Teremok Cafe
Ever since I started zen-ing at Moksha Yoga Waterloo, my curiosity was piqued by this mysterious little cafe next to Moksha, which seemed to be always closed! Seriously, I’ve never seen it open… probably because I go for yoga in the evenings or on the weekends. I guess Teremok Cafe only targets the lunch crowd.
Since I’m big into doing research before visiting a review target, I get annoyed by restaurants with no website/online presence. Where else am I supposed to find out about the history/type of food/opening hours/menu items?!?! At the same time, I salute them for not giving a hoot about the digital age, forcing me to obtain the hours of operation using old school methods – staring at the sign on their door. Aha, you can’t stop me from visiting even without a website!
It was a cold and rainy day. Having read good reviews about Teremok Cafe’s borscht, I was excited to sneak out during lunch break for a bowl of comforting soup. I had no clue what a borscht is, but my best friend Google Wikipedia was happy to educate me on that.
Borscht is a soup of Ukrainianorigin that is popular in many Eastern and Central European countries. In most of these countries, it is made with beetroot as the main ingredient,giving it a deep reddish-purple color. In some countries, tomato is used as the main ingredient, while beetroot acts as a secondary ingredient.
So, I guess Teremok Cafe serves… Ukrainian food? I have no idea what’s Ukrainian food either, but it definitely fits my criteria of exotic new food so I could not wait to try it.
First Impression:
PINK.
PINK.
MORE PINK. Oh well.
On the Table for Maple:
- Homemade Borsch Soup + Shepherd’s Pie ($10.50)
- Meat Crepe ($6.25)
- Perogies x6 – Cottage Cheese ($5.95)
- Cheesecake ($4 approx)
I was utterly disappointed – the soup did not have exciting flavours. It fell flat for me.
Y really liked the Shepherd’s pie. The mashed potatoes were smooth and creamy.
The meat crepe felt like plastic.
The cottage cheese perogies were a tad sour, and very soggy.
At this point, I was desperately trying to redeem the verdict of this cafe. I really wanted to like it. It seemed like a cosy and homely place serving food made with tender loving care.
So I ordered the cheesecake. BAM. Wrong choice.
This was simply three pieces of graham crackers stuck together with cream cheese. Its not a cheesecake! Its a cream cheese triple-decker cracker!
There were many reviews of the super fantastic food but bad mean service. It was the total opposite for me – owner was nice, but not nice enough to bring me back for another meal.
I guess her authentic Ukrainian food is just not for me. Sobs.
Verdict:
1) $ price – all reasonable except for dessert
2) Too pink
3) Okay service
4) Soggy, bland food – except Shepherd’s pie
