It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere…
…seems to be the attitude of Coca Cafe in Lawrenceville when it comes to seasonal foods.
I stopped into Coca this morning for breakfast and the first thing that caught my eye on the menu was their roasted vegetable omelette, which is described as containing seasonal vegetables. “What’s in the roasted vegetable omelette today?” I asked the waitress.
“It’s always got spinach, onions, tomatoes…” and she named another vegetable or two, but she lost me at tomatoes.
“Tomatoes don’t sound very seasonal,” I commented. She stared at me blankly, clearly not catching my drift. I pointed at the menu. “The menu says that it contains ’seasonal vegetables,’ but tomatoes aren’t in season.”
“Oh,” she replied. “Well, we get them in from our suppliers, who get them in from…” she paused briefly. “from wherever they’re in season,” she concluded. “And, they’re only grape tomatoes.”
All right, so first off, if the omelette always contains the same thing, why isn’t it described on the menu as to what it contains? Moreover, to use the word ’seasonal’ to describe something that always is the same is a blatant lie and completely contradicts the entire notion of seasonality… especially when used to describe tomatoes in Pennsylvania in February! And how does it make any difference if they’re grape vs. cherry, beefsteak, or other?
The ‘wild’ mushroom omelette I got instead (containing portobello and shiitake mushrooms) was somewhat under seasoned. I got it with goat cheese, but as I was eating it decided that I should have requested the herbed goat cheese that is listed on the menu as the stuffing for herbed goat cheese french toast. Or maybe I should have just gotten the herbed goat cheese french toast.
The waitress described the bread used to make the toast that came on the side as being pumpernickel. In actuality, it was rye. The jelly that accompanied it was in a reusable stainless steel souffle cup, though— a touch that I appreciated (I don’t understand why so many places use those disposable jelly packs: surely it would cost them less to get a few bulk jars of jelly and serve a side dish of your choice of jam? Especially since they’re already washing dishes anyway.)
I’m not going to assign an orange rating to Coca for the time being. I’d like to eat there once or twice more before I make up my mind about them. But if you happen to stop in there for brunch sometime soon, ask them what’s in the roasted vegetable omelette. And then when they tell you, let them know that tomatoes aren’t seasonal! Just because it’s 5:00 somewhere doesn’t mean I’m pouring myself a whiskey for breakfast. Just because it’s summer somewhere doesn’t mean tomatoes should be passed off as a seasonal choice.
Coca Cafe is located at 3811 Butler Street in Lawrenceville. (412) 621-3171
March 6th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
Right on! Misleading. These folks are capitalizing on the “talk” but don’t do the “walk.” Thanks for exposing this fraud.
March 7th, 2009 at 4:05 pm
The goat cheese french toast sounds great! And, I bet there are no tomatoes in it.
March 8th, 2009 at 9:30 am
Welcome back Jesse,
Yes, it sounds like the server needed some educating, and the menu needing some updating.
As in so many places, what the management thinks or tries to do, is not always what the chef or server knows/understands.
You really have to ask questions . . . so many restaurants claim fresh, local, seasonal, etc. (as do some grocery stores), but those words are all relative, so you have to know what to ask.
March 9th, 2009 at 8:24 pm
I agree with all of the above, but do give Coca another chance, Jesse–it really is DELISH most of the time and the herbed french toast is excellent.
March 11th, 2009 at 10:53 am
I’m planning on going back to give it another try—I figure there must be a reason people line up out the door and down the block on weeke ds waiting for a table for brunch. But whatever the reason, it apparently has little to do with a seasonal menu.
March 18th, 2009 at 6:16 pm
Por favor aclarenme al decir Coca se refieren a la hoja milenaria del Peru?
May 22nd, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Jesse,
I’m the owner of the Allegro Hearth Bakery. As my bakery supplies Coca with baked goods, I’m familiar with the breads they use.
Just wanted to note that pumpernickel bread is made from rye flour. In it’s original German form, I think it was all rye, though in the U.S., most bakers add wheat flour and caraway seeds. Bakers also use a variety of ingredients to darken the bread; we use cocoa powder.
Coca uses both our pumpernickel and our regular rye. Maybe the server accidentally gave you the rye instead of the pumpernickel.
Omar
February 11th, 2010 at 4:32 pm
was a very good writing.
Thank you for this information
best regards
July 30th, 2012 at 10:32 pm
I’m planning on going back to give it another try—I figure there must be a reason people line up out the door and down the block on weeke ds waiting for a table for brunch. But whatever the reason, it apparently has little to do with a seasonal menu.