Cafe 22: Meant to Brie

Last Saturday, after the awesome and VERY memorable AHS Fun Run, I had lunch at Cafe 22 in – you guessed it – Uptown Waterloo. I go there at least twice a week!

Cafe 22 is a pretty refined, European-style cafe famous for their fresh panini sandwiches, salads, and wide dessert selection.

The ladies serving us were bright and cheerful, and very dedicated to helping the customers. I really appreciated that! And look at the beautiful lighting structure here. The entire cafe was beautifully decorated and had such a sophisticated vibe.

 

The three ladies behind me were talking about a new baby that one of them just had. 🙂

Isn’t this place decorated perfectly? Couldn’t find a single flaw in their interior design 🙂 I plopped down in a corner table with lots of sun, unpacked my laptop and notes, and went to order my food…

Make-Your-Own grilled wrap with salad

This has to be the #1 wrap I’ve ever eaten, and that’s mostly because it was grilled! Have you ever had a grilled wrap? They are SO different, I’m telling you! Grilled wraps get crispy on the outside and the fillings become warm and melty. That really takes them over the top in my book. 🙂 Served with a fresh garden salad drizzled with a pesto-balsamic dressing and served with a little pickle on top. Plus my Sociology essay!

My wrap featured…

• Brie
• Turkey
• Field greens
• Roasted red pepper
• Grilled eggplant
• Artichokes
• Tomato caponata
• Avocado
• Pesto sauce

The generous hunks of brie and zest caponata paired well with creamy, mellow avocado and the bright flavour of eggplant and artichoke. This was an incredible wrap, and the brie was the best part! Thank you Cafe 22 for putting enough cheese in here 🙂

Hazelnut crunch bar (milk chocolate and toffee), apple crumble tart

I overheard an elderly woman telling the cashier how much she loved these crunch bars – and how she enjoyed one every week. There were also pistachio and dark chocolate crunch bars on the table, but I’m a total sucker for sweet milk chocolate and hazelnut, so that’s what I ordered. I snapped off a little bit just to sample it, meaning to save the rest for dessert the next day, but before I knew it, the entire rectangle was gone. Crunchy, chocolatey, with sweet butterscotch and toffee flavours, this was a treat to remember. I will definitely get another hazelnut crunch bar next time!

This apple crumble tart was an impulse buy – I actually ended up freezing half of it for a future dessert. The other half was crumbled over yogurt the next day for dessert. Delicious, and since I was also eyeing the pumpkin tart, that’s what I’ll be enjoying next time.

I walked two blocks down to Seven Shores Urban Market and Cafe, a hipster cafe with serious West-Coast vibes. I wanted to nibble on some scone or muffin (yes, more sweets = happy me) but they were all sold out. Might’ve actually been a good thing for me. 😉 I had a small hot chocolate.

Small hot chocolate

I was sort of expecting something rich, dark, and decadent, but this was frothy and light. Not bad, just not what I was expecting. I was surprised that I actually loved this drink and gulped down the entire thing in three massive sips rather than enjoying it elegantly as I studied. :O

Not quite sure what that design is supposed to be, though!

The best place to study is a place with food. 🙂 Unless you are like me and finish the food before even cracking the book open. What do you think?