ad hoc : cafe — Restaurant in New York

The drinks and food are great.

A shame that the service is always reliably mean-girl — the friendlier you are, the more surly they get. Smiling must be fatal for those who work there. (They do seem to make an exception and be marginally friendlier to a very narrowly defined specific kind of person. I’ll let you figure out what that is.)

The service is also so slow as to defy logic and physics. No matter how many or few people are there. Last time, there was no one in line before me when I ordered, and I waited 25 minutes for a pretty simple drink order. AFAICT before my order, all they made was 1 sandwich and another coffee order. 25 minutes to make 3 things. I literally don’t even know how that’s possible. This isn’t a one time thing. This happens every time. In fact this was a relatively QUICK wait time compared to my other visits.

Bonus: I’ve been about a dozen times, and no matter how few or many things you order, they get exactly one aspect wrong of every part of your order. Never more, never less. Faithfully, every single time, for each drink and food item. It’s comical.

I wanted so badly to like this place. On paper it is so up my alley and it should be my everyday go-to, my second home. That’s why I’ve tried over and over to like it. I never do that when service is bad but I tried to make an exception for this place, especially because (I think?) it’s woman owned. I’m done.

PS this place’s responses to negative reviews say it all. They’re all about “think about ME” and “see it OUR way.” We’re ALL going through a pandemic. This isn’t / aren’t the only place / people / business going through a pandemic. But they want customers to bend their experiences and reviews to suit this place’s point of view. That’s not what “service” is, which - surprise - is the business this place is in. They’ve got it Bass....

This is a vintage-style café ☕️ tucked away underground in New York’s West Village. If you walk by without paying attention to the small sign, you might miss it.

The words “food for the soul” at the entrance caught my attention. I wondered if this place might have something that really fits my taste.

The name “Ad Hoc” is also interesting. In the IT world, it usually means something temporary, but here it feels more like something that belongs to the present moment. I can imagine the space changing over time, which gives it a relaxed and flexible feeling.

When I walked in, I saw four staff members 👨👨👩👩 working. The space felt like a private study or reading room, filled with sofas 🛋️, old tables and chairs, books 📚, magazines, and newspapers 📰. The atmosphere was warm and comfortable.

The coffee beans they were using today were called Eclipse, from a well-known brand called Onyx Coffee Lab. The flavor notes were baker’s chocolate 🍫, burnt sugar, and smoked vanilla bean.

I ordered a hot oat milk latte because I wanted to see what kind of latte art they would make. It came in a thick white ceramic cup, and the top had a neat leaf-shaped pattern. I believe the powder on top was a mix of cocoa and chocolate, because I could really taste the rich chocolate flavor and smell the cocoa. The sweetness was just right. The drink cost $7.62 with tax, and I think it was...

This place makes you feel unwelcome unless you buy more than a drink. I bought a matcha and the owner “recommended” that I buy a pastry too if I want to sit down (in 100 degree weather). If I didn’t, I could go sit outside.

They said the indoor space is for people who want to “dine”.

When I left to leave, the owner said, “actually you can sit but if someone comes and wants the table you have to leave”. So I decided to stay and drink my matcha for a while

Not a good place to chill, I felt tight and uncomfortable and left soon after. Also, the wifi is for 1 hr only.

The barista was nice.

Edit: the owner said I should change my review to be accurate - I apologize, the person who spoke to me wasn’t the “owner”, she was perhaps a manager. Anyways, it didn’t feel like a matter of “dining” or “drinking”. It was more that I was expected to make a minimum purchase - and it was expressed in a passive aggressive way. Also, there were plenty of other places in the neighborhood I could have visited, so while I understand that it was out of consideration that the manager said I could stay, it was also probably because they...