General Impression

When we heard we were having dinner at a place called Black Canyon Coffee, we weren’t particularly excited. Who really has a meal at a café and has an amazing culinary experience? When we got there, however, we were shocked to see that the food was Thai cuisine and not the usual cold sandwiches and plain salads. Funny thing was that the logo of the restaurant seemed more appropriate for Southern American cuisine (like ribs, cornbread, etc.) True to its name however was the wide coffee, tea and Frappuccino selection which was a mix of old classics, such as the Americana (which will be featured later on), unique concoctions such as the (kuya’s order), fresh creations such as the honey-lime frappe and kid-friendly drinks like the cookies and cream milkshake.

The menu, quite frankly, was a mess. It was unfocused—with too many different elements. The Thai section seemed good, many similar to what my siblings and I have had on our trip to Bangkok. As for the international section, I personally couldn’t grasp what cuisine they were trying to sell. I think the international section could have been done away with, but I suppose they’re simply trying to cater to a greater demographic

The Food

As for the food, everything we ordered was from the Thai section of the menu. My personal favourite was the Pad Thai. There noodles were perfectly cooked and the flavors of the prawns and the peanuts blended really well together—nothing was particularly overpowering. At first, we ordered two servings of Pad Thai (which we split among five of us) but we ended up ordering another serving because it was so yummy!

Next would be the Tom Yum Goong and Thai Green Curry Soup. They asked us what level of spiciness we wanted—moderate or Thai level spicy. We ordered for two bowls of Tom Yum, one being spicy and the other being moderate (since my nephew was with us.) For the curry, we got the Thai level of spiciness. Be forewarned, even if you love spicy food but have never tried Thai spices, I suggest you delve into the experience slowly. The Chicken curry was much runnier than we expected it. I call it soup because it was very runny and thin. The consistency was the same as that of the Tom Yum—bad thing? Not necessarily, just not exactly what you would expect. As for the spiciness—it definitely caught me off-guard. It wasn’t spicy when I first put it in my mouth, but as the liquid went down my throat, the spiciness kicked in. It wasn’t uncomfortably spicy, but it was much hotter than I thought it would be. The Yum (which is the Thai version of our beloved Sinigang) was sour and spicy. The moderately spicy one was almost not at all and the spicy one was spicy enough to satisfy someone who’s craving for a good-enough tongue burning. It was ordinary—nothing particularly spectacular (maybe it’s because we have had better?) but the broth was lacking in flavour, the prawns were scarce and the lemongrass stalks were still in the soup. I suppose, if I had tried the soup as a home recipe, I would think the world of it, but coming from a Thai restaurant, the soup was forgettable and very underwhelming.

We had also ordered other dishes—the only other one I remember was the spicy tuna which was really REALLY spicy. When I put it in my mouth I didn’t expect it to be spicy because it had sweet and sour undertones; as I chewed however, the spiciness started to diffuse in my mouth that I had to down the glass of water (which is tiny, by the way) Besides its spiciness, I found the dish kinda boring. Maybe I was just more interested in the other foods on the table but it was simply, forgettable.

The Drinks

The drinks, which are mentioned above, I suppose would be a little difficult to go wrong with considering that we were in a café. I’ll be doing a feature on the drink that I had with my meal. My brother told me that it wasn’t bagay to the food we were eating since the flavour palate was all sour and my drink was a honey lime frappe. I thought it complimented the meal really well though. The food was spicy and always left a savory taste in my mouth which was washed off by the honey lime frappe. It was like a clean fresh start in your mouth after having so many different spices in your mouth. It was tangy because of the lime and sweet because of the honey—but not so overpowering that you wouldn’t be able to appreciate your food anymore. It was refreshing and clean, which is the opposite of what I could say for a milk shake.

Final Verdict

Over-all the experience at Black Canyon Café was a pleasant one—the service was good and the servings were reasonably sized and priced. The ambiance was well lit and both date and family friendly. Although the menu was unfocused, the food was good enough to overcome that little detail. Personally, I wouldn’t mind going back for a plate of Pad Thai with a Honey Lime Frappe

Have you tried Black Canyon Coffee? Let me know what you think of this blog entry 🙂