Café-Flor / Bar 21 — Restaurant in New York

I discovered Cafe Flor in 2022 and fell in love with the general design and atmosphere. However, after a recent experience at the shop, I am no longer comfortable visiting and suggest you consider my experience before supporting an establishment like this. I came to Café Flor on Monday Jan 22, 2024 to grab tea and work on job applications with a friend. I arrived around 2pm and my friend was scheduled to arrive around 20 mins later. I sat down by the bar/coffee area with my laptop open waiting for my friend to arrive. After less than 10 mins, a caucasian staff member approached me and asked me if I would like anything. I smiled and politely said 'no thank you' to which she GRILLED ME and gave a look of disgust and said "you cannot sit here unless you purchase something...this isn't a library" I was appalled! Then she pointed to a water bottle I had in my bag and said "unless you purchased this here, then you can stay" I looked at her in confusion because I've never had an employee speak to me this way at Café Flor or any coffee shop for that matter. I have come here many times and I was actually planning to order something once my friend arrived. I ended up relocating my seat because I was uncomfortable and waited for my friend to arrive. When my friend arrived she purchased something and we stayed for about an hour and left. I am extremely dissatisfied with the way I was spoken to. I feel like that employee was aggressive in her communication and she didn't have to make that additional comment about the café not being a library. To me, that was completely unprofessional, and I wanted to file a complaint against the specific woman because I was not rude to her at all. My frustration is that "if" there was a policy about needing to buy a drink before using the wifi and sitting in the seating area, that should have been made CLEAR and evident somewhere in the store for customers to see. She didn't even direct me to a place where that policy was written out for me nor did I see it on their website, so it felt like a personal attack--perhaps even racially motivated. They had a small sign that said "laptops after 5pm" but nothing about using the wifi or seating without a purchase, so I truly don't understand the logic. I have no problem respecting a policy, but I can't respect a rule that I DO NOT KNOW EXISTS! I got in touch with the manager after messaging the coffee shop on Instagram to which the manager, Juan, did nothing (from my knowledge) to remedy the situation. He has been unresponsive since we exchanged numbers. I am extremely disappointed because I was a loyal customer and was treated with...

This spot was cute aesthetically. My friends and I used to frequent it to work from— decent vibes, okay coffee, bad food, good pastries. But there is no sense of hospitality here, thanks to the overzealous man-child they’ve got running the place as “the manager.”

We’ve seen this guy (who loudly identifies himself as “the manager” any chance he gets) get into multiple arguments with customers who had the audacity to — gasp — sit and wait for the line to die down before ordering. Meanwhile, the service is slowww. They could easily run multiple orders at once, but nope. Expect to wait.

And heaven forbid you open your laptop — he’ll circle you like a hawk just to remind you of the ever-changing “laptop hours.” One day it’s fine, the next you’re being condescendingly told to shut it like you’re a 7-year-old. The rules shift depending on his mood, which, by the way, he broadcasts while patrolling the café like he’s monitoring snack time in a preschool. He’s not afraid to ask people to leave for no reason.

As a Chelsea resident and someone who loves café culture, that behavior is incomprehensible. Just pacing the place wide-eyed like a bush baby, reminding everyone he’s “the manager,” followed by an awkward silence — like he’s waiting for applause, a gold star, or a pat on the head.

It’s giving ✨dictatorship café✨.

And the real kicker? All this energy… in a space with shaky tables and booth seats literally held together with TAPE. Like… huh?? You’re out here serving Homeland Security energy but can’t fix your a chairs? Be serious.

Honestly, Cafe Flor needs to raise their standards for management. Hospitality, communication, basic customer service — these things matter. Especially in Chelsea. Scratch that — this kind of experience wouldn’t be acceptable anywhere. Maybe in a correctional facility… but...

This place was becoming one of my favorite coffee shops in the area. I’m a Chelsea resident and many people in the area also come here to enjoy a good coffee/drink and work. I understand to a CERTAIN POINT that you want to bring balanced vibes and have people also enjoy their time not only work but thats not something favorable to do during the week. During the week people work and we come here because we want to change environment and be able to work during evenings because sometimes our jobs have people in different time zones- something you need to consider.

Maybe have social hours or specific days have a set up where it’s laptop free on ONE side of the cafe and laptop friendly on the other. That way you will even have people waiting to come in.

I think this place has so much potential but it needs better management and consideration of the area. Since they started this new no laptop rule at 7pm SHARP, the min 7pm myself and about 8 other people grabbed our stuff and walked out the place. YOU ARE LOSING MONEY.

Take this from someone who was going there very frequently for 2-3 hours and purchasing various drinks + food.

& pleaseeeee train your staff to be friendly to everyone. Manners matter. I’ve even heard owners be rude to staff and that’s not...