Review: Rachel
A good measure of gentrification is probably the density of cafés. Just a block down the street from Beechwood Café & Market is another little coffee house named simply Rachel.
The interior is decorated in a typical fashion with mismatched antique tables and chairs and a big window seat. All of this looks very inviting and staff was quite friendly.
However, when it comes to the pastries, there is still work to be done. For instance, the chocolate croissant could have had some, well chocolate. The puff pastry was excellent: flaky, moist, and crisp on the outside. But the chocolate filling was just two thin spines on either side. Maybe, had we been eating it with butter or cream cheese, it would have been fine, but to eat it as is was not a particularly good experience.
The cheese Danish suffered from a similar problem. The pastry itself was great, but the cheese to dough ratio was simply to low. It could have benefited tremendously from an overall smaller size.
All this is not to say Rachel’s is without some redeeming offerings. The coffee is flavorful, distinctive from what you could easily brew at home. The same is true of the cappuccino, though perhaps the price was a little high. And the mint lemonade, we are told, is excellent. We don’t tend to like mint lemonade, but our better half has been back many times just for that.
Rachel’s is a nice addition to the Grove Street retail district, but is not probably a place we’d be likely to recommend to friends. It is however, a nice place to sit and talk with friends, even if the pastries aren’t that good.
Rachel
251 Grove Street
Between Montgomery and Mercer
The interior is decorated in a typical fashion with mismatched antique tables and chairs and a big window seat. All of this looks very inviting and staff was quite friendly.
However, when it comes to the pastries, there is still work to be done. For instance, the chocolate croissant could have had some, well chocolate. The puff pastry was excellent: flaky, moist, and crisp on the outside. But the chocolate filling was just two thin spines on either side. Maybe, had we been eating it with butter or cream cheese, it would have been fine, but to eat it as is was not a particularly good experience.
The cheese Danish suffered from a similar problem. The pastry itself was great, but the cheese to dough ratio was simply to low. It could have benefited tremendously from an overall smaller size.
All this is not to say Rachel’s is without some redeeming offerings. The coffee is flavorful, distinctive from what you could easily brew at home. The same is true of the cappuccino, though perhaps the price was a little high. And the mint lemonade, we are told, is excellent. We don’t tend to like mint lemonade, but our better half has been back many times just for that.
Rachel’s is a nice addition to the Grove Street retail district, but is not probably a place we’d be likely to recommend to friends. It is however, a nice place to sit and talk with friends, even if the pastries aren’t that good.
Rachel
251 Grove Street
Between Montgomery and Mercer
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