Atmosphere (9/10)

Bank Coffee’s ambiance is clean, minimalist, and modern. You will find plenty of seating – raised wooden counters along the windows, a couple of leather lounge chairs and several linearly organized tables for two. It has the quiet rumble of laptops clicking, sporadic flows of customers, and the espresso machine white noise of a good cafe study spot. The open-concept layout ends with a display case of cake slices, the counter to order, and an expansive menu of specialty drinks and crepes printed in tiny font on a couple of overhead television screens. 

Service (8/10) 

The service was prompt and the staff were friendly. However, they were unfortunately out of a couple menu items on Saturday at 10:30am, such as the white chocolate and the Monster Crepe.

Food and Drinks (9/10)

Their menu boasts unique specialty drinks. We tried their chocolate orange latte, raspberry coconut latte, maple latte, matcha with strawberry and raspberry foam, and the All Covered in Berries crepe. 

The iced chocolate orange latte was refreshing, bright from the soft bitterness and caffeine of coffee, and not too sweet. It tasted more of orange than chocolate and carried a pleasant floral and citrus aftertaste. It was a drink that basically tastes like the sum of its parts – as good as expected. 

The iced raspberry coconut latte was on the milkier side, with the coconut milk front and center. The coffee itself was super smooth and fresh-tasting without the bitter or burnt aftertaste sometimes found at chains. Though the raspberry syrup was a bit tricky to stir in (a little chunky), its subtle tartness nicely cut through the sweet coconut milk for a well-balanced sip. A fun twist on a summery latte, if you're willing to do a little mixing.

The iced maple latte remained on the sweeter side but did not leave you feeling weighed down. The maple flavor was subtle and stronger at the start, dying down towards the end of the drink. The espresso was smooth and didn’t contain any unpleasant flavors, like burntness or bitterness. The drink was essentially a sweetened latte, but good nonetheless. 

The matcha with strawberry and raspberry foam was solid, but perhaps a bit underwhelming. Having expected a pink foam top, I was a little disappointed to find that the strawberry and raspberry components were just syrups on the bottom – no foam to be found. Besides this, the matcha itself was pretty decent, lacking that horrible graininess that Starbucks matchas typically have nowadays while maintaining a nice, consistent, earthy flavor. 

The thin crepe was served on a wooden board, delicately folded with layers of assorted berries, topped with a drizzle of dark chocolate, and adorned with dollops of whipped cream. A satisfying, soft, gently sweet, and freshly-prepared accompaniment to the drinks.

Value (7/10)

Each drink was around $8, a pretty steep price compared to other local cafes. Still, Bank Coffee offers extended hours compared to other coffee shops, open 7am to 7pm daily.

Total (33/40)