Rita’s Café: Books, Wine, & Language Exchange (formerly French Café 1515) — Restaurant in Lake Mary

Lake Mary, FL. This cafe is excellent on so many fronts. Every Friday, they host a language exchange; feel free to immerse yourself in another language here. Every barista is bilingual! The food is great, the cappuccino is superb, and the vibe is unique.

Today I met Sora, who crafted a perfect decaf cappuccino that didn’t need sweetener. Sora brought it to me in a glazed mug, along with my vegetable quiche and salad.

True to the reviews, everything tasted great.

The menu is international, offering empanadas, tequenos, apple coffee cake, and more. A large American flag was displayed over a full shelf of games, and flags from many countries were displayed elsewhere in the room. The owner said that since Sora, who is from Japan, is now on board, they will try to add Japanese menu items.

There was a photo display on the wall of people visiting other countries.

In the front room was an upright piano with framed photos of groups of happy friends of the cafe. A couple of tables had chess pieces set up.

In the back room were books on shelves and tables, and an acoustic guitar on a stand.

The shop takes in donations of canned food for Second Harvest.

They’ve recently started a game night. While I sat enjoying my coffee the owner chatted with someone about how the game nights are gaining traction.

This is a great, unique concept and...

I decided to visit this cafe after seeing that they have a weekly language meet-up on Saturdays. I just came for lunch on a Friday. It is packed with books and trinkets. There is a lot of religious material and I think a weekly Bible study (added just for a description). I ordered a cappuccino and a French quiche. I was the only person ordering at the time. The cappuccino was served fairly quickly but then there was a long wait for my quiche despite it only needing to be reheated with some simple salad on the side. Before it was served to me, the only employee at the time decided to sweep the entire dining space. I was wondering if she was going to wash her hands afterwards. Then she put away washed dishes and then served my food. If I was the only employee, my priority would have been on the patron. It’s not like something has spilled on the floor. It was the kind of sweeping that you do at the end of the day when the cafe is closing and you’re mopping afterwards.

The quiche was nice. It didn’t remind me of the quiche that I buy often on all of my continual travels to France but it was nice. I don’t think that I’ll return but it was an...

Not sure what happened here...? Read lots of good reviews about this restaurant and was super excited to try it. Had seen lovely bright, inviting photos online too. We weren't sure if the restaurant was open or not...the open sign wasn't lit and nothing was outside/no tables or chairs were at the parking lot entrance...no music was playing outside. Upon entering at peak lunch time, it was quiet, dark where the order station and food display is (didn't see any lights on inside), and appeared closed. Door was unlocked so went in and looked for someone who worked here. Mentioned we were new and did not get any enthusiasm about us stopping in. Had the ham quiche which had less than half an ounce of ham (literally only two bites included ham) and the salad was nice to look at but only tasted okay. The vegetable quiche was alright but not like the quiche we are used to in France or other good restaurants in the U.S. In many reviews people mentioned how lovely the owners are...seems they are visiting France currently which may or may not be impacting the restaurant in their absence. Disappointed and maybe a bit confused by...