Rachel's Coffee House - Yonge and Glebe (north of Davisville)

[peppermint pate]

I wanted to give a little shout out to this new coffee house near Yonge and Davisville. The owners are a lovely, soft-spoken couple who are working very hard to impress. And impress me they have with their coffee. Very credible americanos in a neighbourhood generally devoid of great coffee. My friend loved her cappuccino. I haven't tried any of their food - mostly pastries, a few sandwiches. I did notice they have NY cheesecake, which they serve with your choice of fresh fruit. Atmosphere-wise, it's closer to Timothy's than any of the indies - I personally prefer the atmosphere at the latter but still, the coffee is notably good and they are nice people to support. They have a street-side patio as well.

[prima]

Stopped by Rachel's today. Very good cappuccino, and a good buttertart, with a flakier, more buttery crust (choice of currants or pecans) than most versions I've tried in TO. Very friendly service.
http://www.rachelscoffeehouse.ca/

[peppermint pate]

Adding a bit more praise as I've now been to Rachel's several more times and each time, I discover something new. They have these 2 machines from Italy - one dispenses soft serve plain yoghurt made from skim milk. The other has soft serve salted caramel ice milk (homo), to which they add espresso shots if you'd like. Instead of a shaker with ground nutmeg, they have whole nutmeg and a grinder. They have water dispensers with lemon lime water and another with cucumber water - the cucumber slices are crinkle cut. They have a few sandwiches and salads - my friend had the rainbow salad with romaine, corn, cherry tomatoes, cranberries, grated carrot and the crinkle cut cukes. The owners are lovely and take obvious pride in the many little details. And the americanos are still great. Warmly recommended.

[magic]

They do things right. A great nighbourhood spot. What I like most of all so far is something you've touched on - their service.

[ylsf]

I know I post a lot of Blogto links, but I recalled a write up/photos about this spot a while back, adds to the discussion to picture it:
http://www.blogto.com/cafes/rachels-c...

They mentioned there that the owner used to be a franchise of Second Cup in Eaton Centre.

[autopi]

atmosphere's not great, but they do at least have decent lighting, it's not super loud, and i think (maybe?) that they have a good number of outlets. so if you want to plug in and get some work done, it's not a bad choice. plus, not very many other options around. i hope they do well.

[magic]

I actually think the atmosphere is terrific. Such comfy and streamlined chairs and tables. Lots of space for a relatively small place. It's simply but very nicely done.

[peppermint pate]

I think you're both right - and it really comes down to a personal style preference. They've obviously gone to a lot of effort to design a clean, light-filled space with higher end furnishings. I personally prefer the physical spaces of Rooster, Te Aro, Dark Horse, etc. So, for me, the atmosphere/vibe isn't what I would call terrific but for you and others, it is, which is great. But the coffee and owners are great and worthy of support. So glad that so many of you have already tried it and liked it - hope that bodes well for them.

[autopi]

yes, definitely a personal preference thing. and the space is actually really, really good for working in, largely b/c it's well lit and (relatively) quiet.

[peppermint pate]

Totally agree about it being a good, quiet, light space for doing work in.

[magic]

It's a great spot. Agreed!