Moment Dessert House is a new Chinese run dessert cafe that just opened just two months ago. Located at 4300 Kingsway, this new cafe is located just two blocks from Crystal Mall. I came to know about them as I had seen their storefront on my way to Metrotown. They didn’t seem to have much of an online presence as their Instagram and Facebook pages had few posts. I was curious as to what they had to offer and decided to give them a try today. It seems a shame that they are so little known, so I did recommend to the owner on the way out that they should consider finding a good SEO Package to boost their visibilty online.
Spacious, Cozy Cafe
When I first stepped foot into the cafe, I was impressed with how spacious it was. There was a counter by the window, a communal table in the middle and dining tables near the back. It seemed like the kind of place where you would get together with friends for coffee and dessert. The cafe was generally quiet except for some background music so studying or working on your laptop there could be a possibility.
The interior had a very cozy, comfortable feel with cute decor including potted plants and vintage books.
It’s a great place if you want to sit down and work. It’s calm and relaxing. I found it so much better going there then using all the internet up at my home. This is something which has started to stress me out though because I actually feel like I’m spending more on my broadband then I need to. Luckily a friend has recommended that I use a site like Usave to help me get the best broadband deals. But even if I had the best broadband in the world I would still probably come to this place.
Moment Dessert House Menu
Moment Dessert House makes their baked goods in-house. They have a display case of ready-to-eat cream puffs and chiffon cakes. The cafe also offers Asian hot soup desserts like coconut sago, mango sago and red beans soup and more in the evening. The staff person told me me the exact times but you should check with the cafe to be sure. It didn’t seem like there was an “official” time for that.
What I Tried
At Moment Dessert Cafe, I went with a very matcha-centric order:
- Green tea latte ($3.75)
- Matcha red bean chiffon cake ($6.75)
- Matcha cream puff ($5.75)
While I provided a general overview above of Moment Dessert Cafe, this is the part of the review where things go downhill.
To start, the green tea latte was light on the matcha flavour. With a high quality matcha latte, I usually have a bit of a bitter matcha aftertaste. Based on how the latte tasted, I don’t think they used much matcha.
The lack of matcha flavour theme continues on with the desserts. Let’s me start with the matcha red bean chiffon cake. In terms of texture, it was light, reasonably fluffy and not too sweet. However, it lacked the two flavours that it was named for: matcha and red bean.
If you look closely at my photo, you can see an extremely thin layer of red bean. It’s barely anything, really. Unfortunately, the version that was presented on Instagram had a much more prominent red bean layer. Furthermore, as the matcha flavour was barely noticeable, it basically tasted like a sponge cake. For the price of $6.75, it was hardly worth it.
Moving on, we have the matcha cream puff. This item fared better in overall taste but still continued to lack much matcha flavour. The raspberries were a nice touch, the cream tasted fresh and the shell was crisp. However, for the price of $5.75, I would rather go with Beard Papas or Chewy Junior.
When I looked at the display case, I also noticed that their products seemed inconsistent particularly for the cream puffs. Some looked a lot sloppier than others and I had to tell the staff member the *exact* one that I wanted. Otherwise, she was on her way to giving me a rather ugly one.
Service
Another issue that I thought could be improved was the service. When I walked into the cafe and stared at the menu for a while, the staff member didn’t offer any introduction as to what they offered. I mean, if it’s a new restaurant, it would be nice to entice new customers by letting them know how you operate. You’ve only been open for two months afterall. She just seemed to stand there, acting as if I were a repeat customer who knew what to get, and waited for me to order.
Overall Impression of Moment Dessert House
There were so many things that didn’t work for me on this visit: the service, the cheaping out of the matcha in the matcha desserts, and the price. I wish I could recommend this place, but I don’t. It was very disappointing. Rating: 2/5