MNGO cafe — Restaurant in San Diego

Great Flavors, but Be Ready for Long Waits on Weekends

MNGO Cafe is incredibly popular, especially on Saturday nights and afternoons, when crowds gather and the place is buzzing with activity. On my visit, I was told there would be a 50-minute wait if I wanted to order the famous kakigori. How frustrating! The issue is that every group orders multiple kakigori, but they only have one machine to make it.

Instead, I opted for the mango smoothie with coconut cream, which was a delightful blend of sweet mango and creamy coconut. While the taste was fantastic, I still had to wait over 10 minutes for it. If you want to avoid long waits, I recommend visiting during weekday evenings when it’s much quieter.

On a weekday visit, I ordered the mango sago and only had to wait about 5 minutes. It’s a lovely combination of mango, mango ice cream, coconut milk, and a slightly salty jelly—refreshing and unique!

On my next visit, I finally tried the mango kakigori. The ice was super fine and fluffy, with mango chunks underneath. The flavor was mild, but the sweet condensed milk they provided on the side made it a perfect balance. I also tried the Crème Brûlée, which had a nice thick caramelized layer—just the right sweetness, and it paired beautifully with the fresh mango.

Overall, the flavors at MNGO Cafe are worth it, but the long wait times on weekends can be a dealbreaker. I’d suggest going during off-peak hours for a more...

This is a busy cafe, even at almost 9:30 pm at night! We waited in line for about 10 mins. The servers were nice but when we got to the front of the line, they told us that the shaved ice would take 45 mins. So, we didn't order it. Turns out, other people who ordered after us did not wait for 45 mins to get their shaved ice, so I think this was a tactic to avoid shaved ice orders, and we fell for it.

We ordered the kopi tiramisu lava dessert with mango ice cream. The mango ice cream was wonderful and only saving grace for this dish. There was way too much coffee powder dusted on top. It made me cough when I had a bite. The sponge cake, the mouse, the mascarpone were just ok. We were disappointed with the dish and mainly finished the mango ice cream. We were even more disappointed to see people getting their shaved ice well before the quoted 45 mins because we went there to get shaved ice!

The ambiance is bright and quirky in that oversized mangoes hang from the trees all around. Because of how busy it is, it can be hard to find place especially for bigger groups. Have people catch a table the moment they see it.

If I am in the area, I'll try the shaved ice. But I'm definitely not coming back for their...

This is a popular and busy place on Convoy St. There was around a 10 minutes line to order on a Saturday evening. Around another 15 minutes for the food to arrive. Ordered the Mngo Sago and the Tiramisu Kakigori. Unbelievably, the two dessert dishes are almost enough for an entire meal for two. The Mngo Sago is a type of sago pudding made with coconut milk, sliced mango pieces, and choice of mango/coconut/vanilla ice cream on top. Don't go for the coconut ice cream option as it wasn't even sweet. The pudding had a lot of mango pieces though and the preparation was quite rich. The Kakigori is a unique dish with layers of ingredients. It's a treasure hunt trying to find all of the ingredients inside. Most of it was covered with coffee flavored ice flakes, with whipped cream on the top. Underneath, there are layers of what seemed to be mascarpone, ice cream and pudding. It's served with sweet condensed milk on the side. The bitter taste of coffee combined with the different shades of sweet and cream cheese is quite appealing. And navigating through the layers is a treat in itself. Definitely a must try item...