Madame Bonté Café — Restaurant in New York

I usually don’t post reviews unless I’m really annoyed with something because I’m a pretty low maintenance person when it comes to customer service. But I’ve given this place my business several times per week (my office is right around the corner). I didn’t buy from them today because in all honesty they’re really pricy and I had points to use at SB. So I grabbed a coffee at SB at took a seat in their outdoor seating area. Nobody else was sitting out there since it’s like 30°F, my break is only about 20 min so I just needed a place to sit and chill until my break was over (SB didn’t have any seating and this place always has outdoor seating open). Anyways, about 10 min in to me sitting there (again I’m the only one sitting out there because it’s December and cold) and one of the baristas comes out to tell me I’m not allowed to sit there with outside food or drink. I know she recognized me because I buy from them all the time so I was a little confused. Now, I would’ve understood if there was like a line of customers out the door waiting to sit in their seating area or if maybe I had been sitting there for hours. I told her I buy from them all the time (hoping that the usual business I give them on a weekly basis would allow me the courtesy of sitting there for a few mins during my break). Obv that wasn’t the case - so she made me leave. It’s just annoying because regardless of a “policy”, it still pays to allow for some common courtesy. Anyways I’m not giving them my business anymore. Coffee isn’t that...

I got off the train on 96th and 2nd Ave and was in the mood for something sweet. I had heard about his place and it had really great reviews so was excited to try it. I took the train from World Trade Center and had gotten a coffee before taking the train up here so I had a cup of coffee that I had been sipping on. When I came into the coffee shop I opted to buy a scone and also bought oatmeal to have later tonight. I didn’t get a coffee since I had already been sipping on one during my train ride. I had ordered an uber to take me home as it started to drizzle and sat on one of the chairs outside since the uber gave me a 9 minute wait.

A gentleman approached me rudely and proceeded to scold me as I was eating the scone (which was very good by the way) and said “you know you’re not supposed to have outside drinks, this is a place of coffee, that’s what we do so you shouldn’t do that.” I explained that I had come off the train and told him my cup was practically empty and that I had purchased a scone and oatmeal. He made me feel so bad that I gathered my stuff up quickly and left promptly.

I try to support and respect small businesses especially during this time. It was not my intent to disrespect in any way. There is a better way to approach customers though and his scolding and way to speak to me was not acceptable. Although the scone was very good, after this interaction I will not be back. I’ll stick to my staple Black Star Bakery....

I had the lavender mocha latte and a plain scone. The latte was so delicious and came out already at the perfect temperature for me to sip for 20 minutes. Usually when I get hot coffee I need to let it sit to cool down because it will scald me, but the baristas here nailed it. And the flavor was awesome, too. I never find lavender-flavored stuff so it was a nice surprise to find such pleasant lavender mocha. The scone was nice and freshly baked. They warmed it up for me, too.

The location itself is a cute little place, with as much seating and talking as possible packed in. It fits a surprising amount of people and is very comfortable, clean, and atmospheric.

The service was also phenomenal. They were slammed when I came in, but I got my coffee quick, and when I pointed out that my scone got missed, they brought it out for me right away. I also witnessed the barista bring around the coffee and food for a woman with a walker who would have had a hard time getting to the counter to get her order without even being asked. There also appeared to be many regulars which made the place feel very...