Pino
A greasy spoon cafe with pleasant decor.
Location is wrong for two reasons.
- On a corner of a busy junction, no outside seating, if there was too polluted.
- Within spitting distance of two greasy spoon cafes, two corporate coffee chains serving disgusting undrinkable coffee.
Bread sourced from Iceland.
Coffee sourced from LavAzza.
Layout poor, too much space devoted to their serving counter reducing the seating area.
Ambience not pleasant, mainly due to poor layout and hard surfaces, very noisy, impossible to relax.
Coffee LavAzza therefore my expectations were low, and they were not exceeded. Cappuccino with chocolate dumped on top sent back, second coffee undrinkable. All the classic mistakes, including coffee scalding hot.
Why oh why does no one know do not dump chocolate on top of a cappuccino? Not unless trying to disguise that it is crap coffee. At the very least ask. And a good coffee shop would not dream of asking as would not wish to insult their clientele.
No water brought to the table, nor could I see water on display to help oneself to.
The norm in Athens, as soon as sit down, ice cold water brought to the table. It is called service.
Ibriks on display. For show? To my surprise they served Turkish coffee, though the bed of sand not large enough. I did not try.
Poor use of social media. Facebook, a message box pops up even though may have no wish to post a message. If do, lack the courtesy to reply.
Maybe would have got away with opening a greasy spoon cafe serving undrinkable coffee ten years ago, not now, the world has moved on, and if wish to drink undrinkable coffee have the corporate coffee chains, two of which Caffe Nero and Costa are located nearby.
The market is saturated. If opening these days have to serve quality coffee, quality food, otherwise on a hiding to nothing. Source coffee from local roasteries Stokes or Seven Districts but God forbid not from Lincoln Tea and Coffee, cakes and bread from a local bakery.
Bricked-up windows opened up have improved a red-brick Victorian building, but why the grief and hassle by the local council, three months delay for a resolution? If going to give grief give for the garish entrance out of character with the building not the windows. The same council with not a clue what constitutes good town centre design, the town centre trashed, ugly buildings, binge drinking bars.
