Friend's Cafe — Restaurant in New Brunswick

I am so upset that I feel compelled to write this review right now. I have been a loyal patron of Friends for many years now. I am a senior at Rutgers and have spent many wonderful afternoons at Friends cafe. I know all of the familiar faces and even am very friendly with some of the kind baristas. This afternoon, my boyfriend and I decided to do our work at Friends outside. We arrived, I placed an order, and began to do work on our laptops. My boyfriend placed his bagel and coffee that he brought from the dining hall on the table. We then were interrupted by who I assume is the owner of the cafe, a man who I have seen at the cafe countless times. He stated that the bagel must be thrown out or put away as there is no outside food allowed on the premises. I completely understand this and if I was a business owner, I would have made the exact statement. We complied with his request and my boyfriend removed the bagel from the table and stood up to throw away his coffee. The man then came over to us again and began explaining how my boyfriend should go inside and place his order if he wants to sit at the tables outside. He then began stating that this is "common knowledge" and that we would NOT be allowed to sit outside unless my boyfriend purchased something as well. Note, that I had purchased both a sandwich and a coffee at this time. He also stated that there were multiple signs all over the cafe which stated this. I have never once seen a sign in friends cafe that states I MUST purchase an item to sit inside or outside. Personally, I think this is absurd, especially in a coffee shop which attracts college students who enjoy finding peaceful places to do their work. I asked him if it was absolutely necessary that my boyfriend purchased something even though I had purchased two items and he stated YES. He stated the cafe "was not a library" to which I replied I would like a to-go box for my sandwich because I was starting to become irritated by his demeanor. I am so infuriated at the way my boyfriend treated, but also the way I was spoken to as a paying customer and someone who has been extremely loyal to this establishment for YEARS. I always felt friends was a welcoming space, especially for college students, and I never recalled seeing a sign stating an item MUST be purchased in order to enjoy the space of Friends cafe. As someone who has spent a considerable amount of money at the cafe, I am sorry to say I won't be returning. If the owner is so adamant about his clientele purchasing an item in order to sit, he should place SEVERAL, LARGE signs up promptly. Never once have I been shooed out of a cafe for not purchasing a product. Perhaps some people will disagree with me, but I feel I need to voice my opinion. I'm disappointed in friends and I truly expected a more welcoming atmosphere from...

Where do I begin? Do I start with the food, the staff, the indoor/outdoor dining area or the owners? If I could give 10 stars I would, I’ve been going there probably close to a year now and I can say with the utmost confidence that I have never had a bad experience or meal there. The menu is full of very unique dishes that were very well thought out and made with only the best ingredients that money can buy. But none of it would be possible without the time, love and years of experience of the cafés entrepreneur, Josephine, or as I call her “Jo”. And the cafés business operations manager who ensures that everything it running like a well oiled machine, “Mo”, or Mohammed, Josephine’s husband. The concept, a dog friendly café? In todays day and age? Simply genius. I am there a few times a week, sometimes days, to have lunch with my best friend and loyal pooch, Zoey. We are either having lunch, dinner or both and if you bring your dog there just go right in, pick a place to sit inside or out, and you might see a menu item called “Zoey’s Chicken”. Or choose from one of the home made menu items cooked specifically for your canine with only the finest fresh ingredients. Watch the game on the giant screen TV while one of the cafés friendly staff bring you a fine Italian espresso, or hot Persian tea. Just about all of the staff are college students working around classes trying to make a few bucks, and every single one of them are friendly and proud to work there, they treat the place like they own it. Mohammed and Josephine were blessed with these fine young adults, so make sure you leave them a good tip after you finish your lunch, they work hard and keep the place running 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. Don’t forget to choose from one of Josephine’s hand made pastries, pies or croissants from the assortment of home made desserts on display, which are so good it will guarantee you’ll be back for more.

Bon...

Odd and unprofessional hiring experience. I am a college student who noticed they were hiring, so I applied considering I have previously worked in two cafes. The interview with the owner went well, but he asked multiple questions that I felt were inappropriate and off topic like my relationship to my parents for example. Anyway he texted me immediately afterwards to start training, so I ended up training for 3 hours on three separate days for a total of 9 hours. During that time, the owner did not observe me at all, but the employees working with me were helpful and patient with me. After the last training day, the owner told me he would let me know when to come in so he could evaluate me himself before adding me to the schedule. Two weeks went by so I reached out to him and then we agreed for me to come in the same day and I did. He did not seem satisfied with anything I did during that evaluation, which is fine but it definitely seemed unfair. For instance, he asked if I could retrieve cups in his inventory that were not even there, and then when he observed me taking a customer’s order he said I should have tried to sell them additional items. Anyway at the end of the evaluation he said he would text me the following day for his decision for next steps, and I never heard from him.

Regarding the quality of the coffee there, during training at night I asked how we should clean the espresso machine with Cafiza. To my surprise, the person working said they do not do that on a daily basis. It was also very surprising to me that the “cold brew” being served is just a bunch of cooled down...