April-Rose Cafe - Hamilton

Hidden among the residential streets around Ascot and Hamilton, April-Rose Cafe is one of those unsuspecting places that serves up a wholesome meal right on the doorsteps of many residents. Right behind a corner store, it is just a slide of the glass door and you step into the void of somewhere reminiscent of long ago. Even for something that can be called a hidden gem, this is even more hidden by having to look closely to see that it is there. If I was walking by without prior knowledge, I would not have given a second thought. With finding this place, call it a plug for the Zomato app if you will, but that was how I found here. Just fiddling around with the map section of it one day at work, I found out that there were a couple of more places within walking distance to the location. Between the train station and the implied said work place, it was not too much of a deviation. All that I needed to do was when I logged out of work was to take a detour and see if it was there - lo and behold, there was a new place to go to get coffee for the next time I was going into work. Going right back the way I came some days later, it was a quick duck into this little place. The look and feel of the place is like a granny flat. It has several small tables, a calming use of colours along with flower imagery and a set up where the entrance is right at the counter - so getting greeted is almost immediate upon entering. The dog is accounted for just oustide with a bowl of water for it to drink. If you want to stay in for your coffee, meal or whatnot they have plenty of newspapers to peruse. The ladies here are friendly, and they are up for a chat. Upon coming here, it had only been about 8 or so months since they have opened, so it is still kind of in its infancy. This is only a coffee and cake that I ordered, mind you, so it might not be the most representative instance to discuss the speed of service. Still, I was not waiting too long for it before I was on my way so pluses where it can count. They have quite a stock standard menu. It mainly comes down to an all-day breakfast, which serves a variety of the bacon and egg kinds of meal, along with several kinds of sandwiches. In addition to that, there is the cabinet selection of various kinds of sweets. Finishing off, there is the usual drinks selections - coffee, teas, and the milk-based drinks (e.g. milkshakes, iced cofees etc). So, as you can tell - nothing so gourmet or exciting. Like I said, the reason I was here was getting a quick duck in for some coffee. The coffee that they is from Merlo. Many times beforehand it has been said, but Merlo is one that really relies on how good the barista is at making coffee. Bad to substandard ones have been abound from this blend from my experiences, but some of my favourites also manage to make some of the best coffee from it. Merlo is luck of the draw in the end. This time, the coffee did no suck. It had the right texture, was both strong in intensity and sweet in flavour, plus the temperature was just right for drinking. So, points to this place for making coffee. To go on the side with my coffee, I also got a friand. This was not bad, but I have had better. The biggest problem that I had with it was that it had dried out a bit. It was not all bad; the size of it looked small but it was dense enough to be a filling morsel, and the thick chocolate topping which finished it off tasted good. I still am not complaining with something on the side of good coffee. April-Rose Cafe does have its place. For the locals in the area, it can be seen as their local which at the moment is little known, has a personable nature to it, and feels homely among all the homes. What this just goes to show is that sometimes snooping within the local area can uncover what a previous wide swoop will have overlooked.  Maybe some return visits ought to get a better perspective about this cafe, but in this one go, I can say this. The strengths that it is already showing is that they provide a reliable blend of coffee within a relaxed setting, and have a couple of really friendly ladies serving the fare.  A more apt way to describe April-Rose is that it more resembles a tea room than a cafe. For sure, I don't feel I am in the target audience but from the observations, I can make this can go down well and slowly become the neighbourhood watering hole if they can correctly play their cards.

Hidden among the residential streets around Ascot and Hamilton, April-Rose Cafe is one of those unsuspecting places that serves up a wholesome meal right on the doorsteps of many residents. Right behind a corner store, it is just a slide of the glass door and you step into the void of somewhere reminiscent of long ago. Even for something that can be called a hidden gem, this is even more hidden by having to look closely to see that it is there. If I was walking by without prior knowledge, I would not have given a second thought. With finding this place, call it a plug for the Zomato app if you will, but that was how I found here. Just fiddling around with the map section of it one day at work, I found out that there were a couple of more places within walking distance to the location. Between the train station and the implied said work place, it was not too much of a deviation. All that I needed to do was when I logged out of work was to take a detour and see if... read more

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