215.893.5680
Yelp, Google Maps
M - R: 6:30 am - 8 pm, F: 6:30 am - 9 pm, Sat: 7:30 am - 9 pm, Sun: 7:30 am - 8 pm
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| Cafe 12 |
Cafe 12, formerly known as Brew Ha Ha!, is located in the heart of Center City in the Gayborhood. While under previous ownership when it was still known as Brew Ha Ha, this café was recognized as the best café in Gayborhood by Philly Magazine. Even after ownership changed, Cafe 12 has been able to maintain quite a loyal client base as it remains one of the top independent café in the vicinity. I visited Cafe 12 Tuesday around 3 pm, which is generally not a peak hour for most coffeeshops. So I was a bit surprised to see that the place was packed.There are about 12 smaller round tables towards the front, but they were all taken. Fortunately, I didn't have any serious studying to do, so I was content to head to the back of the café , where they have several sofas, which were all open. I gladly sat down and found them to be reasonably conformable.
I went up the barista to get something to drink. I was pleasantly met with very prompt and courteous service. Though she didn't really to be the type of barista who's willing to engage in long conversations with customers, she was friendly and quick. She didn't seem to know too much about the coffees though. They had all the usual selection of coffees, espresso drinks, teas, Italian sodas, pastries, etc. But as you may know from my previous reviews, I tend to just sample their coffee. My theory is that if they can't get their coffee right, why try anything else? But yes, back to the coffee. I asked what kind of roast they had and she kind of hesitated. I'm always surprised by the number of barista's who are seemingly afraid to talk about their coffee - as if they know they don't know too much about it. She did mention that the blend of the day was a Honduras medium-roast coffee. After paying $1.89 for the coffee with my credit card (I love places without a minimum charge), I took my coffee back to my sofa. It had a pleasant aroma so I thought it would be pretty tasty. So I was shocked when I tasted it. It tasted very watered-down and pretty bitter. Not even worth finishing it in my opinion.
The ambiance is fairly pleasant. It feels very different from the typical chain café (e.g., Starbucks), and is very much an independent and local establishment. My big gripe though, is that it's very crowded and packed. If you're willing to sit on the sofas in the back, you won't feel that way. But if you're somehow able to sit at one of the smaller tables in the front, you'll be bound to feel extremely claustrophobic within minutes. It's almost as if the owners played a game to see how many tables and chairs they could fit in a confined and limited space. They do have a few power outlets disbursed throughout the café. But honestly, I don't think it's worth even trying to study here. The tables are impossible to get for one thing. But even if you're able to grab one, they're small. The space is packed. And the Wi-Fi is absolutely terrible (I measured it at .13 Mbps, which is extremely slow).
**Edit***
I forgot to mention. They have two bathrooms. In the spirit of Gayborhood, neither are gender labelled, with which I have no trouble. But the bathroom on the left doesn't lock! Another strike against Cafe 12.
Bottom-line: it's a cool little place in the heart of Center City. They have fast customer service, but coffee was unimpressive and it's impossible to study there. 2 beans out of 5. Share your thoughts in the comments!
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