Dessert Review: Caffe Bene

Caffe Bene
106 Mott Street New York, NY 10013
212.575.5484

I've seen Caffe Bene popping up in almost every neighborhood in Manhattan and I knew that at some point I had to visit one of their locations.

Will and I passed by Caffe Bene in Chinatown and decided to check it out after our dinner.

First, I would like to say that I truly love the decor and ambiance. It's like a homey, spacious, and upgraded version of Starbucks. It's relaxing, cozy and perfect for post-date coffee an desserts, studying, catching up with a friend/s, or catching up on work.

There was a lot of beverages, sweets, and savory items to choose from. We didn't know what to order so it took us a while to decide. We wanted to bring a dessert home to share with his family. We ordered the strawberry waffle and strawberry honey bread. We waited approximately 15-20 minutes for the strawberry honey bread which seemed to have took a long time.

Strawberry Waffle

The strawberry waffle was made prior to us visiting Caffe Bene. I felt like we were tricked by this. The strawberry waffle looks nothing like the one shown on the website. The most disappointing part of the strawberry waffle was that it was hard like a rock. It took a lot of strength to bite into it. The second disappointment was that it was way, way, way too sweet! True disappointment.

Strawberry Honey Bread

Will ordered the strawberry honey bread to share with his family. This was the dessert that we had to wait 15-20 minutes for. I assumed if we were waiting this long for it must take time to prepare and be delicious. The presentation of it was pretty and adorable just like it shows on the website. 

The dessert itself wasn't good at all. It was a giant piece of bread with a layer of cheese spread and slice of strawberries. It was a little funky at first and also the bread was very soggy. I was expecting a golden, toasty, and crunchy bread not a soggy and mushy bread. Second disappointment.

In conclusion, we felt like we wasted our time waiting for these two disappointments. Everything tasted under par and mediocre. Customer service was mediocre as well. I am sure there are other menu items that are not disappointments at Caffe Bene  and we will definitely have to give their menu items a second shot, but absolutely not the strawberry waffle or strawberry honey bread. Never again.