorned with pepper and salt. It tasted very fresh, moist enough, with the portion being enough for two . I also had the gazpacho, which of course is lovely, simply salted , chilled fresh tomato puree with nothing else. Perfect. They make their own syrups intended for sodas and other beverages. The cucumber- mint soda is just a touch of each, and quite refreshing. Please give it a try. I'm really impressed at how talented and well trained the young people working here are. Though a skilled home cook, I could never replicate the tastes they create. It's rare for me to eat out and truly enjoy it. I'm never satisfied, but yesterday I was elated. After eating the salads, sipping the soda, drinking the soup, I was unable to finish my trout; but I walked away trout in take-out bag, feeling nourished, I mean really nourished, in that micronutrient sort of way. My husband who ate stir fried noodles elsewhere felt tired and sluggish for the rest of the evening. Next time I hope he'll share a meal we with me here, and feel as light and...

We had eaten at Napolese (which is owned by the same people as this café) so we had high hopes. Sadly, this disappointed on most fronts.

We were seated outside and were greeted by our server promptly, placed our drink order hot chocolate (~$4.25) and water and then started reading over their menu. Aft a long wait, we got our drinks. The hot chocolate was filled about half way up the glass, was barely warm and the whipped cream had mostly melted so it had been sitting out for a while, which made sense since it took so long to get. It was decent, probably would have been better actually hot and filled to the actual top of the glass. We wanted to say something, but our waiter was no where to be seen for another long chunk of time.

We eventually got to place our order and the food was brought out by people who weren't our waiter. I ordered the salmon sandwich, the others ordered the Cuban and the bacon avocado sandwich and two orders of Cinnamon toast (we were told by friends that it must be ordered). My sandwich was cold and the salmon was warm; the other food was the same. The toast essentially had a pile of cinnamon in the middle and nothing else outside. We tried to spread it, but by then it was a lost cause being absorbed into the toast. Once again, we wanted to say something but our server (or any server) wasn't around.

After everything, I spent $58 before tip on brunch that was hard to call mediocre and service that was pretty bad. It was an hour and a half from seating to getting the bill and even after there was a hard time finding someone inside to whom I could complain. We eventually just paid and left. The toast was good (not the cinnamon cluster) and the quality of food has the chance to be worth it, assuming it would be properly prepared and served in a decent timeframe. I can't see the want or need to return...