CARBONIC COFFEE

Just another Monday in Downtown, Toronto and I spent my early afternoon settling in for a few hours at Carbonic Coffee. What can I say about this cafe? Hm - well two words would be : eclectic and cute.

   As many of you know, the weather this January 2024 has been extremely forgiving. It's given me more time to explore Toronto and all its hidden cafe gems while feeling like I'm part of a scene from The Devil Wears Prada *cue Suddenly I see*. The weather has been just as cute as Andy Sachs wearing a string of pearls and a beret, so you know the weather has been slaying. Okay enough of the Devil Wears Prada references, let's talk about Carbonic Coffee in Toronto.

   Carbonic Coffee is located at 37 Baldwin St. Toronto ON M5T 1L1. Did you just screenshot that for your reference? Okay cool, you’re welcome. The location is also a walking distance from OCAD University's Main Building and The AGO, so I love that. 

THE SPACE : Carbonic Coffee Interior

   This cafe is tucked away in a quiet neighbourhood near an elementary school so the vibes walking there are just the sweetest. As I walked into the cafe, I was met with the curved and organic shape of the cafe. The environment had pretty back lighting, lots of wood, and a good selection of furniture to compliment the neutral space. The interior has a scandinavian interior design quality to it. The colours are easy to the eye, with wood panel accents to bring some structure into the space. The shape of the cafe is rectangular, as you walk in you first meet the espresso bar, then there is a further seating area ahead. Overall, it's an inviting atmosphere for some really good conversations with friends and for nice work sessions. It does get pretty busy during the afternoon rushes, so as you can imagine, sitting near the door will have you grabbing your second layer as it still gets pretty chilly inside the cafe itself. 

The DrinkS : Carbonic Coffee : London Fog

   It was very much a London Fog kind of day. I always love doing London Fogs if I want a drink that doesn't have coffee. London Fogs have such a soft aroma to them, yet when made right, it's full, hearty, and dessert like. I always recommend a London Fog no matter what. The London Fog at Carbonic Coffee was delicious! They used a micro ground Earl Grey for the tea base and if I had to guess which tea brand they used, I would guess Genuine Tea Co. The London Fog was great and I had to buy two before I finally packed up my work and ventured out to the rest of my day. Before I left, I had purchased a bag of their house blend espresso beans to take home since I didn't try their coffee in house. I might write a 'Top 10 favourite espresso beans that actually taste good at home' article and we'll see how that turns out, but for now I'll just tell you that it tastes really good! The most prominent flavour note I get from their espresso is caramel. I never thought I'd say it, but yes indeed this espresso tastes sweet. So great espresso, great vibes, is there anything about this coffee shop that I don't like?  

The MUSIC : CARBONIC COFFEE : The music they played

   One thing that can ruin a cafe's perfect score is the music. Have you ever gone into a cafe that was  nice, but the music was just a bit off? Yup, that can throw off an entire experience and I get that. But at Carbonic Coffee, the music was anything but bad. I am here asking for whoever's playlist that was to send the link to the Spotify RIGHT NOW, it was way too good! The playlist was a mix of jazz, chill hop, lounge and then they played 'Hip Hop Hooray' by Naughty by Nature. I kid you not, I felt new energy bolting through my veins when the playlist went from cute afternoon jazz to "IT'S 2pm losers WAKE UP WITH THIS 90's hip hop playlist!" I personally loved it and I promise you it's not as aggressive as it may sound, but the transition to changing playlists is an art and kudos to the baristas who make great London fogs and then double as DJ's! 

THE VERDICT ON CARBONIC COFFEE

   All in all, if it doesn't sound like I'm already drooling over this place, I will reassure you that I found this place very cool! The vibes are chill, the two baristas that were there were super friendly. I can't wait to visit again and it looks like they have fun drinks for night people too. Looking forward to writing again on the Blog O3! Until then see ya later folks!