I had heard that this place was "the best" and being #4 of 59 restaurants in Varkala on TripAdvisor I would have thought it was a sure bet, but nothing is for sure except the grim reaper and the taxman.
To be fair, I made several visits at various times of the day and I have to say the service was dismal nearly every time. On at least three occasions I sat at my table for 15 minutes or more and was totally ignored (I many times purposely do not make a fuss to see how long it will actually take), having ultimately had to either get up and ask for or retrieve my own menu. On one occasion one of the servers, who I will call "India Jones" because of his long hair, unkempt beard, tattered shirts, and "local" Kerala dress (he wears a sarong as a skirt even though he is obviously a westerner), moped around, conserving energy I assume, and lumbered past me at least ten times, never asking me if I needed a menu or wanted to order. I sometimes believe that I am invisible here because employees constantly walk by without even acknowledging my existence.
 |
| Chicken Salad Sandwich - 230 Rupees |
The coffee and teas are good, coming in large (10 ounce) mugs, but are a tad overpriced by Indian standards. The food looked good from what I saw others order, but is also a bit more expensive than most places. I have to admit that the only things I tried were the the toast, three large, thick pieces of brown bread with butter and jam (80 rupees/$1.30 - I had to provide my own peanut butter even though the menu claims they make a crepe with it), a large bowl of fruit muesli (100 rupees/$1.60 and not so large) which was not bad and a fair deal, and their chicken salad sandwich (230 rupees/$3.75 with cheese), a huge disappointment. The bread, a small baguette (see photo above) with sesame seeds on top was the highlight, but what little chicken salad there was oddly enough was served warm, the chicken mostly dark meat and full of gristle, and the mayonnaise had a rather disgusting sweet taste like Miracle Whip, which I loathe. Disappointingly small and lonely on the plate with no garnish, it was one of the worst meals and values I had at any restaurant in my nearly four months in India.
The place has potential with its incredible view and open air feel, but the servers need to do something about their simultaneously apathetic and arrogant attitudes and start acting like customers are important. As far as the food was concerned, I was not impressed, but the coffee and masala chai were pretty good. The only reason I am giving them 5 bombs and not 4 is because they are about the only place on the cliff that consistently opens early (6:30), so if you are an early riser like me, not always by choice, you can at least get a coffee or breakfast with a sea view no less.
CombatCritic Gives Coffee Temple 5 Out of 10 Bombs ... More Bombs Are Better!
Follow CombatCritic On Yelp (An Elite '14/'15 Member) And TripAdvisor ("Top Contributor") Where You Can Read His Latest Reviews, Try His Favorite Recipes, And More!
Title: India Jones and the Temple of Gloom
Title: India Jones and the Temple of Gloom
Key Words: Coffee Temple, coffee, temple, Varkala, cliff, beach, Kerala, India, restaurant, cafe, food, menu, tea, sandwich, breakfast, view, sea, CombatCritic, TravelValue, TripAdvisor
I was also very disappointed with Coffee Temple. Granted, the cappuccino was quite good, but overpriced. The humous and pita were okay, but like you I found the service abysmal and I was quite intrigued as to why the staff were almost all foreigners (westerners). Foreigners are not allowed to work in India on tourist visas. The other thing I didn't like was the setting, far back from the cliff, and away from the sea breeze. Both times I went there it was stifling hot with no breeze and no shade. I think I'd give it a 4 :)
ReplyDelete